Planning a Canoe Trip - Logistics, Maps, Location Information
The Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument is one of the few magnificent, wild places left on our planet. Located in north central Montana near Fort Benton, the Upper Missouri River is a relatively isolated paradise surrounded by hundreds of miles of nostalgic farms fields and rolling prairie. This remote location is the exact quality that makes our canoeing adventure a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
The planning and logistics of a big trip can be daunting. We are here to help with every aspect of this adventure. Montana is a vast state with large distances between major tourist areas. We have created some visuals here that can help orient you to where the Upper Missouri River is located in relation to other attractions such as Yellowstone National Park, Glacier National Park and more.
How to get here
Driving: Are you planning on road tripping to Montana? Wonderful! There are so many options depending on your route and starting point. A lot of folks are tracing the Lewis and Clark trail or incorporating another attraction. We are happy to help. During the trip, you can safely leave you vehicle at our headquarters. More details on this below. Suffice to say, it is really nice to have your own set of wheels.
Flight/airport info: The closest airport is Great Falls International Airport (GTF).
There are several other airports located ‘close’ (by Montana standards) to Fort Benton: Helena Regional Airport (HLN) - 2 hours; Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport (BZN) - 3.5 hours; Butte’s Bert Mooney Airport - 3 hours; Missoula International Airport (MSO) - 3.5 hours; Glacier Park International Airport (FCA) - 4 hours. Any city listed can be a base for endless Montana exploration!
Car Rental and Shuttle Information
Fort Benton is approximately 45 minutes north. There are several car rental agencies located at the airport, including several major companies such as Hertz, Enterprise and more. There is also Uber and a taxi service: BlackedOut 406 Taxi (call in advance to arrange airport pick up - 406.781.5218)
Generally, folks have had some success finding an Uber or a taxi to Fort Benton. The problem is the return trip. Fort Benton is a very small town (approximately 1200 people). So using Uber is generally not an option, and there are certainly not taxis available.
Are you flying into Great Falls? Don’t know how to get to Fort Benton? We can help.
For our guided trip folks, we can offer shuttle service for $145 each way (for the van, not per person). Thus, if there is multiple people, you can split the cost. Sometimes, renting a car and storing it at our headquarters is less expensive. Send us an email or call if you are interested in arranging a shuttle through us.
Are you doing the Badlands? And are you driving and hitting the road, going either South, North or East?
From James Kipp Recreation Area (our take out on the longer trips or Badlands-only trips), it may be more efficient for you to have us shuttle your car to the the take out, depending on our shuttle driver availability. The drive back to Fort Benton from James Kipp is 3 hours. Thus, you might be able to cut off 3+ hours from your drive! Please give us a ring and we can discuss details.
The image below is a zoomed-in illustration of the area incorporating the 149 mile stretch of Missouri River where we offer trips and the separate trip sections in relation to the closest airport in Great Falls, Montana. River logistics can be very confusing when referring to launch points, take outs and where they are all located with relation to our headquarters, Fort Benton and Great Falls. Suffice to say, our trips always end downriver of Fort Benton and Great Falls. Our trips start and end at our headquarters in Fort Benton. See more detailed information below.
We recommend you stay in Fort Benton the night before the trip. Great Falls is also an option. See our planning page for accommodation and attraction recommendations .
Night before Launch - 5:00pm - (not mandatory, just a great chance to do introductions and hand out dry bags for packing the night before). We meet at the Grand Union Hotel (or another convenient location depending on where you are staying). During this meeting, we will do introductions, give you dry bags and instruction on packing them efficiently, answer any last minute questions you might have, establish a time to meet at our headquarters the next morning and offer a brief safety talk (which helps to reduce the amount of time spent on the dock the next morning).
Launch Day - 7:30-8:00am - We meet at our headquarters at 2210 Main St. You can park your car safely and securely outside our shop and leave any valuables or heat sensitive electronics in our locked shop as well. After we finish packing up, we hit the road. For the White Cliffs, the launch point is Coal Banks Landing (45 minute drive). For the Badlands only, the launch point is Judith Landing (1.5 hour drive).
Take-out - It never fails to be a reluctant endeavor, but all good things must come to an end. We meet our shuttle vans at the take out around noon and typically arrive back at our headquarters between 3-4 o’clock. Thus, we recommend you stay in Fort Benton or Great Falls this night. For the White Cliffs, the take out location is Judith Landing. For White Cliffs & Badlands or Badlands only, the take out location is James Kipp Recreation Area.
Now it’s time to decide on a trip! This can be a tough decision and one we can discuss at length over the phone, which is always helpful for folks. The image below offers a more specific and detailed glimpse into the sections of river, camp sites and notable historic points. It is nearly impossible to capture it all on an image, so we do recommend you purchase our history digest and BLM river maps. These resources offer a very in-depth, mile-by-mile list of camp sites, hikes and history of the river.
Again, we are here to help with all aspect of planning. Please give us a call to chat in-depth or use the links below to contact us and learn more about our luxury guided canoe trips through one of the most unique river corridors in our country! Call us: 406-616-2001
