Explore the journey — one trail, museum, meal, and memory at a time.
Bannack Montana Ghost Town
I spent the morning walking through Bannack, Montana, reading the stories behind its old saloons, schoolhouse, assay office, Hotel Meade and abandoned homes. What looks at first like a quiet ghost town quickly becomes a much darker story of gold, road agents, vigilantes, Henry Plummer and a settlement that briefly served as Montana’s territorial capital.
Montana Capitol, Charcoal Kilns and Bannack
I returned to the Montana Capitol early for another round of photographs before heading south toward the Canyon Creek Charcoal Kilns. The rough washboard road led past the ruins of Glendale and finally to the old beehive-shaped kilns once used to produce charcoal for the mining district. From there, I continued to Bannack State Park and arrived in time for an evening walk through the ghost town before settling in for the night.