Adventure Cycling Association

You'll get together with your tour leaders and the rest of the group in Montana's "Garden City," home to several national nonprofit organizations -- including, of course, Adventure Cycling Association, whose offices and staff you'll have the opportunity to visit. We'll meet up in the afternoon, set up our tents, then have our orientation meeting and first meal together, ready to set out on the adventure ahead.

We'll leave our campsite just outside of town, heading west. For those looking for a bit more riding today, you can add about 15 miles by heading to the Museum of the Rockies on the Montana State University campus and check out the vast collection of dinosaur fossils. Back on route, our leisurely day will get our legs ready for the climbing ahead as we make our way to Three Forks, which Lewis & Clark noted as the place where the Gallatin River joins the Madison and Jefferson to form the great Missouri River. We'll spend one last night here under a beautiful starry canopy.

We'll leave the headwaters of the Missouri and continue westward, gradually at first then more quickly working our way up to our first Continental Divide crossing over Pipestone Pass. Pipestone Pass is located in the Highland Mountains, and once we reach the top we'll gradually descend back down to Butte. There is ample to explore in this great Montana mining town, rich in Irish culture and home to the infamous Berkeley Pit, a toxic mining leftover turned tourist attraction.

Today we'll be riding towards the Pintler and Anaconda mountain ranges, a wonderful backdrop for today's ride. We'll make our way out of the Silver Bow Valley, then start our climb to over 6,700 feet from Anaconda. From the top, we'll meander our way back down to Wise River, following the Big Hole River -- a famous fishing destination -- before reaching town.

We have two stunning climbs today! Our first will be a gradual but steady climb to the crest of Crystal Park, located at nearly 8,000 feet in elevation. From there, we'll have nearly 15 miles of generally downhill terrain before climbing up to our second high point of the day, Big Hole Pass, at 7,360 feet. From here, we'll have stunning views of the Big Hole Valley. Todays route follows the Pioneer Scenic Byway, spinning past vast alpine meadows with rugged granite peaks of the Pioneers to the east. We'll end our day at Jackson Hot Springs, ready for a soak.

Today's ride, while long, should feel refreshing, with over twice as much descent as there is climbing. Leaving Jackson, we'll head north to Wisdom and cross the Big Hole River whose trout-filled waters draw fly fishermen from around the world. From Wisdom, we'll turn west and visit the Big Hole National Battlefield. This site commemorates a terrible chapter in the Indian Wars of the late 1800s. From there, we'll spin 16 miles before climbing over 7,241-foot Chief Joseph Pass, named for the Nez Perce chief who you learned about at the battlefield, then pop over 6,990-foot Lost Trail Pass. Between these two passes, we'll cross in and out of Idaho and have another crossing of the Continental Divide. A stunning decent of nearly 20 miles awaits us as we reach the Bitterroot Valley and follow the river of the same name.

Day 8. Darby to Missoula, 66 miles

Our last day of riding brings us back to Adventure Cycling's hometown of Missoula. 15 miles from our overnight in Darby we reach Hamilton, our biggest town in a while. From just outside of Hamilton all the way to Missoula, we'll follow 50 miles of bike trail that parallels U.S. 93 and the Bitterroot River. To the west, the high crags of the Bitterroot Range scratch the big Montana sky; to the east, the lower Sapphire Range lines our way. with the stunning vistas of jagged peaks all around. You might consider a short side trip to Stevensville, Montana's first town and original capital, where you can visit the old St. Mary's Mission, established in 1841, to learn the story of Father Pierre DeSmet and other "black robes" who arrived early on the scene in this part of the Rocky Mountains. Late in our ride, we'll reach the town of Lolo where you can swing in and have a look at Travelers' Rest State Park. The park marks the site of an ancient Native American campsite used by the Lewis and Clark expedition in both 1805 and 1806. We'll finally end our day in Missoula, ready to rest and feeling accomplished from our Big Sky adventure.