Trip Summary Trip Dates: Jun 21 - Jun 27 Start - End Locations: Missoula - Missoula Days: 7   Rest Days: 0   Level of Support: Event Miles: 326 Average Miles Per Day: 54 Surface: Road Riders: 120 Type: Supported   Meals: Catered meals Physical Difficulty: Intermediate  Technical Difficulty: Easy to moderate Elevation: up to 7400' Cost: $949 Booking Status: Approx. Half Full

Year after year, Cycle Montana is one of our most popular supported tours. For 2008, we’re putting a new spin on an old favorite by spending a week bicycling through the scenic valleys of western and southwestern Montana. As we proceed, we’ll ride some of the same roads that Tour de France competitor and Butte native Levi Leipheimer trained on during his early days as a bike racer.

Beginning in Adventure Cycling’s vibrant hometown of Missoula, we’ll head south up the Bitterroot Valley on a mix of bike paths, highway shoulders, and back roads. After an overnight in Hamilton, where the soaring Bitterroot Mountains kiss the sky just west of town, we’ll continue following the Bitterroot River upstream until we climb out of its valley to crest both Lost Trail and Chief Joseph passes. From there, we’ll descend into the Big Hole Valley, a basin so broad and unpeopled that at moments you may find yourself thinking you’ve ridden back in time a hundred years.

We’ll pay a visit to the evocative Big Hole National Battlefield, where an August 1877 skirmish pitted peace-seeking Nez Perce Indians against Colonel John Gibbon and more than 160 men of the 7th Infantry, along with some three dozen volunteers from the Bitterroot Valley. From there, we’ll continue on to the microscopic settlement of Wisdom for the night.

The next day we’ll pedal alongside the Big Hole, a river that draws fly fishermen from the world over, and be treated to big views of the Anaconda-Pintler Wilderness and the Pioneer Mountains. We’ll depart the Big Hole Valley by way of the little-traveled Mill Creek Pass, dropping into the history-rich town of Anaconda. Our overnight is at nearby Fairmont Hot Springs, one of the most popular resorts in Montana, where the soothing warm-to-hot waters will be just what the doctor ordered for those fatigued muscles.

The highlights just keep coming as we continue for another three days of great riding. Back in Anaconda, we can learn about some of the mining history that shaped early Montana and continues affecting the state in many ways today. We’ll leave town by way of the Pintler Scenic Route, which will take us past pretty Georgetown Lake and down, via a fast, curvy descent, into the Flint Creek Valley. Here the neat little town of Philipsburg contains many beautiful old buildings and interesting shops—including the Sweet Palace, with its very tasty and tempting sugary treats of countless varieties.

It’s mellow cruising as we continue down the Flint Creek Valley to Drummond, the self-described “Bull-shipping Capital of the World.” From there, we’ll follow the Interstate 90/Clark Fork River corridor all the way back to Missoula, passing such memorable spots in the road as the Bearmouth Chalet and Rock Creek Lodge, host of the annual World Famous Testicle Festival. Here diners “enjoy”—if they’re brave enough—the questionable delicacy euphemistically known as Rocky Mountain oysters (aka bull testicles). After zipping through the old logging town of Bonner and down the Hellgate Canyon, we’ll complete the loop and enjoy a job-well-done celebration in Missoula.

You still may not be able to ride a time trial as fast as Levi Leipheimer after completing this ride, but you’ll have gotten up close and personal with a glorious corner of Big Sky Country.

For more detailed information, see Event logistics.

READY TO GO?
You can sign up for Cycle Montana now. Go to our online sign-up.