The same way Big Sky Country’s sprawling patchwork of dense forests, towering mountains, and vast prairies need to be seen to be believed, its summit silences and wildlife choruses need to be heard to be believed. That’s why we sent our scouts to capture the sounds of Montana, from rushing rivers to rollicking rodeos. Listen to their adventures and start making plans to hear the crunch of your own boots on the trail.
Sounds of Montana
Regional Gems
The Big Wild
Family Fun
Explore a getaway packed with plenty of action as well as Old West history.
Pioneer Mountains National Scenic Byway
Crystal Park
Bannack State Park
Ennis 4th of July Parade
Ennis, VIRGINIA, NEVADA CITY
Ennis RODEO
A great road trip needs a great backdrop, and the 49-mile Pioneer Mountains Scenic Byway from Wise River to State Highway 278 delivers, with 10,000-foot peaks looming over meadows and forests. There are plenty of adventures to enjoy—fishing, vistas, hikes—including a stop at the ghost town of Coolidge, an abandoned mining community that makes for an easygoing nature walk. You can also relax at the family-owned Elkhorn Hotsprings.
FAMILY ROAD TRIP
HOME
If you’re looking for a true Montana experience, look no further than the bleachers at the Ennis Rodeo. It’s part sporting event, part social gathering, and all fun. Stunning scenery and lots of talented cowboys and cowgirls make Ennis a great spot for your first rodeo. The two-day event features bull riding, steer roping, barrel racing, and more. Day-of tickets are free for kids under five, $10 for older kids, and $15 for adults.
Who doesn’t love a treasure hunt? That’s what you’ll find at Crystal Park recreation area, where you’ll hear the scraping of shovels and the excited murmurs of folks on the hunt for quartz crystals. You can keep any you find—and they’re pretty darn easy to find. With just simple hand tools and a $5 fee for everyone over ten, your family will come away with souvenirs for life. “We could have spent all day there,” Jacob says.
A bustling population of 3,000 once inhabited this site, a former territorial capital where gold was discovered in 1862. These days, the ghost town at Bannack State Park thrives as a destination for visitors exploring the site’s stunningly well-preserved buildings. Spend an afternoon opening creaky doors into the past, then make it an overnight stay at the park’s campground. For a special night the kids will love, rent the park’s tipi.
The clopping of hooves can be heard alongside the hum of classic cars and John Deere tractors at the Ennis 4th of July Parade. This can’t-miss parade has been marching steadily onward every summer for the past 89 years. With the historic western charm of Main Street and three distinct mountain ranges as a backdrop, it’s a great way to experience one piece of the rich tapestry of communities that make up America.
Experience thriving Western towns across rural Montana. Exhibit A: the vibrant streets of Ennis. The shops, saloons, and restaurants on Main Street buzz with locals and visitors alike, especially at Tavern 287, a family-owned restaurant with delicious upscale dishes at small-town prices. “I’m definitely taking a detour to go there whenever I’m in the area,” Jacob says. Also a must: the Alder Gulch Shortline Railroad connecting Virginia City to Nevada City.
Sounds of the Forest
Panning for Crystals
Visit a Ghost Town
Train between Historic Towns
A Day at the Rodeo
Parade on Main Street
Ennis, Virginia, Nevada City
Ennis Rodeo
@moonmountainman
Jacob Moon is a Utah-based adventurer who explores the backcountry, often with his wife and daughter, and shares their experiences through photography, video, and storytelling.
VIEW MAP
WT
Watch
LISTEN
View Map
Hike deep into the Bob Marshall Wilderness and see a massive geologic uplift called the Chinese Wall.
BOB MARSHALL WILDERNESS
Wildlife Galore
Wandering Waterways
FLY-FISHING
THE CHINESE WALL
THE HIKING ROUTE
Glacier and Yellowstone National Parks grab the headlines, but when it comes to raw nature, the jewel of Montana is the 1 million-acre Bob Marshall Wilderness. “The Bob,” as it’s affectionately called, was named for legendary conservationist Bob Marshall, who cofounded the Wilderness Society. No paved roads bisect the Bob, an area larger than Rhode Island, making it a vast wilderness where only horse and foot travel are allowed.
THE BIG WILD
@nomadikmax
Max Djenohan is a snowboarder, climber, and filmmaker. The Pacific Northwest native blends his survivalist skills and creative storytelling to inspire more inclusive outdoor spaces.
To trace Max’s route, begin at South Fork Sun Trailhead. Continue north on the Continental Divide Trail for 12.5 miles to the White River North Trail, and follow it 22 miles to Larch Pass. Rejoin the CDT at the north end of the Chinese Wall and hike four miles along its base. (Camping is prohibited on this stretch; camp with a view of the Chinese Wall at White River Pass.) After Cliff Mountain, hike the CDT for 20 miles back to the South Fork Sun Trailhead.
One of the great benefits of protecting a refuge the size of The Bob? It’s a haven for wildlife of all kinds. Elk, moose, deer, mountain lions, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, wolves, lynx, bald eagles, and black and grizzly bears roam freely here. For the well-prepared visitor, the reward is a wilderness soundtrack with plenty of birdsong (“omnipresent,” according to Max) and always the tantalizing possibility of hearing something bigger rustle through the forest.
From the trickle of alpine streams to the roar of whitewater, there’s a symphony of sounds here as snowmelt turns to rivers. And since the Continental Divide runs through the heart of the Bob, that symphony also divides watersheds: The waters cascading down east-facing peaks will reach the Missouri River and end up in the Atlantic Ocean, while on the west side, runoff collects in the Flathead River’s South Fork and eventually reaches the Pacific.
The splashing of fish joins the Bob’s soundtrack, particularly on the South Fork of the Flathead River. It’s home to the largest population of genetically pure West Slope cutthroat trout in the country and one of the only legal bull trout seasons in the lower 48 (July 1-31, permits required). The cutthroats aren’t huge but are known to rise quickly for dry flies. “If I didn’t need to keep hiking, I would have stayed there all day,” Max says.
The Bob’s standout geologic feature, the Chinese Wall, consists of rock layers that were once part of an ancient sea. The 22-mile escarpment rises to 1,300 feet and can be seen towering over wildflower-dotted meadows and tall larch trees for miles. But the view from atop the Wall is unrivaled: You’ll see miles of pristine forest and alpine peaks unfolding before you, hearing only the sound of the wind and your own footsteps.
Horses on the Trail
Birds of The Bob
Babbling Creek
Hiking in the Wind
Walking along a River
Fishing in a Stream
Bob Marshall Wilderness
Fly-Fishing
The Chinese Wall
The Hiking Route
Southeast Montana
MISSOURI RIVER COUNTRY
CENTRAL MONTANA
YELLOWSTONE COUNTRY
SOUTHWEST MONTANA
GLACIER COUNTRY
Medicine Rocks State Park: Wander among otherworldly rock formations by day, then gaze up at the DarkSky International–approved skies at night, with only your crackling campfire and chirping crickets for company. Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area: Fish for trout beneath high canyon walls, hike to dramatic overlooks, and check out Black Canyon and Medicine Creek campgrounds for unique boat-in adventures. Miles City: Immerse yourself in an authentic western town. Be sure to check out a custom leather saddle shop or public livestock sale—a livestock auctioneer is a sound to behold.
Crackling Campfire
Enjoy the wonderful strangeness of the Great Plains making their slow march toward the Rockies.
EPIC TRANSITION ZONE
Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge: You’ll find no shortage of campsites within the second-largest wildlife refuge in the lower 48. You’ll find no shortage of elk calls or birdsong either, with 60 species of mammals and 235 bird species sharing the scenery. Fort Peck Lake: The largest body of water in Montana is home to several sought-after fish species, including northern pike, paddlefish, sauger, and Chinook salmon. Powwows: Experience Native American culture at a summer powwow on the Fort Peck Reservation. Respectful visitors are welcome and encouraged.
Birdsong
Big Snowy Mountain Ice Caves: Explore the year-round ice caves in this unique range, home to stair-step waterfalls and some of the most expansive views in the West. Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument: Beneath badlands-like hills and winding cliffs runs a designated 149-mile National Wild and Scenic River section of the Missouri. Set out on a four-day, three-night float trip to see (and hear) it all. Lewistown: Surrounded by five mountain ranges, Lewistown is the perfect jumping-off point for hiking, fishing, paddling, and biking.
Mountain Biking
Beartooth Highway: Stay at one of the many developed campgrounds amid the Beartooth Scenic Highway’s glacier-carved alpine scenery and listen to your hoots and hollers echo back at you. Hebgen Lake: Nowadays, the silence at Montana’s premier stillwater fishing lake is cut only by the paddle of oars and humming of motors, but in 1959, the area experienced an earthquake so powerful that it created nearby Earthquake Lake. Big Timber: Discover a mountain town with a name as epic as the adventures just beyond its doorstep in the Crazy Mountains and Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness.
Paddling a Canoe
Continental Divide Trail: Southwest Montana offers easy opportunities for scenic day hikes along the epic Continental Divide Trail, one of the most iconic trails in the world. Georgetown Lake: This high-altitude lake is a prime fishing location for kokanee salmon. Visit during their migration season in late summer and early fall to see their fiery red transformation amid a soundtrack of spinning fly reels. Philipsburg: Featuring a charming western Main Street, all-season adventures in the surrounding mountains, and history-rich excursions, Philipsburg showcases the best of southwest Montana.
Spinning Fly Reel
Jewel Basin Hiking Area: What’s better than 35 miles of hiking trails through wildflower meadows and craggy peaks? Splashing into any one of this area’s 25 alpine lakes filled with crystal-clear glacial water. Riverboarding: You won’t find a more “woo-hoo!” activity on the water than this boogie-boarding-meets-rafting experience offered by Montana River Guides in Alberton. Bigfork: A haven of good art and good eats along the northeast shores of Flathead Lake, Bigfork is as much a destination all its own as it is a base camp for the surrounding lakes and trails.
Rushing River
Missouri River Country
Central Montana
Yellowstone Country
Southwest Montana
Glacier Country
Winding currents lead you through vast plains and toward moments of quiet awe in big spaces.
PERFECT PLAINS
From badlands to mountains, the middle of Montana fittingly has everything that makes the state great.
SCENIC SAMPLER
Discover the secrets beyond Yellowstone National Park in the underrated reaches of this unique region.
BEYOND THE PARK
From lofty peaks to Old West towns, get a taste of everything that defines the ruggedness of the state.
The unrelenting work of glaciers didn’t stop at the boundaries of Glacier National Park, so why should you?
MOUNTAIN MAGIC
WILD COUNTRY
Photo: Montana River Guides
