Going wild in Montana: discover some of the West's best spots for viewing bison, mustangs, trumpeter swans, bighorn sheep, and other watchable wildlife - travel United States

Travel America, March-April, 2003 by Diane Bair, Pamela Wright

THE SOUND OF HEAVY, WET snorts and high-pitched cries bounced off the mountains. Crouched behind a pile of rocks, we had a distant look at a band of wild mustangs. A bachelor horse had advanced on a dominant stallion and his harem. The nose-to-nose confrontation quickly turned to battle. Wild cries ... flashing hooves ... then the stallion reared up on its hind legs and landed a powerful blow with its hoof, sending the bachelor stumbling backward. The defeated horse quickly retreated to the grasslands of the high country.

This was the scene of two stallions fighting for control of a band of mares and colts in the Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range in the southeastern corner of Montana. Here, in historic Custer Country, a band of about 120 to 150 wild horses roams the Bureau of Land Management range, covering the slope of East Pryor Mountain, overlooking the Bighorn Basin. It is one of the last stands of wild horses in the country--and only one of the many spectacular wildlife scenes we've witnessed in our travels to Big Sky Country.

Montana's diverse ecosystems and sprawling landscapes support the greatest variety of wildlife in the lower 48 states. The numbers are impressive: the state boasts two national parks, 41 state parks, 15 national wildlife refuges, and nine national forests, with millions of acres of protected public lands. (It's no wonder Lewis and Clark spent more time in Montana than any other state!) What are you waiting for? Pack your binoculars and a good map and field guide and head to where the wildlife thrives in abundance.

Here are more of our favorite wildlife viewing sites across the state:

Home on the Range

Travel the Red Sleep Mountain Drive that encircles the National Bison Range, and you'll get a peek at what it must have been like when throngs of majestic buffalo rambled across the Western prairie. Today, some 350 to 500 bison roam this protected range in Moiese, Montana, in the heart of popular Glacier Country.

The scenic 19-mile gravel road meanders through expansive prairie grasslands, mountain forest, and up a ridgeline overlooking the Flathead River Valley. The valley, once a glacier lake, is now carpeted with flowers, its bushy hillsides a popular hangout for herds of mule deer. Large herds of bison move across the valley floor. Along the way, watch for young calves feeding on their mothers and bulls wallowing in dust beds. Stop at Antelope Ridge, overlooking the grasslands of the Alexander Basin, where herds of pronghorn antelope forage in the meadows. The range, located about 50 miles north of Missoula, is open year-round. For information, call (406) 644-2211 or visit www.bisonrange.fws.gov.

Nature lovers may also want to check out nearby Ninepipe Wildlife Refuge. The 5,000-acre preserve is home to large concentrations of birds and waterfowl, including migrating geese, resident bald eagles, herons, and more. Call (406) 644-2211.

Where the Deer and the Antelope Play

The rolling plains, deep coulees, wide mesas, and lush riverbeds of the vast Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge are favorite places for Montana wildlife. Located in eastern Montana (in the Russell Country and Missouri River Country vacation areas), the refuge is the state's largest and third largest in the country. It stretches 134 miles up the Missouri River from the Fort Peck Dam to Sand Creek Wildlife station and encompasses 1.1 million acres. The Fort Peck Reservoir includes an additional 245,000 acres of water and 1,500 miles of shoreline. Wildlife includes elk, deer, coyotes, prairie dogs, mountain lions, black bears, and 240 species of birds.

Visitors can get an overview of the refuge by taking file 20-mile self-guided auto loop; look for grouse in the brash, white-tailed deer, antelope, and elk along the way. The refuge is home to an estimated 5,000 to 6,000 elk; during the fall rut, the refuge resounds with loud, raucous bugling. More adventurous travelers can set out on foot or boat to more secluded spots. Call (406) 538-8706 or visit www.cmr.fws.gov.

Montana's Trumpeters

We watched as a trumpeter swan (the largest of all North American waterfowl) emerged from the lake's misty fog and took flight. The swan stretched its long neck, tucked its black legs and feet, fanned its wide wings, and then disappeared around the bend. It was our first trumpeter sighting at the vast and remote Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, tucked in Montana's southwest corner. The refuge, 28 miles east of tiny Monida (over dirt roads), is the largest nesting and wintering area for trumpeter swans in North America.

Near the headwaters of the Missouri River, the preserve is bordered by the rugged Centennial Mountains and includes 14,000 acres of wetlands, home to some 500 trumpeter swans. Visitors can take Red Rock Pass Road through the refuge, crossing mountain meadows and valleys bordering wet fields, bogs, and marshes.

Pronghorn antelope are plentiful and easy to spot grazing in fields along the road, as are waterfowl and moose in the wetlands. To see the trumpeters, you'll need to take one of several footpaths leading to the weedy edges of the lake. Look for nesting females (with binoculars because getting too close will stress the birds) on large beds of marsh plants rising out of the water. The cob (male) will often be close by. Call (406) 276-3536 or visit www.r6.fws.gov/redrocks.>