Travel Photography

20+ photos of the beautiful Palouse

The rolling hills of the Palouse region covered with wheat near Steptoe, Washington. → Buy a Print

Outside of the photography and agricultural community, and outside of those who know eastern Washington, not a lot of people surprisingly know about the Palouse in eastern Washington. It is a region that extends from Spokane, Washington south through southeastern Washington and north central Idaho, the center of which is Steptoe Butte, a 3612-foot tall mountain of quartzite that rises high above some of the most beautiful landscape anywhere in America.

Lush fields brimming with wheat, barley, peas, and lentils fill the rolling hills of the Palouse region in the spring and they offer a most magnificent site for anyone who is lucky to visit there. The fertile silt mounds of the Palouse Prairie help yield more bushels of wheat per acre than any place on Earth and it is the most important lentil-growing region in America.

I first learned about the Palouse when I became serious about photography in 2005. At the time, photos of the Palouse began to circulating around the Internet and any photographer who appreciate the Zen-like art of abstract minimalism was drawn to the beautiful landscapes. Instantly it became a place I needed to visit, which I would not do for the first time until five years later.

Since then the Palouse has become increasingly popular for those who enjoy photography and especially in the past five years photo tours and workshops fill local hotels from late May through mid-June as photography students from all over the world flock to this remote corner of Washington and Idaho to consume its beauty.

I too am enamored with the majesty of the Palouse, but I am also drawn to the Palouse for another reason. As someone who photographs rural American and agriculture the Palouse is the perfect backdrop. In fact I spent several days in the Palouse this spring photographing there for a large American seed company that serves the wheat industry. Photos of agriculture are easy to make in the Palouse as there are farms and different examples of agriculture all around you.

If you are ever fortunate enough to be in the vicinity of southeastern Washington I highly encourage you to take a detour through the Palouse. As fun as it is to photograph the Palouse, photographs still do not do it justice. Like many things in life it is something that is best experienced in person.

My latest installment of 20+ photos includes 20+ photos of the Palouse. I hope you find the Palouse as peaceful and mesmerizing as I do.

7 wonders of Montana

There are many, many beautiful places and things to see in Montana. It is one reason Montana is such a popular place for travel photography. And it is hardly fair to whittle the entire lot them down to just seven, but in the spirit of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the first known list of the most remarkable creations of classical antiquity based on the guidebooks popular among ancient Greek sightseers, I thought I would take the time to create my personal list of the seven most magnificent and spectacular things to see in Montana if you are ever afforded a chance.

Below is my list of what I consider to be the seven wonders of Montana, along with some inspiring video of Montana depicting those beautiful locations and events.

With only a few weeks left until Labor Day, it may very well be your last chance to visit some of these this year and make some Montana photos and video of your own.

1.  Glacier National Park

Trip to Montana in September 2012. Over the three day trip, we captured the beautiful scenery, majestic mountains, and crystal, clear water of Glacier National Park. Created by Crystal Behrends & Ryan Sebastyan Music Credits: Music for a Nurse by Oceansize Buy the song from iTunes: itunes.apple.com/artist/oceansize/id7057069

2.  Chinese Wall in the Bob Marshall Wilderness

Pilot Getaways caught up with CubCrafters General Manager Randy Lervold in Montana's Bob Marshall Wilderness for our article on the CC11-160 Carbon Cub [November/December 2012]. Here, Randy is flying along the Chinese Wall, a 22-mile-long, 1,000-foot-high escarpment that is so remote only pilots, hikers, and packers usually see it. For more on the Carbon Cub, see our article in Pilot Getaways magazine, www.pilotgetaways.com.

3.  Gates of the Mountains

4.  Upper Missouri River Breaks

http://hallhall.com/ranches-for-sale/properties/pn-ranch The 40,014 acre PN Ranch lies 55 miles north of Lewistown at the confluence of the Judith and the Missouri rivers and includes approximately 14 miles along the south side of the Missouri and nine miles of both banks of the Judith, just north of the small community of Winifred. The ranch is integrated into the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument, the Missouri National Wild and Scenic River and the Dog Creek Wilderness Study Area, giving it importance nationally. Its 17,012 deeded acres include extensive bottomlands, with 561 irrigated acres that include three pivots. When combined with nearly 40,000 acres of strong grass country, of which 4,200 is improved pasture (formerly CRP), the ranch is estimated to support 1,500 animal units on an average year. Lewis and Clark set up camp on this site in 1805. Fifty-one years later it became the first military post in Montana Territory, providing a base of commerce for fur traders and riverboats. As the territory was settled and livestock was introduced, these lands became established as the PN Ranch, representing one of the oldest working cattle ranches in Montana. The lands are also home to a rich variety of wildlife including whitetail and mule deer, elk, antelope and upland birds which thrive in the thousands of acres of tall grasses. The deer, in particular, grow large and many likely die of old age in this rugged Missouri Breaks country. There is also a large population of big horn sheep and many believe that these rams may be amongst the largest in the world. With modest but practical improvements that include an historic home, the PN Ranch is a remote, scenic, and wild operating cattle ranch that has played an important role in the history books of Montana. Asking price includes cattle and equipment.

5.  Spring Migration at Freezeout Lake

Shot on HDV over two days at FreezeOut lake in North Central Montana in early spring.

6.  Beartooth Mountain Pass

Having ridden on his 21,475 mile motorcycle road trip across America, Gary France says this was without a doubt, the most stunning road he has ever seen. The highest point on the Beartooth Pass is at 10,947 feet / 3,337 metres, close to the Wyoming / Montana border. With stunning views down onto other mountains, this is an amazing road. If you ever get even half a chance to ride it, you simply must. Closed in winter due to the snow, weather conditions can be poor even in the summer months, so check on conditions before you go.

6.  Elk Rut at Slippery Ann

Charles M. Russell NWR Montana

7.  Flathead Lake

A short film that summarizes the 4th of July weekend with some of my family and friends in a remote paradise called Polson, MT. Thanks to everyone who made this trip one to remember.

Visit White Sulphur Springs, Montana

The view looking west at the beautiful old buildings in downtown White Sulphur Springs, Montana. → Buy a Print

Once the interstate highway system cut a wide swath across the state of Montana, transit plans for travelers from inside and outside the state have been increasingly predictable. Cities along the interstate system, for example, saw the greatest increase in population and commerce. Places along the interstate saw more tourists, too.

In 2013 Glacier National Park had 2.19 million visitors, while Yellowstone National Park, which straddles the Montana-Wyoming border, had 3.18 million visitors. Montana's 52 state parks, by comparison, had a total of 2.11 million visitors. If you have never visited Glacier National Park or Yellowstone National Park then yes, you need to go. But, if you have already been there (especially more than once) then I can tell you that there are other interesting places and adventures that can be found elsewhere in the great state of Montana, too.

As I have traveled across the state making Montana photography I have stumbled onto many places that are off the beaten path that are worthy of attention. I hope to profile those places from time-to-time in this blog. Because if you are like me, you too enjoy venturing down the paths less traveled by. In this first article I will profile the small town of White Sulphur Springs, Montana.

White Sulphur Springs:

The lush, beautiful forests in the Little Belt Mountains and along the Kings Hill Scenic Byway are beautiful year round. → Buy a Print

At a mile high in elevation, and nestled between the Little Belt Mountains, Castle Mountains, Big Belt Mountains, and the beautiful Smith River, is the quiet little Montana town called White Sulphur Springs. It is a quaint place, well off the beaten path. It seldom sees much traffic except when motorcyclists drive through in August on their way to the Sturgis motorcycle rally and when vehicles are rerouted along I-90 because of an accident or flooding. But being off the beaten path is what makes White Sulphur Springs special. It is quiet. It is unassuming. And it possesses all of the charm you would expect from a western mountain town, minus the trappings of the tourist traps along the major highways. If you are driving from Yellowstone National Park to Glacier National Park along Highway 89, or if you were lucky enough to win a ticket to float down the Smith River, then you really owe it to yourself to see everything White Sulphur Springs and greater Meagher County has to offer.

Where to Stay:

The best room in White Sulphur Springs hands down is room 105 at the Tenderfoot Motel & Cabins. While this inn is not the Waldorf Astoria, room 105 offers comfortable accommodations, including two queen size beds, a kitchenette, and a spacious bathroom. The motel also has a nice outdoor swimming pool for the few summer months when it is warm enough to use it. There are other fine lodging opportunities in White Sulphur Springs too, but based on my experience staying and working in White Sulphur Springs, room 105 is simply the best.

If tiny motels are not your style and you prefer to rough it a little then I recommend camping beneath the stars at Gipsy Lake, which is approximately 10 miles due west from town. Also, you won't find many (if any) grizzly bears or rattlesnakes in this part of the Montana, so you won't have to sleep with one eye open.

Wheat fields surround White Sulphur Springs, and in the summer it is not uncommon to find irrigation units, such as this one, working hard to keep the fields green. → License Photo

Where to Eat:

White Sulphur Springs is small, but it has many places to eat, so picking one can be difficult. So rather than highlighting a restaurant in particular I will instead profile the best dishes and foods White Sulphur Springs has to offer.

My favorite food to eat when I'm in White Sulphur Springs is something I was not familiar with until I first arrived here. To the unfamiliar, it is called side pork and it is served at the Truck Stop Cafe. Side pork is the same cut as bacon, but the meat is not cured or smoked. In a state better known for its beef, they somehow hit a home run with something made from pork. And the side pork at the Truck Stop Cafe is the bomb, especially when served with fried eggs and hash browns. This place also offers a friendly atmosphere. Stop in for breakfast and you will likely find local ranchers and businessmen holding court in the middle of the restaurant as they sip on unusually strong cups of coffee. CNN they are not, but they are friendly and eager to share their interpretation of the day's news.

I also recommend breakfast at the Branding Iron Cafe, soup at Dempsey's Tavern, fried chicken a the Mint Bar, pizza at the original Stage Line Pizza, and steak at the Montana Roadhouse are also highly recommended. And if you visit on a Wednesday afternoon in the summer, be sure to look for the Hutterites selling vegetables and baked goods at in the parking lot of the Spa Hot Springs motel. I highly recommend the zucchini bread.

Big fluffy white clouds loom large over the hills near Newlan Creek Reservoir outside of White Sulphur Springs, Montana. → License Photo

Top 10 Things to See & Do:

1.  Float down the Smith River from Camp Baker to Eden Bridge.

2.  Take a dip in the natural mineral pools at Spa Hot Springs.

3. Explore the many scenic and rugged roads to and from White Sulphur Springs (see below).

4.  Play a round of golf at Arrowhead Meadows Golf.

5.  Ski at Showdown or go snowmobiling on the 200+ miles of groomed snowmobile trails in the Little Belt Mountains.

6.  Hike the Gipsy Lake Trail.

7.  Go fishing or boating in Newlan Creek Reservoir, Smith River, or Gipsy Lake.

8.  Stop and shop at Red Ants Pants. And if you come in late July be sure to attend the Red Ants Pants Music Festival (see below).

9.  Visit the Castle Mansion Museum and soak up some history. The tour is well worth the $5 price of admission.

10.  Visit the old ghost town on the south side of Castle Mountains. Known as Castle City or Castle Town, it once boasted 2,000 residents when silver was discovered in the mountains. There is a sign that warns you about not trespassing on private property, but if anyone gives you grief just tell them you will be walking along the public rights-of-way that still exist to this day between the properties.

BONUS:  Go elk hunting. There aren't many places in these United States that offer better elk hunting than Meagher County, which has White Sulphur Springs as its county seat.

Scenic Ways to Get There:

White Sulphur Springs is located smack dab in between Helena, Great Falls, Bozeman, Livingston, and Lewistown, so it is very easy to get there, but some routes are more entertaining and enriching than others. Here are a few of my favorites:

1. Known as the Kings Hill Scenic Byway, Highway 89 through the Little Belt Mountains and over Kings Hill Pass at an elevation of 7,393 feet is an exceptionally fun drive. But if you don't like driving in the winter (which you know is exceptionally long in Montana) I might recommend approaching White Sulphur Springs from the east side on the much more sanguine Highway 12 instead.

Abandoned homesteads such as this one are among the many things you will see if you drive along the dirt roads between Ulm and White Sulphur Springs, Montana. → License Photo

2. If you visit White Sulphur Springs in the summer, and if you have a good set of tires, then the cross country drive on gravel roads from Ulm, Montana can be quite fun. It affords those not from Montana a wonderful opportunity to see the state as it once was before aslphalt, concrete, and people from California found their way to the state. Just take Millegan Road to Upper Millegan Road to Lingshire Road and then Fort Logan Road and several hours later you will find yourself in downtown White Sulphur Springs. Also, be sure to bring a map with you and plot your course before you leave. GPS is NOT a reliable option in this part of the country.

3. Duck Creek Road from Highway 284 outside of Townsend through the Big Belt Mountains is another adventurous path into White Sulphur Springs. It is best if you travel this route in a vehicle with high clearance and 4-wheel drive. Be sure to only travel this route in the summer, too. The views along the road are spectacular and it will take you right past Gipsy Lake.

Best Time to Visit:

1. The 4th weekend in July coincides with the fabulously spectacular Red Ants Pants Music Festival in White Sulphur Springs.This is by far the best time to visit White Sulphur Springs, but you won't find an available hotel rooms unless you plan your trip a year or more in advance. You can camp at the music grounds, though. This music festival is easily one of Montana's gems.

2. On Labor Day weekend when White Sulphur Springs hosts a PRCA rodeo.

3. Late spring when the wild flowers are blooming in the mountains.

4. Winter, when skiing and snowmobiling can be enjoyed and a dip in the natural mineral pools at Spa Hot Springs are most enjoyable.

Things I like about Montana

A morning view of the east face of Kupunkamint Mountain at Glacier National Park in Montana. → Buy a Print

A couple of years ago while crossing the state making Montana photography I began keeping track of everything I liked about Montana. I then shared those thoughts with people on Twitter. These Tweets became popular with many of my followers. The list of things I liked about Montana grew so long I thought I better stop and capture them all so I could make one big list.

I know the list of things I like about Montana will continue to grow. And when it does I will add them here from time to time. Here they are:

People rejoicing when the temperature "warms" from -22 degrees to 0 degrees.

Every night is country night.

Ice pellets in the forecast. Ice pellets.

Being able to count the number of escalators in the state on one hand.

Fewer traffic accidents when the there was NO speed limit than it does now.

Amazing destinations that don't require billboards.

Herds of sheep really ARE protected by sheep dogs. And llamas, too.

Being the lead truck on a dusty gravel road.

September snow.

Beltian White beer from Harvest Moon Brewing Company.

Autumn lasts three months, not three hours.

Exfoliating my face when riding a motorcycle during mosquito season.

Neighbors helping neighbors.

The sound of silence.

Small women driving big trucks.

The chances of seeing a horse inside a bar are quite good.

Things I like about Montana: The beautiful diffused glow the sun makes when it sets during wheat harvest. → Buy a Print

It is legal to ride your horse home when you are drunk after a night at the bar.

 Gulches, gullies, and coulees.

Huckleberry ice cream cones.

The beautiful diffused glow the sun makes when it sets during wheat harvest.

The smell of freshly cut hay.

That first cold beer during branding season.

4 out of 5 denim pockets have a big ol' W stitched on them.

When an ad says, "We're coming to a city near you," you know they don't mean you.

The tallest building in the state has only 20 floors.

Snow in June.

Moose Drool.

Empty shell casings that have fallen out of trucks and litter parking lots.

Dirty, dusty beaver felt cowboy hats.

Herds of tumbleweed dancing across the highway during a stiff wind.

Black cut-outs of leaning cowboys in every other yard.

No compelling reason to wash your pick-up truck for halfof the year.

The big sky.

Pussies who move to Montana don't last very long.

More people (per capita) serving in the armed forces than any other state.

Cantankerous old ranchers and cowboys.

Piles of split wood.

The dimple of a rising trout.

The only real traffic one encounters is behind a herd of cattle ranchers are moving down the road.

Jockey boxes and borrow pits.

Everyone's excitement with the new arrival of the Cabela's catalog.

Grill guards and gun racks.

Runaway shopping carts moving at Mach 2 across a parking lot in the wind.

The week after Christmas when everyone wears their new Carhartt clothing and Wrangler jeans.

Hardly ever seeing a police car on most roads.

The 100+ miles in between gasoline stations.

Car lots filled with nothing but pick-up trucks.

Less than one million people in the entire state.

The lack of humidity means -20° F only feels like -5° F. If the wind doesn't blow.

People who call animals "critters."

Wild mustangs.

Seeing people skiing in their Carhartt overalls.

One-room schoolhouses.

People who say, "If you don't like the weather, wait 5 minutes, it will change."

Driving for hours on a highway in the middle of the night and not passing a single car. 

Not every town has a grocery store, but every town does have a taxidermist.

Beers named Pigs Ass Porter, Trout Slayer, Moose Drool, Sharptail Pale Ale, and Scape Goat.

The endless row of Grade A beef at every grocery store.

Bird Tail Butte.

People who are still genuinely concerned about "losing their way of life."

The multiple meanings and frequent use of the phrase, "You betcha."

Living in the last place destroyed by aliens or infected with an epidemic in most movies.

Hunting knives are a fashion accessory.

Camping beneath a large moon in the Bob Marshall Wilderness.

High leggings and long mullets. 

Leaves turning golden yellow on groves of quaking aspen trees. 

Stop signs riddled with bird shot holes.

Fly fishing in the fall. 

Fur, feathers, and fleece.

Camping at Slippery Ann with the sound of elk bugling and coyotes howling all around you.

The good people of White Sulphur Springs. 

A state legislature that only meets for two months every other year.

Side pork. 

Living with the risk oc coming face-to-face with a grizzly bear, mountain lion, and/or rattlesnake every single day.

When the first cold snap of the year chases the tourists out of Glacier National Park.

The fact that the 8th largest city in the 4th largest state only has 8000 people. 

A hot August sun and low humidity. 

Parking under an irrigation unit in a field to wash your rig.

Watching coffee making become an art form.

Harvest time.

That last hop gophers make as they dart across the road.

Powwows .

Legions of Harley Davidson's passing through on their way to Sturgis. 

Golden wheat dancing in a stiff wind moving like waves on an ocean. 

County fairs.

Being bit by a Jurassic Park-sized mosquito and living to tell about it. 

The Missouri River breaks. 

Dipping your feet in Swiftcurrent Lake in the shadow of Mount Grinnell.

Fields full of large round bales.

Reaching the top of Logan Pass before the sun comes up (and before the tourists arrive).

When someone calls a pronghorn antelope a "speed goat."

The first glimpse of mountains after driving across the large open prairie.

Snow capped mountains in the middle of summer. 

Still seeing remnants of sunlight at 11 o'clock at night in the middle of summer. 

Warm camp fires and bright starlit skies.

Driving the Beartooth Highway, white knuckles and all. 

Roads with no names. 

The large, endless sky. 

Cowboys who still ride horse and rope cattle instead of using chutes and branding tables.

The start of rodeo season. 

Snow that falls in May. 

Seeing black Angus cattle on the flat, wide open prairie as far as the eyes can see. 

Things I like about Montana:  Lonely churches and schools surrounded by nothing but Montana's plains. → Buy a Print

Playing slalom with cow patties while driving on rural roads.

Beautiful women on horseback.

Lonely old churches and schools surrounded by nothing but Montana's plains.

Hot branding irons.

Living on the rim of a giant, boiling volcano just waiting to blow (i.e. Yellowstone).

Real ghost towns...not of the Disneyland variety.

The return of branding season.

When convenience stores ARE convenient because they are separated by 60 or more miles.

Melting snow. 

Carhartt and Lee being considered designer labels. 

Dirty pick-up trucks.

Cricks. 

When the Coca-Cola machine is the only place open for business in a tiny rural town.

The sound of thousands of snow geese returning to Freezeout Lake in the spring. 

People legally driving their ATVs down Main Street.

St. Patrick's Day in Butte (and living to tell about it). 

Indian tacos. 

The hustle and bustle of downtown Bozeman.

Things I like about Montana:  Old, antique cars everywhere just begging to be restored. → Buy a Print

Bison are called buffalo, pronghorn are called antelope, and native Americans are called Indians. 

Old, antique cars everywhere just begging to be restored.

Japanese quarter horses (i.e. 4-wheelers).

Camping at Glacier National Park in the winter and feeling like you have the park all to yourself. 

Women dancing on saloon tables. 

Twirling. 

Watching the temperature drop 30 degrees during a 10 minute drive. 

Driving along side a train headed in the same direction on U.S. Highway 2. 

Cowboy boots placed neatly on top of wooden fence posts for no apparent reason.

Gun racks in pick-up trucks.

Knowing there is always a Black Butte or Square Butte somewhere nearby. 

Snow chains. 

A stiff Chinook wind that arrives in January and melts all of the snow in two hours. 

Old grain elevators.

Whiskey ditch. 

No sales tax. 

Living in a place where the whole town shows up for high school basketball and football games.

Mountain roads without guardrails. 

Empty roads on Christmas morning. 

Enduring cold, dark winter months and living to tell about it. 

Small town Christmas cheer. 

More deer, elk, and cows than humans. 

Hoarfrost.

Log chains used as wind socks.

The endless cavalcade or warm corn dogs at every single gas station.

Bars called The Mint or The Stockman. In every...single...town. 

Decorative stitching on the rear pockets of jeans worn by the many beautiful women here. 

Not everyone rushing off to the stores like morons on the day after Thanksgiving. 

High school team names (i.e. Dogies, Locomotives, Sheep Herders, Sugar Beeters, Trotters). 

Watching everyone get so worked up over the annual Grizzlies/Bobcats football game. 

Buffalo roaming (relatively) free at Fort Belknap Indian Reservation. 

6.8 people per square mile. 

Colorful big sky sunsets and sunrises.

Stampeding buffalo.

Halloween and trick-and-treating the old-fashioned way. 

Taking a random, nameless gravel road and not knowing where it will lead. 

Colorful autumn cottonwoods. 

Quarter horses.

Cheap beer.

Cowgirls.

License plate numbers that identify what county you are from.

Short men who wear tall cowboy hats while driving subcompact cars.

4-wheelers allowed on the streets of most cities montana

Aspen trees turning gold in the fall.

Barbed wire pin-striping on pick-up trucks.

Small town stores selling "sundries" and "curios," despite the fact I don't know what they are.

100 things to see and do in Montana

There's been a lot of discussion lately in Montana about the must see things to do in the state. A large state newspaper even put together a bucket lists of things to see and do in the state, which only lead to an even larger list after readers complained that they left so many things off the list.

Long before this discussion started I was putting together my own list of people, places, and things I wanted to see and do while I was in Montana making photos. Many on my list (not here) have already been checked off, such as witnessing the return of snow geese to Freezeout Lake near Fairfield, or dip my feet in the cold waters of St. Mary's Lake in Glacier National Park, or attend a cattle branding, or see a stampede of buffalo. My list of adventures that I have already seen is long, but there's still much more to see and do in this very large state.

Since everyone on the Internet likes list, here is my latest list of 100 Things to see and Do in Montana. It should prove handy for those who already live in the state and for those who will visit Montana on vacation and wonder what else there is to do.

Enjoy!

The sun rising over Mount Grinnell and the Rocky Mountains at Glacier National Park.   → Buy This Print

1. Hike to Iceberg Lake in Glacier National Park.

2. See the wild horses in the Pryor Mountains.

3. Spend a night in a fire lookout in the middle of nowhere.

4. Learn to cast a fly rod and go fly fishing in the Missouri River near Craig, Montana.

5. Float the entire 59-mile length of the Smith River from Camp Baker to Eden Bridge.

6. Attend North American Indian Days in Browning, Montana.

7. Camp among the buffalo on the American Prairie Reserve.

8. Boat into the middle of Lost Lake before the sun comes up.

9. See beargrass in full bloom at Glacier National Park.

10. Photograph the inside of Bighorn Canyon.

11. Take a boat down the Missouri River through the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument from Fort Benton to Fort Peck.

12. Photograph a mountain lion.

13. Hike to Triple Falls in Glacier National Park.

14. Watch fireworks on the 4th of July on Flathead Lake.

15. Climb to the top of Square Butte south of Geraldine, Montana and photograph the mountain goats there.

16. Eat dinner and spend at night at the Grand Union Hotel in Fort Benton, Montana.

17. Go to the Miles City Bucking Horse Sale.

18. See the ancient grove of Ross Creek cedar trees in Kootenai National Forest near Libby, Montana.

19. Attend all four days of the Red Ants Pants Music Festival in White Sulphur Springs, Montana.

20. Encounter a prairie rattlesnake and live to talk about it.

21. Pick huckleberries.

22. Take my time exploring the entire length of the Beartooth Highway and backpack the Beartooth Traverse.

23. Spend a night at the Triple Creek Ranch hotel near Darby, Montana.

24. Photograph pine trees in the winter near Whitefish, Montana that are so heavy with snow they bend over.

25. Ride Amtrak's Empire Builder from East Glacier to Whitefish.

26. Cross Flathead Lake by boat and visit Wild Horse Island.

27. See Piano Pat at the Sip 'n Dip Lounge in Great Falls, Montana.

28. Spend a weekend unplugged at the Judith Mountains Cabin near Lewistown, Montana.

29. Eat lutefisk and Norwegian meatballs at the annual Sons of Norway dinner in Great Falls, Montana.

30. Attend the Montana Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Lewistown, Montana.

31.  See (and photograph) the northern lights.

32. Climb to the tip of Birdtail Butte in rural Blaine County, Montana.

33. Visit Butte, Montana on St. Patrick's Day.

34. Spend Christmas deep inside Yellowstone National Park.

35. Photograph the bighorn sheep at Koo-Koo-Sint.

36. Ride and dine on the Charlie Russell Chew Choo.

37. Drive the entire length of the Hi-Line (U.S. Highway 2) in one day.

38. Ride my motorcycle through the mountain trails in the Little Belt and Big Belt Mountains.

A native American Indian dancing at the annual powwow at Rocky Boy Indian Reservation south of Havre, Montana.   → Buy This Print

39. Photograph the Milky Way amid the badlands at Makoshika and Medicine Rock State Parks.

40. Catch a walleye in Lake Elwell.

41. Eat breakfast at the Echo Lake Cafe in Bigfork, Montana.

42. Watch a Montana high school six-man football game.

43. Attend the Fort Union Rendezvous near Sidney, Montana.

44. Participate in an Indian sweat lodge ceremony.

45. Soak in the Boiling River at Yellowstone National Park in the winter.

46. Visit the St. Mary Mission in Stevensville.

47. Sail a boat on Flathead Lake.

48. Take a helicopter tour of Glacier National Park.

49. Eat steak on Friday night at the Highwood Bar.

50. Attend the Whitefish Winter Carnival in February.

51. Go bowling at the Silver Dollar Saloon Bowling Alley in Philipsburg, Montana.

52. Go ice fishing on Lower Lake in Beaver Creek Park south of Havre, Montana.

53. Catch crawfish in Fresno Reservoir and have a crawfish boil.

54. Drive a combine and cut wheat somewhere in Montana's Golden Triangle.

55. Photograph the Jerusalem Rocks in Toole County after a freshly fallen snow.

56. Spend a day on a Hutterite colony.

57. Have a beer at Glacier Brewery in Polson, Montana.

58. See Kootenai Falls.

59. Eat a buffalo burger at Ted's Montana Grill.

60. Hike in the Bob Marshall Wilderness.

61. Attend the Riverfront Blues Festival in Libby.

62. Photograph sage-grouse during spring mating season.

63. Explore the caverns of Lewis & Clark Caverns State Park near Whitehall, Montana.

64. Drive the entire length of the Lake Koocanusa Scenic Byway.

65. See a powwow at Fort Belknap Indian Reservation inside Mission Canyon.

66. Go swimming in Lake McDonald.

67. Get stuck in gumbo.

68. Attend the Crow Fair and Rodeo near Hardin, Montana.

69. Visit the ghost towns at Bannack, Elkhorn, Garnet, Nevada City, and Virginia City, Montana.

70. Attend the Virgelle Mercantile Outdoor Antique Flea Market in Virgelle, Montana.

71. Spot and photograph a wild grizzly bear (safely).

72. Go elk hunting in Meagher County, Montana.

73. Spend a weekend in beautiful Red Lodge, Montana.

74. Pick cherries in the Flathead Valley.

75. Participate in a paleontology dig somewhere in Montana.

76. Watch Montana farmers stack hay with a beaverslide.

77. Spot a black footed ferret in the wild.

78. Witness a bareback Indian horse race.

79. Go winter camping in Glacier National Park.

80. Cross the Missouri River on all of its rural ferries.

81. Attend the annual Running of the Sheep in Reed Point, Montana.

82. Visit the C.M. Russell Museum in Great Falls, Montana.

A cowboy rounding up cattle on a ranch in Blaine County, Montana.   → License Photo

83. Attend a rodeo in Belt or Augusta, Montana.

84. Hike into the Bear's Den near the Sweetgrass Hills in northern Montana.

85. Visit Little Bighorn Battlefield.

86. See William Clark's inscription on Pompey's Pillar.

87. Visit Polebridge, Montana.

88. Ride a snowmobile into Yellowstone National Park in the winter.

89. Eat a cinnamon roll baked by the women from the Chinook senior center.

90. Spend a weekend exploring downtown Bozeman.

91. Visit Sun River Wildlife Management Area.

92. Photograph the autumn leaves on the east side of Glacier National Park, along Highway 93 south of Darby, and near Kalispell.

93. Take a boat through the Gates of the Mountains near Helena, Montana.

94. Take a tour of Glacier Distilling's whiskey operation in Coram, Montana.

95. Spend a week taking in the beauty of the Bitterroot Valley.

96. Spend a night camping at Seeley Lake.

97. Have a drink in both the Montana Bar and Bison Bar in Miles City, Montana.

98. Go dog sledding in Whitefish, Montana.

99. Climb to the top of the M near Missoula.

100. Touch all of the last remaining glaciers in Glacier National Park before they are gone.

Those items already checked off my list...

  • Attend a cattle branding.
  • Hear the elk bugle at Slippery Ann in Phillips County.
  • Witness the return of snow geese to Freezeout Lake near Fairfield, Montana.
  • Watch the sun rise over Mount Grinnell at Glacier National Park.
  • See the buffalo rounded up at Fort Belknap Indian Reservation.
  • Drive the entire length of the Beartooth Scenic Byway.
  • See a moose in the wild.
  • Dip my feet in Saint Mary's Lake.
  • Attend Rocky Boy's annual powwow.
  • Witness a cattle drive.
  • Drink a bottle of Moose Drool and Pig's Ass Porter.
  • Go camping in the Missouri Breaks.
  • Smell the spring grass in the Sweet Grass Hills.
  • Eat a huckleberry ice cream cone (Snowy Mountain Coffee in Harlowton, Montana).
  • Visit Lamar Valley in Yellowstone National Park during mating season.
  • See a herd of pronghorn antelope.
  • See the Jerusalem Rocks near Sweet Grass, Montana.
  • Attend a rancher's rodeo.
  • Drive the entire length of Going to the Sun Road in Glacier National Park.