Day Trippin' › Montana › From West Yellowstone
From West Yellowstone, Henrys Lake and Big Springs in Idaho are under 35 minutes away, Harriman State Park and Mesa Falls under an hour, Ousel Falls under an hour, and Big Sky and Virginia City under an hour and a half. The best day trips from West Yellowstone, by drive time.
56 places within a 3-hour drive, by real roads.
State park · 44 min southwest
A wildlife refuge on the Henrys Fork with moose, elk and trumpeter swans, a historic ranch, trails, famous fly fishing and groomed ski trails in winter.
Waterfall · 57 min north
A short, popular trail in Big Sky that drops gently into a ravine to a roughly 100-foot waterfall.
River · 31 min southwest
A huge spring that wells up as the source of the Henrys Fork, with fat trout under the footbridge and an easy riverside trail past the historic Johnny Sack Cabin.
Waterfall · 57 min south
A roadside overlook on the Mesa Falls Scenic Byway where the Henrys Fork crashes through a canyon of volcanic rock.
Town · 1 hr 23 min northwest
A gold rush town of 1863 and Montana's territorial capital, with wooden storefronts, shops and summer shows along Alder Gulch.
Museum · 1 hr 34 min north
A big natural and cultural history museum at Montana State University in Bozeman, with a dinosaur hall that includes the Big Mike T. rex and a planetarium.
National park · 1 hr 25 min northeast
The park's year-round entrance at Gardiner, marked by the stone Roosevelt Arch, with the road on to Mammoth Hot Springs and Lamar Valley.
Cave · 1 hr 46 min northwest
Guided tours wind through one of the largest limestone caves in the Northwest, full of stalactites and columns.
Hot spring · 1 hr 59 min northeast
A historic hot springs resort in Paradise Valley near Pray with outdoor soaking pools open to day visitors.
Wildlife refuge · 1 hr 23 min west
A remote mountain valley of lakes and marshes known for nesting trumpeter swans, plus moose, elk and pronghorn.
Family fun · 1 hr 20 min north
In summer the ski area offers lift-served mountain biking, scenic lift rides toward Lone Mountain, ziplining, hiking, disc golf and a kids' Adventure Mountain area.
Waterfall · 1 hr 56 min north
A short paved nature trail in Hyalite Canyon south of Bozeman that ends at the base of a tall waterfall.
National monument · 2 hr 59 min southwest
A huge, strange lava field with a 7-mile loop road past cinder cones, spatter cones and lava tubes you can walk into with a flashlight.
Hot spring · 2 hr 47 min south
A small canyon town built around public hot mineral pools (about 102 to 112°F), with tubing on the Portneuf River in summer.
Wildlife · 2 hr 2 min southwest
Ponds and marshes in the sagebrush draw sandhill cranes, trumpeter swans, waterfowl, moose and pronghorn, on a 3.5- or 7-mile auto tour.
Town · 2 hr 14 min northwest
Once called the Richest Hill on Earth, this copper mining city has one of the nation's largest historic districts and old mine headframes.
Museum · 2 hr 16 min northwest
A mining museum on the old Orphan Girl Mine in Butte with a recreated 1890s mining camp and an underground mine tour.
State park · 2 hr 41 min southwest
Lava bluffs above the Snake River with trails, Oregon Trail exhibits, and Register Rock, a boulder covered with emigrant signatures, two miles away.
Waterfall · 2 hr 48 min northwest
A narrow canyon near Anaconda with 1,200-foot cliffs and a short walk to 50-foot Lost Creek Falls.
Wildlife refuge · 2 hr 31 min northeast
A small park near Greycliff that protects a busy black-tailed prairie dog colony.
Drive times are by road on a typical day from ZIP 59758 (OpenStreetMap data with the OSRM route planner). Facts checked against official sites; passes and hours change, so check before you go.