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D I S T I N C T LY M O N TA N A M A G A Z I N E • S P R I N G 2 0 2 6
L
OOKING FOR A HOTBED OF
HISTORY? GO FIND YOURSELF
A CONFLUENCE. When one of
Montana's great rivers or streams
tumbles into another, it creates an
ecosystem that draws diverse wild-
life, abundant fish, geological odd-
ities, and for the last few millennia,
people. From the spot just over the
North Dakota border where the
Yellowstone River joins the choc-
olate milk waters of the Missouri,
to the recently-restored Milltown
State Park junction of the Blackfoot
with the Clark Fork, these hydraulic crossroads have been the
vortex of several of the state's most significant historic events,
both natural and man-made. This summer one of our most inter-
esting—and beautiful—confluence areas gets its proper recog-
nition as Judith Landing becomes Montana's newest state park.
Fifty miles north of Lewistown, the
Judith River joins the Missouri as
it flows eastward among the White
Cliffs, coulees and cottonwoods
along the Upper Missouri River
Breaks National Monument. For
thousands of years, the spot has
been a popular take-out for those
traveling the river, from today's
kayak-wearing recreationists to
1880s steamboats to indigenous
people crossing the river in buf-
falo skin bull boats. Judith Land-
ing campground, along the north
riverbank, has eight sites which get plenty of use from fishermen,
floaters and campers through the summer. Across the bridge on the
south bank is the site of the new state park, comprising a 109-acre
parcel acquired by the state in 2025. It includes the Judith Landing
Historic District, which contains the remnants of several structures
by EDNOR THERRIAULT photos by CANNON COLEGROVE
Journey Through
