Red Lodge is in central southern Montana almost at the Wyoming border. Coal mining got a start here in 1884. Over the years, tourists replaced miners because of the very scenic Beartooth highway that links Red Lodge with the northeast entrance of Yellowstone National Park.
Red Lodge
The area is scenic. Around 2,000 people live here at an elevation of 5,568 feet in the rugged Beartooth Mountains. The downtown had plenty of shops to explore.
There were also a lot of bars and restaurants for our one week stay. We had lunch at Perogative Kitchen. Very friendly owner and staff. Good wine and food in the eclectic bohemian atmosphere. You wouldn’t be able to run out of Toilet Paper in their restroom, since its part of the decor.
Not far outside of town are remnants of the Smith Coal mine. It’s where Montana’s worse mining disaster occurred. In 1943, seventy-four men died in an explosion complicated by methane gas.
KOA Red Lodge
We had a very private quiet end site in the woods. It was a good thing because there were three wedding parties there at the time. Our site had 50-amp electric, good water pressure, sewer and fast enough WIFI to stream. Jake loved their huge dog park.
Yellowstone Wildlife Sanctuary, Red Lodge, MT
It is a non profit that provides permanent residence for wildlife that can’t be released back into the wild. The animals were a bit hard to see because of the fencing, but they looked healthy. It takes about an hour to walk Yellowstone Wildlife Sanctuary. Sandy’s hand compared to the size of a bear footprint.
Beartooth Highway
Unfortunately, it was closed because Rock Creek had flooded and eroded part of the highway. It will be closed indefinitely. Even a side road over Rock Creek was closed because the bridge was completely washed away.
This bed and breakfast got the brunt of the flood damage in Red Lodge, with debris filling up the interior. It’s amazing how powerful mother nature can be.
Around town there were turkey and deer.
Chief Joseph Scenic Highway
We’ve been on this highway before when we stayed in Cody. This time the wildflowers were in full bloom. There were penstemmon, larkspur, balsamroot, paintbrush, and sego lily to name a few. Along the way, there was road construction, including fresh chip and oil, so we turned around and headed back to Red Lodge since we didn’t want oil on the truck.
Absarokee, Beehive, Nye
We took a very scenic loop drive along the foothills of the Beartooth mountains.
An old abandoned home with poppies and lupine in bloom.
Once again, there was significant flooding that caused damage to different sections of the roads and bridges limiting how much were able to explore.
We came across a bald eagle nest in the distance. The juvenile didn’t have his white feathers yet.
It is a beautiful area. Spring wildflowers and snow capped mountains. Our intent was to explore the Beartooth Highway, so we will just have to return another year in late June.
We had a nice short hike with Jake around Wild Bill Lake. Lupine were in bloom.
