Distinctly Montana Magazine

DISTINCTLY MONTANA MAGAZINE • WINTER 2022-23 78 the many great restaurants in town, but also consider a sweet treat from Wild Oats Bak- ing, breakfast from Branding Iron Cafe, or a beer from 2 Basset Brewery. If shopping is your thing, Smith River Custom Apparel and Red Ants Pants are must stops. Heading south you will drive through Ringling, Montana, which was founded by John Ringling, one of the brothers of the Ringling Brothers' Circus. Turn west onto Highway 86 just north of Wilsall and make a trip through beautiful Bridger Canyon. It is the perfect punctuation mark for your trip, especially if out rubber necking on a snowy winter's day. FORT BENTON TO WINIFRED Fort Benton by itself is a wonderful start- ing point for any excursion into central Montana's back country regardless of the time of year. Its small-town charm, cou- pled with the beautiful Missouri River and historic Grand Union Hotel, are a wonder- ful opening act for what lies ahead. I love this drive so much, regardless of the time of year, as it takes you through Montana's geological past, including a scenic tour of the Shonkin Sag, the prehistoric route of the Missouri River. This route also takes you along the northern edge of the High- wood Mountains on your way through the beautiful Judith River Breaks. Driving east from Fort Benton on High- way 80 you will cut through some of the most fertile farmland in the entire state. Just south of Geraldine the landscape suddenly changes, from flat, open fields to ridges, buttes, and extreme terrain. You will be flanked by the beautiful Chalk Cliffs on the east and majestic Square Butte and Round Butte to the west. As the elevation drops and you make a sharp turn back to the west, you will official- ly be entering the Shonkin Sag. The mighty Missouri River no longer flows here, but tiny little Arrow Creek does, and the hilly, sagebrush-encrusted landscape that flanks this small stream is still a feast for the eyes. That's when you enter an area of the high- way notorious for sloughing, before exiting the valley. Here you will see a beautiful old grain elevator in what remains of the town once called Arrow Creek, beautiful views of the buttes behind you, and the Highwood Mountains off in the west. From there you drive into Denton, which was devastated by a wildfire last Decem- ber. When there I always stop in at the Shade Tree Cafe for breakfast or lunch. Then just east of town turn north onto

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