Old mines, a ski hill, and elk at dusk? This Montana highway delivers all of it

It’s 71 miles of Little Belt Mountain country

U.S. Highway 89 cuts through the heart of central Montana for 71 miles, crossing the Little Belt Mountains inside the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest.

You’ll pass old mining towns, a creek-carved canyon, Montana’s oldest ski area, and meadows where elk graze at dusk. A relaxed drive takes about two hours, but give yourself a full day.

There’s too much to blow past at highway speed, and the road keeps surprising you the whole way through.

The silver rush that built these mountain towns

In the late 1800s, prospectors flooded the Neihart area chasing silver.

The towns of Neihart and Monarch grew out of mining camps, and for a while the hills were busy with men, mules, and money.

Then the federal government stopped buying silver in 1893, prices collapsed, and the boom died fast. Nearby Hughesville and Albright emptied out completely and are ghost towns now.

Drive the hills today and you’ll still find old mines, collapsed cabins, and bits of rail scattered through the trees.

Eight miles of canyon at Sluice Boxes State Park

The park follows the northern eight miles of Belt Creek canyon, and the walls close in fast once you step inside. Tall limestone cliffs and ledges rise above the rushing water on both sides.

A trail runs along an old railroad bed where trains once rolled through, and it takes you past abandoned log cabins and old mine sites. Belt Creek stays cold all year because it’s spring-fed.

The park sits just off the highway, but once you’re in the canyon, the road disappears.

Wade the creek and earn your canyon views

The trail through Sluice Boxes is not a paved walk.

It crosses Belt Creek multiple times, so your best bet is to go between mid-July and September when the water runs low enough to ford.

In exchange for wet boots, you get sweeping canyon views and the kind of quiet that’s hard to find anywhere near a highway. Anglers work the creek for trout along the way.

Most people who come here don’t pass another group for hours, which tells you something about the trail’s character.

Showdown Montana has been running since 1936

Near the top of the pass, Showdown Montana has been putting skiers on the mountain since 1936, making it the oldest continuously operating ski area in the state. Back then, it went by the name King’s Hill.

The same local family has owned and run it for more than 50 years.

The mountain covers about 40 runs with 1,400 feet of vertical drop, and it runs entirely on natural powder. No snowmaking equipment, no manufactured base.

When it snows, you ski. When it doesn’t, you wait.

A wood-burning lodge and no resort crowds

The base sits at 6,800 feet, the summit at 8,200 feet.

Runs go from wide, gentle groomers to steep black-diamond pitches, so there’s room for beginners and room for people who want to work for it.

Inside the lodge, a wood-burning fireplace anchors the main room and a small cafeteria keeps you fueled.

The lift rides run long enough that you can actually look around and see the mountains spreading out in every direction. Skiers who come here talk about a family atmosphere, and that’s not promotional language.

It’s just smaller and quieter than what most people are used to.

200 miles of snowmobile trails above the pass

When the snow piles up in the Little Belts, the byway area opens up about 200 miles of marked snowmobile trails. A separate cross-country ski system covers around 17 miles.

Snow crews keep U.S. 89 open over Kings Hill Pass in winter, but the pass is high and the conditions can change fast. Check road conditions before you go and give yourself extra time.

The forest up here holds snow consistently through the cold months, and the conifers get so loaded down with it that entire branches bend toward the ground.

The Smith River requires a permit and lottery entry

East of the byway, the Smith River cuts a 59-mile path through a deep limestone canyon, and floating it takes several days by raft, canoe, or kayak.

It’s the only river in Montana that requires a permit to float, and those permits go through a yearly lottery.

If your name comes up, you get one of the more solitary float trips in the northern Rockies, through canyon walls that rarely see foot traffic and water that holds blue-ribbon trout. If it doesn’t, you apply again next year.

Elk at dusk and raptors riding the ridgeline

Elk and deer move close to the highway in the early morning and at dusk, so slow down near the meadow edges if you’re driving at those hours.

Birds of prey work the air currents above the peaks, riding thermals along the ridgelines. Mountain streams run alongside much of the route, and the sound of moving water follows you for long stretches.

The forest and open meadows shift back and forth as the elevation changes, which keeps the wildlife mix interesting. You never quite know what’s going to be standing in the road around the next bend.

Gravel roads that go deeper into the backcountry

The forest roads branching off the byway add up to more than 450 miles of backcountry driving, and they reach places the highway doesn’t.

High mountain lakes, quiet trailheads, and campgrounds tucked into the trees sit at the end of these routes. The Pioneer Heritage Trail opens up the high, forested interior of the Little Belts.

Some gravel roads pass old mining sites that you can view from the car without getting out.

A two-wheel-drive vehicle handles many of these roads in dry conditions, but check conditions before you turn off the pavement.

Every season changes what you find on this road

Spring brings the creek up fast and the wildflowers right behind it.

Summer opens the hiking and fishing and gets the mountain lakes warm enough to consider launching a boat.

Fall turns the mountainsides, and the drive through changing color on a clear October morning is its own reason to come. Winter closes some of the side roads but turns the whole area into snowmobile and ski country.

The terrain shifts enough with each season that you can drive this byway four times a year and come away with four different trips.

The small towns that bookend the drive

Belt anchors the north end of the byway, a former coal camp that grew into a quiet small town. Monarch and Neihart still carry their mining roots, and it shows in the buildings and the pace.

White Sulphur Springs closes out the southern end, where natural hot mineral water draws people who want to slow down after a day on the road.

Local creeks near all four towns run clear and cold, and trout fishing pulls anglers off the highway at every stop. These are not tourist towns.

They’re just towns, and that’s what makes them worth pulling into.

Drive the Kings Hill Scenic Byway in Montana

You can pick up the Kings Hill Scenic Byway along U.S. Highway 89 between Belt and White Sulphur Springs in central Montana. The full route runs 71 miles, and a comfortable drive without stops takes about two hours.

The byway stays open year-round, but winter driving over Kings Hill Pass at 7,393 feet can get serious fast. Check current road conditions before you go, and give yourself extra time if there’s weather.

The official website for the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest has current information on road conditions and seasonal access.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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