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If you love visiting national parks but don’t love dealing with the crowds, spring is an ideal time to head to Yellowstone National Park. But what does “spring” mean, exactly? Yellowstone is located in the intermountain west, where elevations start at a mile high and go dramatically up from there. Not surprisingly, spring arrives late to Gardiner and Yellowstone National Park—but visitors can still enjoy a fabulous national park experience during this lesser-visited time of year. If you’re coming to Yellowstone in March, April, or May, here are some handy tips to keep in mind:

If You’re Visiting in March

Gardiner and Yellowstone National Park are still very winter-like during the month of March. Most park roads are currently closed for spring plowing—with the exception of the Yellowstone Northern Range, which includes the road from Gardiner to Mammoth Hot Springs and on to Cooke City, Montana. So while visitors won’t be able to access famous attractions like Old Faithful or the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, they will be able to experience world-class wildlife watching, relaxing scenic driving, and snow sports like cross-country skiing and snowshoeing on the Northern Range.

Snow removal takes place from March to April in Yellowstone/Yellowstone NPS

Wildlife—including elk, pronghorn, bighorn sheep, and bison—are the stars of the show in March. With snowpack often at its peak many animals head for the lower elevations, and it’s common to see almost all of these species cruising right through town here in Gardiner. In Yellowstone National Park, wolf watching is generally very good in March as the packs are easier to spot against the white landscape. 

Wildlife are abundant in Gardiner in early spring/Yellowstone NPS

March is an excellent time to hire a wildlife guide and really immerse yourself in the wonders of this incredible ecosystem. Gardiner’s expert guides are all too happy to share their first-hand knowledge with visitors—and they’re intimately familiar with where to spot all the animals on your wish list. Accommodations are also widely available in Gardiner in March, though a few hotels will be closed for the winter season. For a complete list of all the accommodations available in Gardiner this time of year, click here.

If You’re Visiting in April

The weather can still be a bit finicky in April, but it’s generally milder than March. Snow begins to rapidly melt, which means waterfalls are often running at their peak. The hillsides begin to show the first signs of green vegetation. Several interior park roads open for the summer season on April 15, giving visitors the opportunity to enjoy Old Faithful and the other geyser basins with just a handful of other people.

Visit Old Faithful when roads open in April to avoid peak season crowds/Yellowstone NPS

In addition to scenic driving in Yellowstone National Park, baby animals start to appear towards the end of April, especially in the Lamar Valley and at the park’s North Entrance in Gardiner, Montana. Bears begin to emerge from hibernation, accompanied by clumsy bear cubs. Playful bison calves—nicknamed “red dogs” for their reddish-brown coats—are a joy to see running and playing among the adults in the herd.

Visitors should be aware Dunraven and Sylvan passes are still closed, and there is still no direct route to neighboring Grand Teton National Park from Yellowstone as the road from Lake Village to the South Entrance is closed as well. It’s also a good idea to pack lunches for full-day trips into the park, as most in-park restaurants will still be closed for the season.

Spring hiking on the Beaver Ponds Loop trail near Mammoth Hot Springs/Yellowstone NPS

If You’re Visiting in May

At long last, classic spring weather arrives to Gardiner and Yellowstone National Park! By May 27, all park roads are open (weather dependent), early spring flowers begin to bloom, and you’ll be hard-pressed to drive through Gardiner and the park’s Northern Range without spotting at least a few baby animals. Bears are particularly active this time of year, so be sure to pack your bear spray and plan accordingly if you want to take advantage of spring hiking.

Green hillsides in May at the North Entrance/Yellowstone NPS

Along with Old Faithful, Grand Prismatic Spring, and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, visitors can drive to lesser-visited—but still spectacular—attractions like Yellowstone Lake and West Thumb Geyser Basin. The weather is generally comfortable enough for camping, though we’d recommend bringing extra blankets as nights are still quite chilly.

Planning for a full-day trip into the park is easier as most in-park lodging, restaurants, and visitor centers are all open. Yellowstone’s infamous crowds start to ramp up around Memorial Day, so keep this in mind if you’re primary goal is beating the crowds. The Hell's A-Roarin' Horse Drive, where local ranchers drive over 300 horses right through the town of Gardiner, takes place on Memorial Day Weekend. The event culminates in a western-style party complete with live music, barbeque, and cowboy poetry, and all proceeds support local charity organizations.

The annual Hell's A-Roarin' Horse Drive takes place in Gardiner each May/Jean Modesette

Spring Into Yellowstone

As Gardiner locals, spring is one of our favorite times of year here at Yellowstone’s North Entrance. The staff at the Gardiner Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Information Center are happy to help you make the most of your spring getaway to Yellowstone National Park—be sure to stop in to our Visitor Center for free maps, brochures, and lots of insiders’ tips!

Baby bison, aka "red dogs" in Yellowstone/Jean Modesette

As the sun rose over the Lamar Valley in Yellowstone National Park, Linda Carney bent over a toilet, windshield scraper in hand.

“It’s the plumber’s daughter in me,” she joked, having used the scraper to remove frozen human waste from the side of the toilet.

In light of the government shutdown, a group of Montana residents have taken on the responsibility of keeping the park clean. Rachel Leathe/Bozeman Chronicle

Carney was one of about 10 Gardiner community members who decided to take matters into their own hands and clean up rest stops and remove garbage from Yellowstone Saturday morning, two weeks into the partial federal government shutdown. National parks across the country have been left with no one to care for facilities despite many still being open to visitors.

Mike Skelton, owner of Yellowstone Wonders, a company that offers tours of the park, said he and others noticed trash was starting to pile up while doing tours recently. So he and a few other Gardiner and Emigrant residents gathered a group to hit the northern part of the park, between Gardiner and the Pebble Creek area in the northeastern part of the park.

“We’re locals and we love this park, so we don’t want it to look like trash,” Gardiner resident Paula Rainbolt said.

Volunteers cleaned rest areas from Tower Junction to Pebble Creek Saturday. They’ll go from Tower Junction to Gardiner Sunday, eating pizza courtesy of K-Bar Pizza afterward. Conoco also donated gas cards to volunteers, and Yellowstone Forever donated some garbage bags. Many volunteers also paid for supplies out of pocket.

In light of the government shutdown, a group of Montana residents have taken on the responsibility of keeping the park clean. Rachel Leathe/Bozeman Chronicle

Trash around Yellowstone hadn’t piled up as much as they expected, volunteers said, though many bathrooms weren’t a pretty sight. One bathroom at the Hitching Post stop had human excrement all over the floor and a broken toilet seat. The other had puke and blood splattered all over the toilet and floor.

Despite the unpleasant nature of the work, Kelly Kirk said volunteers were happy to do it.

“People’s livelihoods depend on this — we’re all tied to the park,” she said. “And any excuse to get into the park, right?”

Volunteers brushed snow off entrances, cleaned toilets, replaced toilet paper and switched out garbage bags, and they’ll likely do it again most weekends, if the shutdown continues.

“I don’t know what happens if the [outhouses] fill up,” she said.

This article first appeared in the Bozeman Chronicle on January 6, 2019.

 If you drive into Gardiner, Montana, after the hustle and bustle of the short three months of summer, you’ll notice a tranquility settle upon the town. The locals relax, the wildlife wanders in from the park, and the crowds disappear. Glancing at the passing license plates, the traffic is distinctly more Montana based. Yet spring, fall, and winter are ideal times to visit Yellowstone National Park. According to the Park Service, only 35 percent of the yearly visitation occurs outside of summer, which means that the off-season is the best way to avoid the crowds and experience Gardiner—and Yellowstone—in silence and solitude.

Spring

Walk through downtown as the ice breaks up along the Yellowstone River and you’ll hear echoes careening off the canyon walls below Gardiner. When March sweeps in, spells of mild weather and longer days settle into the northern district of the park. Spring is the perfect season to get out and enjoy one of the most photogenic times of the year.

It’s a time of new life in the park, and viewing Yellowstone’s wobbly legged baby animals can be a highlight of many people’s trip in the spring. With more than 60 different animal species in the park, you have a good chance of spotting these youngsters in the spring. Elk begin calving in late May and June, making them the most likely animals to spot for most people. Bison are usually born in April, able to stand within a few hours of birth. They will stay with the all-female herd for protection from predators for up to three years, so you’ll see the smallest members of the group learning the ropes. Bear cubs are born during winter hibernation, but step out with mom in the spring, usually around late March. They are one of the prized sightings in the park—but keep in mind that you never want to get too close to the mother and cubs. Bring binoculars and a zoom lense for your camera.

Another unique opportunity to explore presents itself as the Park Service plows the roads connecting Gardiner and Mammoth to the West Entrance. For a brief window, bicyclists are allowed into the park while the roads are still closed to motor vehicles. This is an amazing chance to pedal the park in silence. However, make a plan and come prepared because spring in the Rockies can still be unpredictable. If you happen to be caught without the proper gear, Gardiner has plenty of shops like the Flying Pig Camp Store where you can find warm and comfortable layers.

As the months advance into April and May, it’s a great time to get out on the lower elevation trails, such as the Black Canyon and Lava Creek, and search for waterfalls and wildflowers. Along the way, dig out your bear spray and keep your binoculars handy to watch elk calves and baby bison take their first steps. If you’re lucky, you may even see a mother grizzly and her cubs wandering down from their winter sleep or wolf pups emerging from their dens.

Fall

After Labor Day weekend, the line of cars disappears from under the Roosevelt Arch and a steady stream of visitors slows to a trickle through the North Entrance. Pausing to listen in the early morning light, you might hear a bull elk’s bugle resound from across the Gardner River.

Fall is the perfect time of year to drive up to Mammoth and hike the Hoodoos Trail or Beaver Ponds Loop. Autumn colors dot the mid-elevation landscape and, as you gaze towards Sepulcher Mountain, it’s a good time to look up and catch the passing raptor migration as they head south for winter. Keep your eyes peeled for golden eagles and goshawks traveling south in the afternoons.

After the first frost, get out for a final night of camping or a late-season backpacking trip. The cool temperatures are a great excuse for gathering around a campfire at the end of the day. Here are a few campground recommendations for every vehicle type and recreational interest, from just outside of Gardiner to inside the park to nearby Cooke City. Pack along your rod for a day of fall fishing or, if you prefer, enjoy a weekend of world class elk hunting near town. While camping please remember to be bear aware and keep your food secure because hibernation doesn’t begin until well after the first snowfall.

Winter

Once snow falls, Yellowstone’s magic comes to the forefront of the softened landscape. With the arrival of winter, head south from town to Mammoth and walk the Terraces. As steam billows into the frosty sky and warm water pools in blues and greens, the boardwalk is a spectacular place to explore and enjoy the silent beauty of Yellowstone’s winter.

If you crave a bigger adventure, pack up your car with warm food and a thermos and head towards the Lamar Valley, before first light, for a morning of wolf watching. The winter snow forces the elk and bison out of the higher country and closer to the road. With a good lens, it’s fairly common to see wolves hunting on the edge of these herds. Winter is an excellent time to catch a glimpse of these carnivores on the landscape.

Another great option for wildlife watching is to head to the trails around Tower Junction with skis or snowshoes. Across the Yellowstone Northern Range, there are miles and miles of groomed trails to explore and wander. Bison graze around the melted snow of Tower’s thermal features and the nearby waterfalls are stunning when they are paused as pillars of ice.

After a long day in the park, Gardiner provides year-round dining and cozy lodging to enjoy on a cold winter’s night.

This year, make it a goal to experience the magic of Yellowstone throughout the seasons. Gardiner serves as the perfect basecamp with plenty of options for food, lodging, and tour guides to help you explore. When you visit Gardiner outside of the busy summer season, you can enjoy small town Montana life and see the park with the locals. It’s an incredible experience that will stick with you for a lifetime.

Written by Anthony Pavkovich for RootsRated Media in partnership with Gardiner CVB.

The Northern Range of Yellowstone National Park has the claim to fame of being the only area of the park that’s accessible by automobile year-round. But that doesn’t begin to tell the whole story of what makes these 600 square miles in the Lamar and Yellowstone river basins so spectacular. Located between the Gallatin Mountains to the southwest and the Absaroka Mountains to the northeast, this scenic region is the best place to see bison, wolves, and other free-roaming wildlife. The 57-mile route from Gardiner to Cooke City is one of the park’s signature drives, offering breathtaking views any time of the year. Getting off the road, you’ll also find a wide range of activities to enjoy.

A Mecca for Wildlife

While the Northern Range is only 10 percent of Yellowstone’s area, it is one of the most important wildlife hubs in the region, having been described as the "Serengeti of North America," thanks to the large number of hoofed mammals (known as ungulates) who make the park home. In any given afternoon, you’re likely to spot bison, elk, pronghorn, and mule deer. You’ll also find the densest wolf population in the country, and visitors now have the chance to see these carnivores in the wild. It’s also one of the park’s best opportunities for spotting bears.

Seeing the wildlife in action is one of the biggest draws to this section of the park. The easiest way to do so is via the scenic drive that connects Gardiner to Cooke City through Yellowstone. Follow the park’s northern entrance road south to Mammoth Hot Springs. From there, head east on the Grand Loop Road, where you’ll get to see the rugged canyons between Abiathar Park and Amphitheater Mountain. You’ll find frequent pull-offs along the road to stop and get a better look. The trip should take you under two hours, and give you some of the Northern Range’s top highlights along the way.

For a closer look, daylong and multi-day wildlife expeditions can help you get nearer to the action. Outings differ by company, but most guides are well-versed in the area’s ecology and offer spotting scopes and binoculars. In Our Nature Guiding Services offers a trained wildlife biologist for your guide while Yellowstone Insight offers tours aided by the watchful eye of a wildlife photographer with decades of experience in the region.

"Having a knowledgeable, local guide who does this regularly—who participates in this daily routine—increases your odds of seeing your preferred wildlife," says MacNeil, founder and owner of Yellowstone Insight.

Winter Exploration

In the winter, a snowmobile or snowcoach is a great way to explore the interior of the park further, and guides offer a variety of options. For those interested in seeing wildlife, winter is a great time to visit, as the snowy landscape often makes it much easier to spot animals. Cross-country skis and snowshoes are another popular way to take advantage of Yellowstone’s snowy conditions, with many beginner-friendly trails for those getting started in either sport.

Hiking

Come summer, hiking is the best way to really get to see the Northern Range. Once again, guided excursions are available both inside and outside the park, with hikes ranging from daylong explorations to overnight adventures. Hiking with a guide provides visitors expertise into scenery, wildlife, and choosing the best trail for the time of the year. Most hiking companies provide bear spray as well as interpretive services and safety protocols for traveling in bear country.

Yellowstone Hiking Guides provides daily trips in the Northern Range as well as custom outings. Big Wild Adventures offers outfitted, multi-day backpack trips in areas around the Gallatin Mountains. Trips are available in a variety of lengths and difficulty levels. "The wildflowers in summer are just spectacular," says Howie Wolke, founder and co-owner of Big Wild. “It’s classic open Yellowstone backcountry in a mountainous environment.”

Towering over the town of Gardiner, Electric Peak is the crown jewel of the Gallatin Mountain Range. Named by an exploratory expedition that was almost hit by lightning on its summit, the peak stands tall at nearly 11,000 feet. You can find an experience near the mountain, no matter how much energy you want to expend.

For those looking for a mild adventure, a midday stroll in downtown Gardiner, complete with ice cream cones and gift shops, affords commanding views of the mountain’s rocky summit. Try walking the sidewalks around Roosevelt Arch, an historic stone archway, for family-friendly exercise.

For a more serious day hike in the Gardiner area, the Rescue Creek Trail just inside Yellowstone’s North Entrance gate is a nice out-and-back, relatively flat hike through high-mountain desert. For more of a challenge, the Lava Creek Trail is a four-mile (one way) hike, starting at the trailhead at the Lava Creek Picnic Area on Grand Loop Road. It’s a great trail for spotting elk, bison, and pronghorn, plus you’ll get some amazing views of Lava Creek and Mount Everts.

For those adventurous souls looking to summit Electric Peak, the multi-day hike requires a map and compass, some mountaineering ability, grit, and a backcountry camping permit from Yellowstone National Park’s backcountry information office. For those up for it, it’s an incredibly rewarding experience.

Fishing

The Northern Range is known for its pristine water, scenic surroundings, and world-class trout fishing. For those looking to experience fishing in the area, you’ll find several outfitters in Gardiner that offer trips both wade fishing or from a boat. The Flying Pig Adventure Company offers half- and full-day trips for beginners and experienced casters as well as horseback rides to secluded fishing destinations. Parks’ Fly Shop, which has operated in the Northern Range for more than 60 years, offers highly specialized flies and local insight. Both offer customized outings to lakes, rivers, and spring creeks throughout the region.

"The Northern Range is notable for the huge number and huge variety of fisheries it offers," says Walter Wiese, head guide at Park’s Fly Shop. “Most of our staff have been guiding in the region for 10 or more years, and we’re still finding new waters.”

The Gardiner Experience

No matter how you choose to experience the Northern Range and town of Gardiner, you’ll undoubtedly find yourself longing to come back for more. Thankfully, this entrance town is open every season, and its one-of-a-kind location has a reputation for capturing the hearts and minds of residents and visitors alike.

Written by Chelsea Deweese for RootsRated Media in partnership with Gardiner CVB.

If you follow the Yellowstone River as it snakes south through Paradise Valley, it’s easy to imagine early settlers pressing forward, by wagon and on horseback, deep into Yellowstone Country. When you make the journey now, you’ll most likely see herds of elk and deer grazing the valley floor before reaching the unassuming frontier town of Gardiner, Montana.

Cradled between the soaring peaks of the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness and at the northwest doorstep of Yellowstone National Park, Gardiner is a natural base camp for outdoor adventure. Bison wander the streets, marmots wrestle on the riverbanks, and owls serenade you as the stars come out. Roads through town and into Yellowstone stay open year-round, so there’s no need to fight the summer crowds here. Enjoy Gardiner’s laid-back vibe in fall, winter, and spring, when wildlife viewing is at its best and Yellowstone’s majesty is yours for the taking.

YELLOWSTONE’S FIRST GATEWAY

Gardiner is surrounded by scenic hiking options. - Yellowstone National Park 

Originally named Gardner’s Hole after fur trapper and reputed outlaw Johnson Gardner, Gardiner happens to be the first named destination in the region. The surveyors and politicians of the Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition of 1870 made it official, though Gardiner had been stomping grounds for trappers and mountain men for decades. It’s rumored that Jim Bridger himself was responsible for updating the name to its current spelling. Founded in 1880, Gardiner’s population boomed with the 1883 discovery of gold in nearby Bear Gulch and the 1903 extension of the Northern Pacific Railway to downtown. That same year, Theodore Roosevelt visited to place the cornerstone for the towering Roosevelt Arch. The iconic monument still greets you like a familiar friend as you enter the park.

Gardiner is so close to Yellowstone that the shops along Park Street straddle the park boundary. Five miles up the road, Fort Yellowstone, the 1880s base of operations for troops arriving to protect the park from developers and poachers, stands watch next to the historic Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel. Pass Mammoth’s ethereal travertine terraces as you turn east to follow the Yellowstone River to the famed Lamar Valley.

ADVENTURE BASE CAMP 

Gardiner offers you easy access to a huge and diverse population of free-roaming animals. - @rsseattle

Exploring Yellowstone from Gardiner, you have the only direct, four-season access to the Northern Range’s vast grasslands, one of the most diverse communities of free-roaming animals on Earth. While buffalo jams and selfie-obsessed tourists dominate the summer, the cycle of life across the plateau makes for magical and intimate animal encounters the rest of the year.

Listen for the massive bull elk’s autumn bugle call. In the fields around Mammoth and Gardiner, bulls spar with their huge antler racks, jockeying for dominance over herds of females and calves grazing nearby. As snow buries the park’s interior, the Northern Range becomes the winter home for elk, mule deer, pronghorn, bighorn sheep, bison, and white-tailed deer. Major predators like grizzlies, black bears, gray wolves, foxes, coyotes, and eagles follow suit in search of their prey. And only in spring can you witness a baby bison’s wobbly first steps or a burly mama grizzly’s tender attention to her newborn cubs as they emerge from their den.

Spotting bison in the distance near Gardiner. - Yellowstone National Park 

The Gardiner community is passionate about Yellowstone, and a number of local tour guides and organizations are ready to transform your scenic drive into a wildlife safari. Cross-country ski, hike, and snowshoe the Northern Range; learn animal tracking, wildlife photography, and wilderness first aid with the Yellowstone Forever Institute; or book a tour with a local guide who knows exactly where and when you’re most likely to see wildlife.

If you’d rather explore on your own, rent your gear at Park's Fly Shop or the Flying Pig Camp Store in Gardiner, or The Bear Den Ski Shop at the Mammoth Hotel. 

HEARTY EATS AND AN OLD WEST SALOON

For a laid-back frontier town, Gardiner has a surprising variety of restaurants and shops, with no lines or crowds once summer ends. Stop for a breakfast burrito at Tumbleweed Bookstore and Cafe on your way into the park, and a jumbo waffle cone stuffed with local favorite Wilcoxson Ice Cream at Yellowstone Perk on your way out. The Gardiner Market will prep a bag lunch for your day treks, and there’s loads of downtown dine-in options for lunch and dinner, from Yellowstone Mine and The Corral to Yellowstone Safari Grill. Celebrate sundown Old West style with local microbrews and themed dance nights at The Two Bit Saloon.

CAMPSITES TO CABINS

The setting moon over an elk at Mammoth Hot Springs. - Yellowstone National Park 

Want to experience this rugged country like the frontiersmen did? Camp inside the park at Mammoth Hot Springs’ year-round campground or just outside the park in campgrounds around Gardiner, Montana. For the comforts of home, book a room in any of Gardiner’s many lodges and inns. Live like a homesteader just a few miles outside town at Bear Creek Cabins. Stay in the heart of downtown Gardiner at Cowboy’s Lodge & Grille. Or book a room inside the park at the newly renovated Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel.

No matter the time of the year you visit, Gardiner offers everything you need to enjoy America’s first national park—and one of the most beautiful parts of the country.

Written by Jess McGlothlin for RootsRated Media in partnership with Gardiner CVB.

Mild spring weather, snow-capped peaks, and hundreds of hooves pounding dusty roads—these are the sights and sounds of Memorial Day weekend in Gardiner, Montana, where the annual Hell’s A-Roarin’ Horse Drive takes place each year.

The celebrated Horse Drive perfectly embodies the spirit of Gardiner, Montana, and the surrounding areas: connection to the land, traditional western heritage, and small-town community involvement.

“The event honors one of the most beautiful animals ever—the horse,” explains Jean Modesette, Lead Coordinator for the Horse Drive Planning Committee. “There is nothing more amazing than seeing over 100 horses, along with cowboys and cowgirls, making their way up Jardine Road with the sounds of galloping hooves and the sight of flowing manes."

Every year, Hell’s A-Roarin’ Outfitters drives the herd from their winter grazing lands to their summer location in Jardine, Montana, 9 miles north of Gardiner. The drive begins at the Gardiner Rodeo Grounds and continues up Jardine Road until it reaches the Hell’s A-Roarin’ Ranch. A lively BBQ dinner complete with cowboy poetry, a raffle and auction, dancing and live music make up the remainder of the event.

A kickoff to the busy summer tourist season at Yellowstone’s North Entrance, the Horse Drive has been taking place since 1982. In 2013, due to the popularity of the event and its potential to give back to the community, the event became a way to raise funds for nonprofit organizations in the Gardiner area. Past proceeds have benefitted the Gardiner Chamber of Commerce, Gardiner Food Pantry, Park County Sheriff’s K-9 unit, and the Gardiner Rodeo.

“The 2017 Horse Drive was the 4th year as a fundraising event and celebration,” says Jean. “This year we have raised the most proceeds ever, and that makes us all so happy as they will be split between the Montana Raptor Conservation Center and Western Montana Search Dogs.”

The Drive is enjoyed by community members, visitors, and volunteers alike—but putting it together is no easy feat! Hell’s A-Roarin’ Outfitters, Jean, and the rest of the planning committee (made up primarily of volunteers) are responsible for finding sponsors, marketing and advertising, securing food and entertainment for participants, and keeping spectators safe as the horses are driven through the community.

But despite the hard work, passionate volunteers like Jean are proud to ensure the event continues to take place—and is a huge success—each year.

“Our hope is that this event starts off the summer season well in Gardiner by bringing people to our beautiful mountain town at Yellowstone's North Entrance,” she says. “We’re giving people the opportunity to experience a little of the Old West and it makes them smile!”

The Horse Drive is in need of business or individual sponsors, event volunteers, and donations to the raffle and auction. Proceeds from the Drive (minus event expenses) are entirely donated to selected local nonprofit organizations. If you’d like to get involved with next year’s event, please contact Jean Modesette at (406) 220-3135.

All copyrighted photos courtesy of Jean Modesette.