The Living Ghost Town of Montana

ENNIS

Ennis is a well known launch point for fishing in the area, you can gear up at the Tackle Shop in town.

The Ennis Pharmacy is a great stop for an old-fashioned soda pop, and the Gravel Bar is a good stop for food.

We camped at one of the many fishing accesses in the Ennis area.

VIRGINIA CITY & NEVADA CITY

Virginia City and Nevada City lie along Alder Gulch, the site of the richest placer gold strike in the Rocky Mountains.

The area is unique in Montana because unlike so many of the ghost towns that pepper the state, this boomtown was able to embrace their history into a successful tourist attraction. Thanks to their success, the Nevada City Living History Museum is home to 100 preserved 1863 to early 1900 buildings and artifacts from all over Montana that would have otherwise been destroyed.

If you're new here, and couldn't tell already, my sister is a 19th century history nerd, and this is her happy place.

There are many tour activities in the area, that you can find more info about here.

We also highly recommend sticking around town until the afternoon when the Wells Fargo Steakhouse opens for dinner service. I ate there for the first time in 2018, and have been dreaming about that steak for the last four years, and getting to eat there again absolutely held up to my memories of the experience.

DILLON

This is your key restock/refuel point in this area. We recommend stocking up on snacks/food here before moving on your adventure.

BANNACK

Bannack is a National Historic Landmark. In the summer of 1862, John White and fellow members of a group from Colorado, discovered gold along the banks of a creek he named the Grasshopper. White filed one of the first recorded mining claims in Montana.

The mining camp boomed to 400 within a few months to 3,000 within 6. Approx. $500,000 in gold was taken out of the area by the end of 1862.

One of Bannack's more famous stories is it's part in the story of the criminal gang known as the "Innocents” and the the Vigilantes who reigned them in in 1863. More Info.

This area is pretty remote, we recommend stopping in Dillon to stock up and pack yourself a lunch to enjoy in Bannack.

Bannack does have a campground on site.

BIG HOLE VALLEY

The Big Hole Valley is a vast, lush meadow surrounded by stunning peaks, showcasing the meandering Big Hole River. It is home to the Big Hole National Battlefield, the site of the 1877 conflict between the Nez Pierce and the US Army.

There is not a lot of services in the Big Hole Valley, which makes Wisdom and Jackson key points along your route to refuel your bike and your body for your adventures. There isn't much in the way of grocery options besides the small market in Wisdom and the mercantile in Wise River, so you may want to make a stop in a bigger town and stock up before heading this direction.

The Pioneer Scenic Byway is HIGHLY recommended, from Polaris to Wise River, however it was still to early in the season when we passed through to ride it. I have had the pleasure of riding it before though. There is a hot spring. As well as some hidden ghost town sites for those willing to search for them.

THE BITTERROOT VALLEY
Chief Joseph Pass and Lost Trail Pass are well known motorcycle roads in Western Montana, but it would be a disservice if we didn't mention them. Their junction is also the border of Idaho and Montana.

We visited the Oldest Chinese Restaurant in America

HELENA

The Cathedral of St. Helena began construction in 1908 and was consecrated in 1924. Some published accounts say that the Cathedral is modeled after the Cathedral in Cologne, Germany, but actually architect A. O. Von Herbulis modeled the Cathedral of St. Helena after the Votivkirche in Vienna, Austria, which was under construction when he was a student in that city.

Reeder's Alley was built in the 1870s by a Pennsylvania brick and stone mason named Louis Reeder. It is the oldest intact piece of early Helena. It was originally known as Cutler Street in Last Chance Gulch and it began as a result of a gold discovery on July 14th 1864 by a group of men known as the Four Georgians. On October 30th of that year, the area was renamed Helena. Between 1972 and 1884 Louis Reeder built over 30 brick and stone one-room tenements with no indoor plumbing for miners. Unfortunately Reeder died when he fell off scaffolding while working in 1884 and Cutler Street was renamed to Reeder's Alley. Thanks to the masonry, these buildings survived the fires that plagued the early community of Helena.

Last Chance Gulch is the name of the actual gulch in which gold was discovered in 1864. The thoroughfare which was built down the Gulch is now a walking mall, with a few unique businesses like the Parrot Confectionary which has been around since 1922.

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BUTTE

Butte was once known as "the richest hill on earth."

You may already be familiar with Butte in relation to the Berkeley Pitt, a former open pit copper mine that was open from 1955 to 1982 that has since filled with water. For an admission fee you can gaze at the pit from a viewing stand from March to November.

However, Butte's mining history goes much deeper and is arguably more interesting. The town began as a mining camp in the 1860s, and the town still preserves Victorian uptown businesses and stately mansions. The Butte Trolley tours historic sites in the summer.

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The World Museum of Mining was founded in 1963, to preserve the legacy of mining and related social and cultural heritage of Butte. It's located on the Orphan Girl mine yard, which includes the 100-foot-high headframe.

Butte was the epicenter of one of Montana's biggest silver mining booms of the late 19th century.

In the 1880s, hoisting accidents accounted for approximately 33% of mining deaths. Miners anxious to get home after their shifts would crowd as many as tent skinny men into each cage. An 1889 law improved cage safety cage safety by requiring miners to install iron bonnets also known as roofs to protect miners from falling rocks. The same law required safety gates, to keep the men from plummeting down the shaft to their deaths. In 1916, despite many technological improvements, hoist accidents still accounted for about 5% of mine fatalities.

Hum and Bessie Yow, the original proprietors of the Pekin Noodle Parlors, opened the Pekin Cafe and Lounge in 1911 with help of Tam Kwong Yee, grandfather of current owners Sharon and Ding K Tam, or as the Butte locals refer to them "The Wongs". It is currently the oldest operating Chinese Food Restaurant in the USA.

The Yows constructed the building in 1909 and operated a gaming parlor and markets on Butte's Historic Main Street.

Two years later the Yows began serving noodles and developed its own Chinese American Dish Chop Suey that served to Butte's mining community.

Chinese restaurants in the USA used to be called "chow chows" and were the origin of Chop Suey and Chow Mein.

Chop Suey, for example, got its start in 1850 when a bunch of hungry miners busted their way into a chow-chow late at night and demanded to be fed. The chef just stirred all the table scraps and leftovers he could find into a big mess and served it. The miners loved it. When asked what it was, the chef replied, "chop sui" which means "garbage bits" in Cantonese. The dish remained virtually unheard of in China until after World War II and is now advertised as American cuisine.

The Pekin Noodle Parlor is quite the experience, climbing the steep stairs to the second floor. Each table is sectioned off into it's own private booth. Be prepared for the noise as it can get quite loud in the restaurant, but we enjoyed our dinner.

Hidden History in the Rocky Mountains

SEELEY-SWAN VALLEY

The Seeley-Swan Valley is known as the outdoor-lovers paradise, because it acts as a launching point to the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex which covers 1.5 million acres.

The Seeley-Swan scenic drive is a 90 mile long corridor along Highway 83 stretching through the Swan Valley from Seeley Lake to Swan Lake. There are hundreds of natural lakes, ranging in size from a few acres to several thousands of acres, all squeezed into this narrow heavily forested valley. The Mission Mountains rise to the west, and the Swan Rang walls off the East, creating a pocket of solitude.

• Big Fork

  • Echo Lake Cafe

  • Pocketstone Cafe

  • Flathead Lake Brewing

  • Rosa’s Pizza

• Seeley Swan Corridor

• Swan Lake

• Holland Lake Campground

For the adventurous, the Great Continental Divide Route runs through Western Montana. Be aware that this route is not maintained, and conditions are subject to change, ride at your own risk.

Lincoln

Blackfoot Pathways: Sculpture in the Wild is a free sculpture park in Lincoln Montana. From the road you would not expect this to be hidden amongst the trees.

The sculpture park is a contemporary art representation reflecting on the mining, and logging history that have been the key economic growth of Lincoln for so long.

We recommend skipping I-15 into Helena and instead riding Flesher Pass from Lincoln to Helena.

HELENA

The Cathedral of St. Helena began construction in 1908 and was consecrated in 1924. Some published accounts say that the Cathedral is modeled after the Cathedral in Cologne, Germany, but actually architect A. O. Von Herbulis modeled the Cathedral of St. Helena after the Votivkirche in Vienna, Austria, which was under construction when he was a student in that city.

Reeder's Alley was built in the 1870s by a Pennsylvania brick and stone mason named Louis Reeder. It is the oldest intact piece of early Helena. It was originally known as Cutler Street in Last Chance Gulch and it began as a result of a gold discovery on July 14th 1864 by a group of men known as the Four Georgians. On October 30th of that year, the area was renamed Helena. Between 1972 and 1884 Louis Reeder built over 30 brick and stone one-room tenements with no indoor plumbing for miners. Unfortunately Reeder died when he fell off scaffolding while working in 1884 and Cutler Street was renamed to Reeder's Alley. Thanks to the masonry, these buildings survived the fires that plagued the early community of Helena.

Last Chance Gulch is the name of the actual gulch in which gold was discovered in 1864. The thoroughfare which was built down the Gulch is now a walking mall, with a few unique businesses like the Parrot Confectionary which has been around since 1922.

The part of Montana people miss on their National Park Roadtrip

LIBBY

A great small town, that’s known as the gateway to Lake Koocanusa for a reason. If you plan on riding one or both sides of the Lake you’ll want to make a plan for food and gas. Libby and Rexford are your only options for fuel and food around the lake.

• Evergreen Motel

• The Black Board Bistro

• Hav-a-Java Expresso To Go

• 7 Seeds Coffee

• Country Inn

• Kootenai Falls Suspension Bridge

• Lake Koocanusa Scenic Byway

The Kootenai Falls Swinging Bridge was built by the Forest Service to access forest fires across the Kootenai River. This foot bridge was destroyed by a major flood in 1948. The bridge was rebuilt on concrete piers and is now protected from flooding by the Libby Dam.

It is suspended 40 feet about the turquoise water, and offers a beautiful view of the Kootenai River Gorge and pine trees...if you can take your eyes off the boards immediately in front of you while crossing.

If you're in the Libby area on a Motorcycle, the Lake Koocanusa Scenic Byway should be on your to-do list. Lake Koocanusa is a 90 mile long reservoir that is held back by the Libby Dam. You can ride along both sides of the lake. Most people ride the East side, so the West side is much less busy. There are multiple points along the lake for camping, fishing, and boat access.

The Koocanusa Bridge near the Canadian border, is the longest and highest bridge in Montana, standing over 270 feet above the water -depending on the water level.

Whitefish | Kalispell | Columbia Falls

Whitefish and Kalispell are ideal places to re-supply if you're in need of parts, or other things only bigger cities can provide. Be aware though, Whitefish can be quite spendy. In comparison hotel rates in Columbia Falls are a little better, but still have the side-effect of being a gateway town to Glacier National Park.

• Wonderstone at Glacier

• Three Forks Grille, Columbia Falls

• Montana Vortex

• Montana Coffee Traders

HipCamp is an excellent budget friendly way to stay near Glacier National Park. If you’ve never used HipCamp before here’s a $10 Credit to Hipcamp (this is my friend invite code, if you use this I get a $10 credit back). We looked into Air BnB but most hosts were booked, needed a week+ notice, or were just as expensive as the hotels.

We couldn't be in Columbia Falls and not make a nostalgic stop at the Montana Vortex. Depending on your own personal beliefs, the Montana Vortex is said to be home of the Golden Vortex, a quantum or gravitational anomaly that allegedly re-define the laws of physics and nature. No matter what you believe, it's a fun place to spend a couple hours.

Seeley-Swan Valley

The Seeley-Swan Valley is known as the outdoor-lovers paradise, because it acts as a launching point to the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex which covers 1.5 million acres.

The Seeley-Swan scenic drive is a 90 mile long corridor along Highway 83 stretching through the Swan Valley from Seeley Lake to Swan Lake. There are hundreds of natural lakes, ranging in size from a few acres to several thousands of acres, all squeezed into this narrow heavily forested valley. The Mission Mountains rise to the west, and the Swan Rang walls off the East, creating a pocket of solitude.

• Big Fork

  • Echo Lake Cafe

  • Pocketstone Cafe

  • Flathead Lake Brewing

  • Rosa’s Pizza

• Seeley Swan Corridor

• Swan Lake

• Holland Lake Campground