Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
During summer, the outdoor pool at
Bogert Park
(303 S. Church Ave., 406/582-0806,
$4 adults, $3 children under 14) is packed with families and their children. A couple of
waterslides keep the energy (and the crowds) at peak levels. In the park itself, an extens-
ive playground entices children. A band shell is used for Tuesday evening concerts, and
the pavilion is used as an ice rink in winter. Bogert Park is also the venue for the
Bogert
Farmer's Market
(406/539-0216,
www.bogertfarmersmarket.org
,
5pm-8pm Tues.), which
draws huge crowds with food vendors, live music, and family events.
Farther down Church Avenue from Bogert is the
Gallagator Trail,
which follows a
former railroad line abandoned in the 1930s. Entirely flat, the gravel trail weaves through
some lovely residential and forested areas along Bozeman Creek. Just before the Gallagator
is
Peet's Hill,
the city's most popular in-town spot for a hike. A quick cruise up the hill
leads you to a network of nice trails, a chance to commune with just about anyone and their
dog, and ultimately to
Lindley Park,
an excellent destination year-round. In summer, there
is picnicking and the fanfare of the Sweet Pea Festival. During winter, the
Bridger Ski
Foundation
(
www.bridgerskifoundation.com
)
grooms miles of trails that bring out racers
and novices alike to make tracks around the city's hospital. Two wonderful green areas
in the city's historic neighborhoods are
Beall Park
(N. Bozeman Ave. and E. Villard St.),
which is popular with kids and has an arts center, a playground, and an ice rink in winter;
and
Cooper Park
(S. 8th Ave. and W. Koch St.), a favorite with dogs. The City of Boze-
man (
www.bozeman.net
) has a list of city and county parks online.
Hiking
All across Montana, cities and towns have a tendency to construct an enormous letter on a
mountain or hill nearby. Bozeman's B has faded away over time, but the
M
(for Montana
State University) is one of the community's favorite, and often most crowded, hiking spots.
Accessed from a small parking lot on the west side of Bridger Drive, just past and across
the road from the Bozeman Fish Technology Center, the M is hard to miss and well worth
the hike. There is a steep route up (20-30 minutes) or a longer, gentler route (45 minutes-1
hour), making mix-and-match loops a possibility. The diehards can follow the trail 21 miles
to the
Fairy Lake Campground
near the end of Bridger Canyon.
Just across Bridger Canyon Drive from the M is the
Bozeman Fish Technology Center
(4050 Bridger Canyon Rd., 406/587-9265,
www.fws.gov/bozemanfishtech
), one of the
community's best-kept secrets. In addition to classes, kid-centered festivals (the Kid Fish-
ing Derby and the Community Watershed Festival), and fantastic architecture, the site offers
a great newer trail called
Drinking Horse Mountain.
Slightly more shady than the M, and
