Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The
Great Falls International Airport
(GTF, 2800 Terminal Dr., 406/727-3404,
www.flygtf.com
)
is southwest of the city. It is served by Alaska Airlines, Allegiant Air,
Delta, Frontier, and United. The airport's on-site car-rental companies are
Alamo, Avis,
Enterprise, Hertz,
and
National. Budget
and
Thrifty
also offer car-rental service but are
located off-site with shuttles to and from the airport.
Diamond Cab
(406/453-3241) serves the Great Falls area and will pick you up from the
airport (look for the direct phone in the terminal) or shuttle you around town.
Greyhound Bus Lines
(800/231-2222,
www.greyhound.com
)
offers service to other
major towns and cities in Montana.
Great Falls is situated directly off I-15, allowing easy access by car. It is 218 miles north-
west of Billings, 186 miles north of Bozeman, 155 miles northeast of Butte, and approxim-
ately 90 miles from Helena (to the south) or Shelby (to the north).
Spanning more than 100 miles from Montana into Canada, the Rocky Mountain Front is the
startling merger of prairie and mountain—in places the Rockies rise 4,000-5,000 feet. It is
one of the few places in the Lower 48 where grizzly bears still wander onto the plains, much
as they did when Lewis and Clark traveled the region. There is a strong cowboy culture in
Choteau and a rich Native American culture in Browning. There are agricultural towns with
rugged mountain wilderness just a stone's throw away. It is impressive and rare to be able
to appreciate natural diversity, undistracted by humankind's homogenous development.
The Rocky Mountain Front is also the gateway into the
Bob Marshall Wilderness
Complex,
which comprises three wilderness areas totaling more than 1.5 million acres of
the most remote wilderness in the Lower 48. The complex runs 60 miles north to south,
along the Continental Divide. The region, named for forester, wilderness preservationist,
and Wilderness Society cofounder Bob Marshall, teems with wildlife and stunning topo-
graphy. The Bob's Chinese Wall, for example, a rock escarpment that averages 1,000 feet
in height, follows the Continental Divide for 22 miles. For obvious reasons, including its
1,700 miles of trails, this area is a mecca for outdoor enthusiasts.
