Majesty in the mountains

Northwestern Financial Review, Dec 1-Dec 14, 2002

Yellowstone

and the Montana

Rockies recall

all that is good

in America

Terra Club founder and father of our national park system, John Muir, once wrote: "In God's wilderness lies the hope of the world."

If you're running a typical bank club, you've probably struggled to hold together your travel program since 9-11 turned the bulk of your membership into non-travelers. But hope - and years of hard work - are not to be abandoned because a new tour to Yellowstone and the Montana Rockies may just be the enticement your members need to get excited about returning to the road with your group.

An eight-day, seven-night tour of the mountainous West has been designed by CTN Travels in conjunction with Montana Rail Tours, with the world's first national park, Yellowstone, being the keystone of the route.

Rick Pharr of CTN Travels is excited about this tour, new for 2004.

"We've had a good deal of success when we incorporate beautiful scenery into our tours, especially domestically," Pharr commented. Scenery is in abundance all along the route, which starts in Salt Lake City, and winds through Wyoming, Montana and Idaho before ending in Spokane, Washington.

The 130-year-old Yellowstone National Park is the site of some 10,000 hot springs and geysers, including Old Faithful. These geothermal wonders are evidence of one of the world's largest active volcanoes; its last eruption created a crater that spans almost half the park. Yellowstone also is home to grizzly bears and wolf, and free-ranging herds of bison and elk.

The tour also includes a visit to Grand Teton National Park, known the world over for spectacular mountain scenery. As in Yellowstone, the wildlife is abundant with bears, 300 species of birds, and much more. The varied rivers, lakes and terrain support more than 900 species of flowering plants.

The tour begins in Salt Lake City where participants will see Temple Square as well as visit several Winter Olympic sites. See the various venues where American athletes won 34 medals during the 17-day event last February. Then travel to Jackson, Wyoming in time to see Antlers Park and a trueto-life gunfight re-enactment by cowboys. Your chuck wagon dinner will hit the spot at the end of this eventful day.

Travelers will spend two nights at Old Faithful Inn, which is but steps away from the world's most recognized geyser.

Then it will be onto the national park and Mammoth Hot Springs. You'll see a unique sight: deer and elk lounging in pools of warm mineral water. Then it is onto Gardner, Montana, and Livingston to board the Montana Daylight Train to Missoula. "Our tour travels the Montana Rockies during the daylight hours so you get to see all the peaks, the valleys and rivers," Pharr said.

Participants will overnight in the Montana Rockies and travel to Sandpoint, Idaho, and finally venture to Spokane.

"We travel by rail, which for some of these areas is the only way you can see it because there aren't any roads," commented Pharr. "It's just beautiful country and the inclusion of the train will appeal to anyone who's had a rail experience in the past. It's very nostalgic."

The summer months between May and September offer the best time to take this trip, with early June offering the maximum quality, comfort and color. Depending on options, the tour costs $1,700 to $1,800, plus air fare. Contact CTN Travels for additional information at 800-596-8687.