On Day 5 of our adventure we got up and had breakfast at the Hampton Inn in Billings before heading to our first stop which was Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument. It was about an hour drive from our hotel to the battlefield and a little bit of backtracking but we found that it was worth the effort to get there!
Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument ($15.00/vehicle)
After our short morning drive from the hotel, we headed into the Battlefield Area. We arrived a little before 9:00 AM. Summer hours were 8:00 AM - 8:00 PM. The entry fee was $15.00/vehicle. However, our National Park Pass came in handy here as it was accepted so the fee was included as part of the cost of the Pass.
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| Visitor's Center |
We parked in the parking area, took a quick look around the national cemetery which is near the parking area and headed into the Visitor's Center. There is small museum area inside the Visitor's Center with some interesting and educational displays. We arrived in the Visitor's Center close to 9:00 AM. The movie was playing already so we decided to wait for it to end for the next showing. Well.......it ended and we entered the room and saw a sign that said that the movie was only shown every two hours beginning at 8:30 AM. So much for that idea! We then checked to see when the Ranger's Talk was as we had heard that this was a very worthwhile thing to do to help get oriented to the battlefield. Well....turns out that we missed that also and another one wasn't scheduled for quite awhile. So.....we were on our own to figure out the battlefield.
We left the Visitor's Center and took the short (but steep) pathway up to the monument itself. This is at the top of the hill where Custer's Last Stand occurred. Luckily there are
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| The Site of Custer's Last Stand. Markers show where soldiers fell that day. |
lots of informational signs around We found that the grave markers were placed on the spots where the soldiers/indians fell. The gray markers were for the soldiers and the red markers were for the indians. This placement gives you a very good idea of how the battle happened. There is also a special marker for General George Custer.
From Custer's Last Stand, we took a short walk across the street to the newer Indian Memorial. This is a memorial to the indian warriors who were killed that day and to their push for freedom. The battlefield prides itself on a very balanced presentation of the facts and I believe that they do accomplish this. The visitor is left to interpret the facts as they will.
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| Indian Memorial - Little Bighorn Battlefield |
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| Indian Memorial - Little Bighorn Battlefield |
After visiting the two memorials we headed back to the parking area, took another quick look around the national cemetery. It's always so stunning to see the simple white graves in straight lines against the backdrop of the flag and the blue sky.
We got into our car and continued the trip around the battlefield itself. Again, there are many informational signs around so make sure you give yourselves enough time to read and take in the surroundings. The grave markers continue to show where the soldiers/indians fell during the battle.
By the time we got back to the Visitor's Center (It's a loop road.) there were quite a few tour buses parked in the parking area. There are restrooms located in a separate building outside of the Visitor's Center near the parking area. Lines were rather long with the tour buses arriving at one time but the restrooms were clean.
If I could offer a couple of tips on your visit here they would be: 1. Arrive early before the tour buses really start arriving. 2. Make sure that you plan to arrive when you can watch the movie or take in the Ranger talk so you have a better idea of what you are seeing. Again, the movies start at 8:30 AM and are run every two hours. 3. Plan on spending a minimum of a couple hours here to see everything.
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| Feral Horses on the Battlefield |
This was a place that initially we thought, "Well we are in the area, we might as well go and see it. Maybe it will be interesting." By the time we left, we felt that we had learned something and it was a place that we really enjoyed seeing. I would definitely put it on your list if you are in the area!
Let the Driving Resume
We didn't have time to stay for the second showing of the movie because we had a long drive ahead of us and we had to get on our way! The good thing about having time and a smartphone is that you can google anything along the way. The story of the Battle of Little Bighorn kept us entertained and promoted a lot of discussion for the next hour or so of our drive!
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| Drive to Kalispell |
Our final destination for Day 5 was to make it clear across the state of Montana (It's a HUGE state by the way!) and up to the northwestern corner to the small town of Kalispell which is about 40 miles outside of Glacier National Park. This is was about an 8 - 8.5 hour drive with very few stops so most of our day was taken up with the drive. We knew this would be one of our harder driving days so we prepared ourselves to get on with it!
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| Drive to Kalispell |
After about 7 hours of the drive, we
arrived in western Montana. The
eastern half of the state was pretty similar to North/South Dakota. There were a few more rolling hills but
lots of hay and wide open lands.
The central part of the state had a few more mountainous areas thrown into the plains look. Western Montana however was what I pictured when I thought of Montana. All of a sudden we looked around and there were beautiful lakes and mountains. The colors were stunning and the scenery amazing! The payoff for a long drive was definitely worth it!
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| Drive to Kalispell |
Hampton Inn Kalispell, MT
We arrived at our destination on the evening of day 5. We were tired and ready to stop by the time got there. With Kalispell being a small town and close to Glacier National Park, we weren't sure what to expect. What we found was a very nice Hampton Inn. The staff was very friendly and helpful.
Coffee is available 24 hours a day and iced tea and cookies awaited us in the lobby. Our room was pretty typical of a Hampton Inn but the bathroom seemed larger than most. Our room was clean and comfortable. We ordered pizza in our room that night and hit the hay early so we could be up very early the next day to catch sunrise at Glacier National Park!
Coming Next: The Great National Park Adventure Day 6: Glacier National Park - A Gem of a Park!
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After our short morning drive from the hotel, we headed into the Battlefield Area. We arrived a little before 9:00 AM. Summer hours were 8:00 AM - 8:00 PM. The entry fee was $15.00/vehicle. However, our National Park Pass came in handy here as it was accepted so the fee was included as part of the cost of the Pass. 
We parked in the parking area, took a quick look around the national cemetery which is near the parking area and headed into the Visitor's Center. There is small museum area inside the Visitor's Center with some interesting and educational displays. We arrived in the Visitor's Center close to 9:00 AM. The movie was playing already so we decided to wait for it to end for the next showing. Well.......it ended and we entered the room and saw a sign that said that the movie was only shown every two hours beginning at 8:30 AM. So much for that idea! We then checked to see when the Ranger's Talk was as we had heard that this was a very worthwhile thing to do to help get oriented to the battlefield. Well....turns out that we missed that also and another one wasn't scheduled for quite awhile. So.....we were on our own to figure out the battlefield. 
From Custer's Last Stand, we took a short walk across the street to the newer Indian Memorial. This is a memorial to the indian warriors who were killed that day and to their push for freedom. The battlefield prides itself on a very balanced presentation of the facts and I believe that they do accomplish this. The visitor is left to interpret the facts as they will.
We got into our car and continued the trip around the battlefield itself. Again, there are many informational signs around so make sure you give yourselves enough time to read and take in the surroundings. The grave markers continue to show where the soldiers/indians fell during the battle. 
We arrived at our destination on the evening of day 5. We were tired and ready to stop by the time got there. With Kalispell being a small town and close to Glacier National Park, we weren't sure what to expect. What we found was a very nice Hampton Inn. The staff was very friendly and helpful. 
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