BOZEMAN TO MISSOULA THE SCENIC ROUTE; READING THE ROADSIDE PLAQUES; BLOG GOES FROM DAILY TO WEEKLY PUBLICATION
Karen suggested we take a slightly longer route from Bozeman to Missoula this morning. The temperature was in the low 30’s when we pulled out of town and headed west on I-90.
A few miles later, we turned north, as we had done a couple of days earlier, on Highway 287. There is a rest area at the junction that has some information on the history of the highway. It was originally known as the Geysers to Glaciers Highway in the early 20th century when it was mostly a dirt road going from Yellowstone National Park to Glacier National Park.
There is also an elaborate memorial to fallen ‘towers’ - tow truck drivers who were killed in the line of duty on local highways - prominently displayed.
Since we were driving up through the Gallatin Valley and potato farms again, we decided to stop and pick up a bag of the local spuds. It wasn’t long before we came upon an unattended farm stand. Karen dropped some cash into the ‘honor system’ money box and hoisted the bag of baby reds into the car.
Further along, we took a quick look at the Big Belt Mountains in the distance across the wind-whipped waters of the Missouri River near Canyon Ferry Dam.
Once we reached Helena, we turned west on Highway 12 and went up into the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest. It’s a beautiful drive up across the Continental Divide at MacDonald Pass. There’s a sign at the pass that tells an interesting story about this segment of the road.
It seems that a Frenchman built a toll road over the Continental Divide in the 1860’s. His wife ran a ‘hotel’ in a small cabin near the town of Elliston. Word of her hospitality spread among travelers who used the road and soon it was known as the Frenchwoman’s Road. Within a couple of years, the wife was found murdered in the cabin. Her killer was never found, but the fact that her husband left the territory soon afterwards seemed to be more than a coincidence. Local legend holds that her ghost haunted the cabin for many years thereafter.
The toll road changed owners and the new manager, Alexander ‘Red’ MacDonald, became the eventual namesake of the pass.
In a continuation of the somewhat tragic history of the pass, an early 20th century aviator won $10,000 in 1911 for being the first person to fly over the Continental Divide. However, Cromwell Dixon, known as ‘Bird Boy’, never got to enjoy the prize. He was killed two days later when his biplane crashed at a fair in Spokane, WA.
We continued driving (very carefully) west as the road followed the Little Blackfoot River down toward I-90. At one of the turnouts, we learned that Highway 12, from that point westward, follows a military road mapped out in the 1860’s. This is still the same route that the highway and I-90 runs into the Idaho border.
There’s also an interesting side story about this part of the road. In an 1865 freight transport experiment, seven camels loaded with 600 pounds of flour each, went over the pass from Helena to the mines near Deer Lodge. Although the camels were more than up to the task of carrying their loads, the horses, mules and oxen accompanying the group were totally unnerved at the sight, scent and sounds of their humpbacked companions. Soon enough, ‘iron horses’ brought an end to the dromedary decade. Today, long freighter trains huff and puff through the pass.
We dropped down through the haystacks and hayfields of the Little Blackfoot River Valley until we reached the Clark Fork River and I-90.
Filled with loads of arcane highway history, we set the cruise control for 80mph and shot over to Missoula. After dropping off the rental car, we met with Jeff and Joanna for our visit with them. We had our first home cooked meal in nearly a month. Thanks, Jeff and Joanna!
The blog will go to a weekly publication starting today.
NEXT: Watch for a report on the Hiawatha Bike Trail, and other local sights this week.
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