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2012 Montana Bicycle Ride
Ride Itinerary

Big Sky Country

Come away with us to the wilds of Montana – an area we have yet to explore on two wheels. Experience the beauty of the Clark Fork, Kootenai and Bull Rivers, as well as, the incredible sight of Flathead Lake flanked by the magnificent Rocky Mountains. Surprises galore will be had by all when visiting these rural communities which are throwing out the red carpet for your arrival.

Registration:    2 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Dinner:              6 p.m.
Rider Meeting: 7 p.m.

We start the day traveling back-roads east along the Clark Fork of the Flathead River to the town of Paradise. From here we jump onto a lightly traveled highway as the river winds its way through the Flathead Indian Reservation. The Flathead Indian Reservation is home to the Confederated Salish & Kootenai Tribes. In a state already famous for its natural splendor, the Flathead Indian Reservation is situated in a choice spot, smack dab in the middle of a collection of wildlife refuges and state and national parks that make it an unbeatable epicenter for any serious nature lover. Turning north, the first park we pass is the National Bison Range/Pablo National Wildlife Refuge, a 20,000-acre natural grassland where approximately 500 bison roam. Here the bison roam free, so cyclists are not allowed on its dirt roads, but it is possible to catch a glimpse of the animals from the Visitor Center off the paved road. We continue north, below the Mission Mountains, passing the Ninepipe National Wildlife Refuge, until reaching Flathead Lake and our campsite along its shores.

We spend this day traveling around the western shore of Flathead Lake. The beauty of this route comes in the form of lakeside rest stops and wonderful views of the continental divide and its 9,000 foot peaks. Along the distant mountains is the famous Bob Marshall Wilderness, reflected on the surface of the lake. We don’t climb nearly that high, just roll along the lakeshore until making our way into the City of Kalispell and our two night stay in a beautiful city park just north of downtown.

This ride starts as a relatively flat ride through the Oxbow Lakes area just north of Flathead Lake - quite a big difference to the mountainous terrain for which Montana is known. We skirt the top of Flathead Lake and make our way to the quaint little town of Bigfork, where the Swan River enters Flathead Lake. Leaving Bigfork we take a packed dirt path for two miles of the prettiest section of the whole week, riding Swan River Nature Trail with fantastic mountain views. The route turns hilly as we ride along the foothills, our closest approach to the mountains, before returning to Kalispell by passing by one if its best parks, Woodland Park.

Today we work our way through the fertile Flathead Valley as we head north. We enter the Stillwater River Valley, surrounded by forests, lakes, rivers and streams. To the east we still see the continental divide, only now the mountains rise up in the distant Glacier National Park. We enter Lincoln County and make our stop in the quaint, little town of Eureka, just five miles short of the Canadian Border. It may be small, but Eureka boasts an impressive collection of shops, art galleries, fine dining and even a movie theater. The town’s citizens will be wonderful hosts as we settle into our quiet campsites in the county fairgrounds.

What a way to explore! Riding our bikes on a lightly traveled forest road above an international lake called Koocanusa, stretching from high in Canada almost all the way to Libby. After crossing Lake Koocanusa at the northern bridge, it is 40 miles of pure bliss to Libby Dam with gorgeous views of the lake nestled in the river valley. From here we descend and follow the now free flowing Kootenai River as we all and make our way to the town of Libby.

We stay on the Kootenai River as we start our ride and make our first stop at the Kootenai Waterfalls. Here is an opportunity to walk across a “swinging” suspension footbridge or hike down to the edge of the mighty waterfalls. Our ride turns south from here making its way to Big Lake and the Bull River. Our next stop is in the off-the-main-road site of giant cedars. The Ross Creek Cedars are a grove of trees, many with a girth of eight feet in diameter. These western red cedars tower 175 feet above Ross Creek and make perfect companions for our rest stop. Returning to the main road, we continue on with the Cabinet Mountains across our shoulder until returning once again to the Clark Fork. Our campsite once more is in a small park with beautiful, clear water nearby.

Noxon and Plains are both on the Clark Fork so today’s route follows the valley, sandwiched between the Cabinet Mountains to our north and the Coeur D’Alene Mountains to our south. We found some wonderful, small country roads to take as we ride through the trees above the river to Thompson Falls. We cross the river several times on or way, taking several small wooden bridges into town and one of our rest stops. Our Montana Adventure is about to end as we finish the trip into Plains.

Route Director’s Comments

Distances: Routes are subject to change based upon final permits.

Elevations: The elevations given above are estimates using an online mapping program and should not be considered totally accurate. The newest estimates are significantly lower than what was provided here when the rides were announced. We contacted the software guys and this is what we were told about the changes:

"We (Ride with GPS) have been working on our elevation algorithms to make them more accurate and closer to what your Garmin GPS unit (with barometric altimeter) will say on a clear day. This is going to result in across the board drops in total elevation, because previously we were not smoothing the data enough and adding up every little up and down on the ride (which results in an exaggerated elevation figure)."