Bozeman, MT
We followed the Gallatin River from the Tetons up to Bozeman. Steep exposed cliffs plunged downward forming the canyon, while far in the background snow covered mountains reached for the big sky. The centerpiece of it all was the river babbling its beauty.
After a few rounds of economic but well located hotel rooms, we were excited to find a very promising private guest cabin on AirBnB. Log construction, old stone floors, and a wood stove had my soul-a-soothin…and 42 fenced acres to play had Merlin’s tail-a-waggin!
The accomplished outdoorsmen owners had the entire property perfectly dialed in. Walking the grounds and taking in the panoramic views left me with a sense that there is still a long way to grow. It became clear that Montana is a place I want us to learn from and listen to.
The first lesson our little family received came from the resident four legged friend named Louis. The German Shepard/Golden mix guided us on each walk through his stately back yard. Merlin’s small dog complex was peaking, and Louis graciously rolled over for him again and again.
Perpetual pestering by Merl eventually gave way to one of the sternest warnings I’ve ever seen. Like a rockstar drummer banging his sticks together to start the show, Louis presented and clacked his fangs with such ferocity the world stopped turning. I couldn’t believe it when Merlin accepted the challenge and dove in. Merl lost in a landslide and quickly necessitated an aerial evacuation. From that moment on Louis led the pack, and our dog's behavior radically improved.
On our first full day we skied the local Bridger Bowl. The barebones lodge, slow lifts, and moguled steep face set a mixed early tone. As we progressed through the day the amazing talent on the hill became truly inspirational. We saw crazy chutes bombed and backcountry backflips. An unforgettable para-alpine sit skier won the afternoon poaching jumps out of the glades. On his final run he went for maximum style and clanged his pole on a lift tower as he soared by. Cheers rained down from the ascending onlookers. Bridger was our first local mountain, and it taught us skiers themselves can make any hill great.
We intended to spend our next morning tackling a quick but moderate local hike (Drinking Horse). The promised view of Downton Bozeman and the surrounding mountains had us excited. Unfortunately, weather and foot traffic turned the snowy trail to ice. As we struggled to make headway, we got word the only way to make it up was with a set of cleats on our boots. We were forced to turn back and felt slightly embarrassed.
A great thing about Bozeman is that they conveniently have everything you need. We decided to turn some shame into determination, and 20 minutes later we were back at the trailhead all cleated up! We made it to the top with brimming confidence. On the way we passed the man and his dog who told us about the cleats. With a grin on his face he happily exclaimed, “You’re back! This time properly prepared!”
As mentioned in our Jackson post, we heard the Boiling River in Yellowstone is a can’t miss hot spring attraction. While normally super crowded in the busy summer months, visiting in the winter provides for a much more peaceful experience. We were on the fence about the 3 hour round trip drive, but after finding out nearly all of it was spent passing through a valley whose namesake is Paradise, how could we not go?
Flurries fell from the sky as we passed through the hibernating town of Gardiner, MT at the northern gate of Yellowstone. There were no cars and no lines. We only had to drive 3 miles through the park to get to the hot springs, but that’s all it took to encounter grazing bison and roaming elk.
Unlike the previous springs we had visited on this trip, the Boiling River has no overly engineered pool structure. You can actually see the super heated large spring emerge from rock and flow naturally into the swift Gardiner River. It was quite the rush navigating our way down to where the water temperature was just right for a soak. Each step along the irregular rocky bottom felt either scalding hot or numbingly cold.
Eventually we settled into a goldilocks pocket of the river and enjoyed the harmony of our senses. Over the course of our soak, two sets of companions joined in…a pair of on-the-road filmmakers from Australia and a couple of locals. We chatted for an hour about travel, politics, secret powder and the future. Our hot pool was cool, and I felt like it was the best of schools.
We returned home to watch the Super Bowl in our cabin with no TV. We streamed the game on the computer, but mostly watched the wood stove and listened to each other’s dreams. It was the best Super Bowl ever.
Bozeman is a great setting for great people. It was clear if you aspire to have outdoor recreation be a large part of your life, this was the place to grow. It was exciting to encounter and learn from those who have already made it in what is often referred to as the Last Great Place.
