7-Day Southeast Montana Road Trip Itinerary

Most outdoor lovers know Montana for its two National Parks: Glacier and Yellowstone. But as the 4th largest state in the US, surely there is more to see in Montana than these two popular destinations, right?

I’ve done several road trips through Montana and I can attest that yes, Montana has no shortage of outdoor adventure. I particularly loved exploring Southeast Montana with its vast badlands, great hiking, world-class fly fishing, epic mountain bike trails, and gorgeous drives.

I fell in love with this beautiful area and I’m excited to share my Southeast Montana itinerary with you. Leave Glacier and Yellowstone for another trip and check out this lesser-traveled (but no less awesome! destination.

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Southeast Montana Road Trip Overview

I spent a lot of time putting together this itinerary to make sure I hit all the best stops and adventures in Southeast Montana. Since I love exploring the outdoors, it focuses on hiking, biking, kayaking, and other outdoorsy pursuits. That being said, you can easily tailor it to your own interests.

If you want to add Yellowstone to your road trip, check out my guide to visiting Yellowstone and Teton National Parks.

Day 1: Explore Billings, Montana

If you’re flying into Montana, I recommend booking an early flight so you have time to explore the vibrant little town of Billings. We arrived in the morning, so we had plenty of time to walk around and see the highlights.

Here’s how I spent my day in Billings:

Day 2: Red Lodge & Beartooth Highway

On our second day in Eastern Montana, we woke up early and grabbed some homemade comfort grub at the Sassy Biscuit. They offer a variety of breakfast dishes (including vegan options) from a refined spin on biscuits and gravy to a southern-style shrimp and grits. The food here is comforting and filling!

After fueling up, we hit the road for the hour-and-a-half drive to Red Lodge, a small town at the foot of the Beartooth Mountains, one of Montana’s highest peaks. This town is known for its friendly laid-back locals, beautiful scenery, and endless opportunities for outdoor recreation.

On our first day in Red Lodge, we grabbed some lunch to-go from Honey’s Cafe then headed up the Beartooth Highway which first opened in 1936. It’s quite literally one of the prettiest roads I’ve ever been on! The highway snakes its way up the side of massive cliffs and offers grand views the entire way until we topped out at nearly 11,000 feet. Once we hit the top of the pass, the road drops down into Wyoming, eventually leading straight into Yellowstone National Park.

Tips for driving Beartooth Highway:

Day 3: Spend another day exploring Red Lodge

We decided to stay another full day in Red Lodge because there is so much to do here. For hiking, there are dozens of great trails within a 20-minute drive of the town. You can find top-rated trails on my favorite hiking apps or better yet, stop by the Sylvan Peak Mountain Shoppe. They have tons of books and maps of the area, as well as bear spray, which you should carry if you plan on doing any hiking or camping in Southeast Montana.

If you’re looking for more great shops in town, here are a few more that I enjoyed browsing:

• Lewis and Barks Outpost, a great pet store
• Kinzley Photography to see beautiful landscape photographs from around Montana
• Grizzly Peak Outdoors for any outdoor gear you need
• Beartooth Books

For dining in Red Lodge, if you want a taco fix, hit up Mas Taco. For fine dining and seasonal fare, Ox Pasture serves incredible Italian food.

Day 4: Float in Bighorn Canyon

Important tip! There are very limited services in Fort Smith. The closest restaurant is at the Garrison Stoker Resort about 12 miles north of Fort Smith. There is a market in town, but when we went, the shelves were completely empty. You also can’t buy alcohol anywhere in Fort Smith because it’s on the Crow Indian Reservation. I suggest stopping in Pryor on the way in to stock up on groceries and provisions and cook your own meals during your stay at Cottonwood Camp.

On day 4 of our Southeast Montana itinerary, we rose early again and made the 2.5-hour drive to the northern end of Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area. Spanning 71 miles across the Montana-Wyoming border, Bighorn Canyon was flooded in 1966 after the construction of the Yellowtail Dam in Fort Smith, Montana.

Bighorn Canyon is a special place. A third of the canyon lies on the Crow Indian Reservation and it’s also home to tons of wildlife including peregrine falcons, wild horses, bighorn sheep, and black bears.

For our day at Bighorn Canyon, we wanted to get out on the water. We drove to the Ok-a-beh Marina, where there are pontoon boat rentals and even free guided kayak tours through the National Park Service.

We opted for a pontoon boat rental for the afternoon since we were limited on time, but we also threw a kayak on the back in case we wanted to explore any of the narrow side canyons.

We found the canyon to be incredibly beautiful – sheer, colorful rock cliffs soaring thousands of feet above the lake covered in lush vegetation. The water was still quite cold in late May, but we were told later in summer it’s perfect for swimming.

We went 20 miles down the lake before turning around to return the boat by the 6 pm deadline and we only encountered a few other boats all afternoon. It was one of our favorite days of our trip!

Make it an overnight adventure: If you’re feeling adventurous, Bighorn Canyon has an extensive water trail system for overnight kayakers. You probably will want to bring your own kayak or rent some solid ones from Billings since the kayaks they have available in the marina aren’t gear haulers. If we come back again, we would love to do an overnight trip in the canyon at one of the boat-in campgrounds.

If you don’t want to rent a boat or a kayak, you can drive several hours to the more dramatic viewpoints at the southern end of the lake. There are also some hiking trails here, but since we didn’t visit, I can’t offer any specifics.

Day 5: Go Fly Fishing on the Bighorn River

If you’ve ever wanted to try fly fishing, the Bighorn River offers one of the largest concentrations of wild brown and rainbow trout in the entire West. Cottonwood Camp offers fully outfitted and guided fishing trips right out their back door.

We were lucky to go out with Phil, the owner of the Cottonwood Camp, for an exciting day on the water. Ryan and I both have very limited fly-fishing experience, so we got a quick crash course at the Camp before driving 5 minutes to our launch point. Where you go and how you fish depends on the conditions. Our day was split between fishing from a drift boat and standing along the shoreline.

Throughout the day, we learned about the equipment, how to cast, mending the line, and how to land a big one. Ryan ended up catching 5 fish! I wasn’t quite as lucky, but the introduction to the sport left me curious for more.

If you are serious about learning how to fly fish, spending a few days with a guide at the Cottonwood Camp would be a great way to do it.

Day 6: Little Bighorn Battlefield & Makoshika State Park

We had a bit of a drive today – about 4 hours northeast to Makoshika State Park. Early on in the drive, we passed right by Little Bighorn Battlefield where the most significant battle took place during the Great Sioux War of 1876, also known as Custer’s Last Stand. Unfortunately, we were on a tight schedule and didn’t have time to visit on this trip, but you’ll essentially drive right past it and I assume it would be a very worthwhile stop.

We arrived in Glendive, the home of Makoshika State Park, in the early afternoon. Our first stop was to grab some lunch at Bloom Coffeehouse & Eatery, an awesome cafe that doubles as a greenhouse and nursery. All the food is extremely fresh. Even my oatmeal was delicious!

Makoshika State Park is Montana’s largest state park with a ton to see and do. There are badlands covered in pine and juniper forests, dinosaur fossils, isolated camping, and abundant hiking trails. Most of the trails right off the main road are short – less than a mile in length.

A few hiking trails that I recommend are:

We got unusually rainy weather on our visit, but we heard that sunsets and sunrises in the park are absolutely epic with the badlands lighting up in all kinds of colors. Try to catch at least one!

Tips for visiting Makoshika State Park:

Day 7: Finish Exploring Makoshika & Drive Back to Billings

I’ll start by saying I wish we’d had more time in Makoshika. If you have the time, continue crossing off some of the trails in the park. The Visitors Center is also worth a look, as they have a replica of a large Triceratops skull that was once found in the park along with a bunch of smaller fossils on display that you can touch.

Once you are done in Makoshika, hit the road back to Billings, Montana to catch an evening flight home to end your southeast Montana itinerary. It’s a 225-mile drive and should take about 3-3.5 hours.

Southeast Montana Video

Here’s a short video I made of my Southeast Montana itinerary.

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What are your favorite places to explore in Southeast Montana? Would you do this itinerary? Leave a comment below!