Montana 2024
- Katelynn Adams
- Jun 29
- 5 min read
I have honestly dreaded writing this post because frankly I have no idea where to start. I’ve been here over a year now and already feel overwhelmed with all the places I have visited around this amazing state. I have also put this off because I have not yet fully decided how I want to organize my time here either. The current plan is simply to put everything somewhere in this post and then as time goes I can take it all apart and piecemeal it back together in the end; sorry in advance for any notifications any of you who follow this will get as I continue to edit things. The longer I postpone though the less I will remember - and that would just defeat the purpose of all this. I will admit that not every one of my small adventures will make this post - but the major ones and/or my favorites will all be noted!
So lets begin chronologically shall we :)
Wild Bill Lake & Silver Run Hikes:
Both of these hikes were suggested to me by a coworker I befriended early in my stay here - he will later accompany me on many hikes you’ll read about throughout this post; but for now I was gifted hand written itineraries for how to spend my days off. This one was titled “Red Lodge or Bust”.
After Wild Bill Lake I took a very short hop, skip, and a jump over to the Silver Lake Trailhead. Now this trail did not have the stunning views that the earlier lake did. It was a nice leisurely stroll through the woods. As this was my first true trail in Grizzly Territory - let me put the disclaimer out there that my head was on a swivel the entire time. Bear spray or not - I know I don’t stand a chance. So I will also admit that it took me a good two miles in until I calmed myself to a point where I could actually enjoy my hike.
It wasn’t until my way back that I actually heard the sound of running water - and as a Great Lakes girly: I love water. Rivers, lakes, waterfalls…it comforts like nothing else; feels like home! So yes - yes I did wander off trail. While I did indeed fall down a small ravine (which when people asked about my wounds - I blamed it on the very man who sent me this trail recommendation because it was obviously his fault haha) to get to the river; the view I found was entirely worth it. The gallery below has some trail photos and then the river view I found for myself. The one that was worth my fall.
Natural Bridge:
This hike was a short (though I did wander off a bit) little jaunt suggested to me by the same coworker as the one above. While the water levels and flow rates were both low the views were no less enjoyable. Plus as I mentioned before - I am a sucker for anything water. Waterfalls and rushing rivers are loves of mine. Both of which I found here along with - yup, you guessed it; a Natural Bridge formation!
Bighorn Canyon National Recreational Area:
This was one of my favorite little adventures out here in Montana - and it was actually partly in Wyoming as well! It ranked highly mainly for the company I brought along but also because this canyon looked like nothing I ever expected to find out here in Montana. I definitely moved out here with some preconceived notions of what I expected it to look like - and this was largely off base! It was after this that I truly got excited to see everything else I was wrong about1
Scenic Overlooks, Historical Structures, “Islands”, Big Horn Sheep Sightings and Canyon Views; how could I not enjoy such an adventure!
Check out the photos below and tell me if any of that screams Montana to any of you? It didn’t to me - but I loved it nonetheless!
Sioux Charley Lake:
Yet another hikes suggestion I got from a coworker of mine and one that again failed to disappoint. The eight plus miles of trail contained sweeping and stunning views as you hiked up and along a rushing river only to be dropped at a small lake nestled in the mountains. What’s not to love about any of that?
This was truly one of the most stunning hikes I had ever hiked and while the lake was slightly lack luster - the rest of the trail more than compensated for it!
The only flaw in this hike is that I was puddle jumping the last mile or so and hiding beneath large pines while I was waiting for the rain to lighten up. Not that the above photo gives any indication of an in pending rain storm coming :) Got to love the mountain weather!
Twin Lakes:
Once again so blessed to have met such amazing individuals while I travel to have received so many great trail suggestions because I wouldn’t have gotten to see as much of this beautiful state as I have. This trail gets a favorite rating again because it provided me with my first Alpine Lake Polar Plunge opportunity and let me just say I 10/10 recommend a chilly lake plunge after a long uphill hike in the sun!
Once again nothing beats long hikes with good company, especially those that contain rivers, waterfalls, dilapidated bridges and alpine lakes!
Beauty Lake:
For any of you locals - yes I know this hike is technically located in Wyoming however to keep my records and timelines decently organized I am including it here. This particular hike included a handful of mountain lakes and required a long jaunt down the scenic byway to get there - one that at the time was not very scenic at all.
The strangest part of this hike was the multitude of temperature changes I experienced in it. From beanies to sports bras and all the various layers in between. I actually almost turned around on the drive because I was driving up a mountain side with minimal visibility and turned out I was just driving though a cloud! Good thing I continued on though as you can see from the top right and bottom photo that the clouds did eventually disparate and yield to blue skies.
Timberline Lake:
If you haven’t gathered by now I have a deep love of Alpine Lakes - something about seeing mountain peaks and lakes all in one place just makes my heart happy! So I continue to seek them out and it seems Montana has enough for me to continue at the rate I’m on for a while longer yet!
Another favorite of mine as the views and the company were once again were fantastic. So much so that this photo actually hangs on my wall in my apartment now!
Little would you know that there would be a freak hailstorm that we’d be caught in on our way back down to the car. We had to take shelter under some trees and wait for it to blow over. If anyone is keeping count - current standing is Mountain Weather 2 : Kate 0
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