Getting from Whitefish to Missoula

[upslim]

My friend and I will be traveling East to West on the Northern Tier and we will be finishing in Portland, OR. I was wondering the best way to get on the Lewis and Clark Route from Whitefish, MT. Do we just head South to Missoula and wing it or is there a recommended route that would get us there perhaps via Great Parks Route Section 2? Thanks for the help!

[valygrl]

Don't take 93.  Scary scary road.

[TRobertson]

If you do indeed go into Whitefish, the best way to get to Missoula is to
take the Great Parks North route down following Hwy. 83 and 200. If
you didn't want to go all the way to Whitefish though, you could "turn
left" in Havre and follow Highway 87 to Great Falls, and then Hwy. 200
to Missoula. Most of this is on the Lewis and Clark Route. It's a bit
more direct. But if you took this you would miss riding through Glacier
National Park, one of the highlights on the Northern Tier Route.
Another option is to turn south in Columbia Falls (just east of
Whitefish) to pick up the  Great Parks Route south on Hwy. 83. This is a
very scenic route as well.

Tom Robertson
routes and mapping

 

[upslim]

Thanks for the information. It is exactly what I was looking for!