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Being centered in the 18 million acres Yellowstone ecosystem has
its advantages. You can drive in any direction from the Gallatin
National Forest and be in high quality outdoor country. Basically,
it's all good.
Yellowstone National Park: This great national park borders
the Gallatin National Forest on the south for over 100 miles,
much of it unroaded wilderness. Yellowstone is covered on this
site: Yellowstone
National Park.
This is an obvious side trip if you have the time.
If not, The Gallatin National Forest is spectacular enough that
you really wouldn't worry about it(and some say more spectacular).
Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest: This is a giant,
sprawling 3,360,000 acre national forest - one of the largest
in the United States. It covers a huge portion of southwestern
Montana. Forest headquarters are in Dillon, Montana. One of the
highlights of the national forest is the Anaconda-Pintler Wilderness,
158,615 acres in size and very scenic. Mountain ranges include
the Pioneers, Pintlers, the Sapphires, the Gravelly, Tobacco Root
Mountains and the Flint Creek Range.
There are numerous peaks hitting 11,000 feet, with countless streams
and rivers. There re 1,500 miles of hiking trails and at least
50 campgrounds. Those visiting the Madison River from Hebgen Lake
north will be closer to the Beaverhead-Deerlodge than to the Gallatin
National Forest. (406) 683-3900
Custer National Forest: This national forest borders the
Gallatin National Forest on the east and makes up the stunning
Beartooth Range. There are numerous beautiful rivers flowing out
of the Beartooths to the north such as the Stillwater, Rosebud
and Rock Creek. See our Beartooth Range section on the hiking
page for more information on these great mountains. The Custer
National Forest itself is 1,278,279 acres in over ten separate
sections which creates a bit of confusion. The largest chunk of
the Custer borders the Gallatin National Forest while the other
chunks are primarily forest islands on the plains east of Billings,
with a block of grasslands inside South Dakota. It's quite the
diverse national forest. There are 1,500 miles of hiking trails
and 30 campgrounds
(406) 657-6200
Shoshone National Forest: The Shoshone is a big 2.5 million
acre national forest that borders the Gallatin National Forest
for 21 miles near the town of Cooke City and near the Beartooth
plateau. Much of the geology was formed by volcanic activity,
providing for a surreal experience. The forest contains parts
of 4 wilderness areas: The North Absaroka, Washakie, Popo Agie
and Fitzpatrick, for around 1.5 million acres. It also contains
the Chief Joseph Scenic Highway, as seen above.(307)-527-6241
Caribou-Targhee National Forest: This huge 2.63 million
acre national forest is only a few miles south of the Gallatin
National Forest near West Yellowstone. Great wildlife viewing,
camping and fishing. A different look compared the Gallatin. Contains
two wilderness areas - The Winegar Hole Wilderness (17,000 acres)
and the Jedediah Smith Wilderness (123,000 acres).
(208) 524-7500.
Henry's Fork River: Outstanding world famous trout river
for those who are interested in some fly fishing. 20 miles south
of West Yellowstone.
Image note: I came across this bear family while heading to a
fishing hole in the eastern half of the Gallatin National Forest
a year ago. The mother cub was very young and seemed to be not
much larger than her cubs. She had two cubs, but the other was
not visible in this photo. The long, sturdy branches of this tree
make for a great bear nap spot. However, I'm guessing this bear
family went up that tree for a reason other than a nap. They may
have been chased by something as I heard a crashing through the
woods heading away from me when I arrived.
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