273 Forest Service, 15 BLM and 15 National Park Service. 231 take reservations
The coldest reading on record in the contiguous United States 7
-70°F
Rogers Pass, 40 miles northwest of Helena, January 20, 1954
The vehicle length limit on Going-to-the-Sun Road 25
21 ft
Between Avalanche Creek and Rising Sun, with a width limit of 8 feet including mirrors
Camp gear for cold nights and bear country
Buy for cold first. NOAA says summer nights in Montana are almost invariably cool, and the state holds the contiguous United States record at 70 below. Shoulder-season trips here need more bag and more insulation than the calendar suggests.
Then storage. A certified bear-resistant container earns its space across the western forests, and a stove earns its space everywhere, because fire restrictions are issued agency by agency and county by county and can be in force when you arrive. On leased state trust land campfires are never allowed.
Vehicle camping gear works under a different constraint than backpacking gear. Weight matters less, but everything has to survive vibration and dust and pack the same way every time. Stores that understand the difference stock 12-volt fridges, water systems and kitchens rather than ultralight pots.
What they carry
0112-volt fridges and slides
02Stoves and kitchen systems
03Water storage, pumps and filtration
04Chairs, tables and shelter
05Sleep systems
06Lighting and power stations
How to choose camp equipment
Buy fewer, better things. Every item has to be packed, carried and cleaned.
01Buy the fridge for your power system, not the other way round. Ask about power draw and what battery it needs to run overnight.
02Pack it before you buy it. Bring the measurements of your cargo area or drawers.
03Favor gear that can be repaired and has parts available.
04Choose a kitchen you can set up in the dark, in wind, when you are tired.
What to have ready before you ask for a quote
Space and power are the limits.
01Vehicle and storage dimensions
02Your power system, if you have one
03How many people, and how long you stay out
04What you already own
05A budget range
Questions people ask
Do I need a 12-volt fridge?
For trips longer than a weekend, most people never go back. No ice to find and no wet food. It does need a house battery or a power station that can carry it overnight.
How much water should I carry?
Enough for drinking, cooking and washing between reliable refills, with a reserve. How much that is depends on the climate, the people and how you cook. Carry it low in the vehicle, and in more than one container.
Is a power station enough, or do I need a second battery?
A power station is simple and portable and suits lights, devices and a small fridge for a couple of days. A wired house battery charges while you drive and suits longer trips and bigger loads.
How high is Montana?
From Libby at 2,097 feet to Granite Peak at 12,799.
Altitude decides what your engine, your brakes and your lungs have to work with, and how late in the year the passes open.
2,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,000
Feet above sea level
Towns
Red LodgeWhere the Beartooth Highway starts its climb on US 212, heading for Beartooth Pass and Cooke City.5,568 ft
ButteOn I-90 with the BLM’s Western Montana District office. The Pipestone off-highway vehicle area is about 15 miles east at exit 241.5,535 ft
PhilipsburgIn Granite County, on the far side of Skalkaho Pass from the Bitterroot Valley. Montana 38 over the pass closes for the winter.5,243 ft
DillonHome of the BLM field office that manages more than 900,000 acres in Beaverhead and Madison counties, and the Big Sheep Creek byway to the south.5,097 ft
EnnisOn Montana 287. The Forest Service routes Gravelly Range traffic from here by the Varney road and the Call road, and keeps the area’s maps at its office in town.4,946 ft
BozemanOn I-90. The Custer Gallatin’s Bozeman Ranger District is one of the five west-side districts under the forest’s food storage order.4,811 ft
HelenaState capital, and half the name of the 2.8-million-acre Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest. Rogers Pass, 40 miles northwest, holds the national cold record.4,048 ft
LewistownBLM field office for the Upper Missouri River Breaks and seat of the North Central Montana District. One of the two offices the BLM names for byway conditions.3,952 ft
DarbyThe Montana end of the Magruder Road Corridor. The Forest Service counts eight to ten hours from Red River, Idaho, to Darby without rest stops.3,884 ft
HamiltonIn the Bitterroot Valley on US 93, near the west end of Montana 38 and in the middle of the 1.6-million-acre Bitterroot National Forest.3,570 ft
WinifredOne end of the Missouri Breaks byway, which the BLM runs between here and the James Kipp Recreation Area on US 191.3,228 ft
MissoulaOn I-90 beside the 2.3-million-acre Lolo National Forest. The BLM field office here manages the Garnet Back Country Byway, which leaves Montana 200 about 30 miles east.3,208 ft
BillingsOn I-90 in south-central Montana. The BLM’s Montana/Dakotas State Office is here.3,122 ft
KalispellIn the Flathead Valley below the 2.4-million-acre Flathead National Forest, west of Glacier National Park.2,955 ft
Fort BentonWhere the Breaks begin on US 87. The Missouri Breaks Interpretive Center here holds maps and road conditions for the monument.2,635 ft
LibbyOn the Kootenai River. The 67-mile Lake Koocanusa Scenic Byway runs north from here to Eureka on Highway 37.2,097 ft
Passes, high roads and summits
Granite PeakThe highest point in Montana, in Park County. No road to the top12,799 ft
Beartooth PassBeartooth Highway (US 212): Red Lodge to Cooke City, by way of the northwest corner of Wyoming10,947 ft
Mount ClevelandThe highest peak in Glacier National Park, by the park’s own figure10,448 ft
Crystal ParkPioneer Mountains Scenic Byway: Montana Highway 484 at Wise River south to County Highway 2787,800 ft
Skalkaho PassSkalkaho Highway (Montana 38): Ravalli and Granite counties, across Skalkaho Pass7,261 ft
Logan PassGoing-to-the-Sun Road: The west entrance of Glacier National Park to the east entrance, over Logan Pass6,646 ft
Nez Perce PassMagruder Road Corridor: Darby, Montana, to Red River, Idaho, between the Selway-Bitterroot and Frank Church wildernesses6,598 ft
Pass, road and summit elevations are the figures published by the agency that manages them. Town elevations are the town’s or county’s own
figure where it publishes an exact one; the rest are from the U.S. Geological Survey (3D Elevation Program at the place’s official coordinates),
retrieved September 18, 2026. Every source is listed at the foot of the page.
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