Sharing the Fascinating Ice Age Floods Story Since 1995

GO PLACES! DO THINGS!

Along the ICE AGE FLOODS
NATIONAL GEOLOGIC TRAIL


The Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail covers some 16,000 square miles (41,440 km2) in present day Montana, Idaho, Washington, and Oregon. We have hand picked some of the best of the best places along the Trail and present them here for you enjoy and explore! Check back often, we will be adding new and wonderful destinations for your entire Family to enjoy!

MONTANA – IDAHO – WASHINGTON – OREGON

SOME PLACES TO GO and THINGS TO DO in MONTANA

Montana - Places to GO and Things to DO

Bison Range

February 5, 2023

Bison Range The Bison Range was established by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1908 to conserve the American Bison.  Since that time it has been managed as a wildlife refuge and native grassland. Today the management is done by the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. The range is a small, low-rolling mountain connected to the Mission Mountain Range by a gradually descending spur. Range elevation varies from 2,585 feet (788 m) at headquarters to 4,885 feet (1,489 m) at High Point on Red Sleep Mountain, the highest point on the Range.  Much of the Bison Range was once under prehistoric Glacial Lake Missoula. The upper part of the Range was above water. Red Sleep Mountain scenic drive leads to this high point, which has spectacular views across what was once the lake to the Mission Mountains on the other side.  Other flood features are evident on Buffalo Prairie scenic drive. Old beach lines (strandlines) can be seen on north-facing slopes and some large erratics are located near the old corrals. There is a visitor center near the entrance which has a display and videos of Glacial Lake Missoula as well as information on the tribes of the Flathead Reservation and the abundant wildlife, including birds, bears and antelope.  There is also a gift shop.  Camas Prairie ripples and several other important features of Glacial Lake Missoula are in close proximity to this site, much of them are located on tribal lands.  The entrance is off US 93 and MT 212 N about an hour north of Missoula. Bison Range58355 Bison Range Rd, Moiese, MT (406) 644-2661 bisonrange.org FEES – there is a fee for entrance, including the day use area, except for CSKT tribal members OPEN HOURSWinter Hours (Nov-April)Gate: 8am–6pmVisitors Center: 8am–5pm Red Sleep Drive: closed Buffalo Prairie Drive: 8am-6pm Summer Hours (May-Oct)Gate: 7am–8pmVisitors Center: 8am–7pm Red Sleep Drive: 8am–7pm Buffalo Prairie Drive:8am–8pm  Restrictions: Vehicles over 30 feet long and those owing trailers as well as motorcycles, ATVs, and bicycles are not allowed on either drive.  Visitors must remain inside vehicles at all times except for designated areas      

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Little Money Creek Gulch Fill

May 1, 2023

Mounds of soil, sand, gravel, and other coarse materials covered with light vegetation can be seen in the side gulches all along the Flathead River where tributaries drained into what was Glacial Lake Missoula.  They were deposited by currents eddying into the slower water in these gulches and also by the drop in velocity of the streams carrying deposits from higher elevations on the far side of the river along the path of the escaping floodwaters.  The flow of floodwaters through this narrow valley was estimated by J.T. Pardee at between 8 and 10 cubic miles per hours – more than the combined flow of all modern rivers in the world.  Similar gulch fill can be seen in many locations along this beautiful stretch of the river, which today generally flows smoothly and looks completely flat. There are numerous pull-outs along MT 200 between Perma and Paradise; the view pictured here is at mile marker 91.

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SOME PLACES TO GO and THINGS TO DO in IDAHO

Idaho - Places to GO and Things to DO

Lake Pend Oreille

August 12, 2022

Lake Pend Oreille Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail  The Purcell Lobe of the Cordilleran Ice Sheet repeatedly formed a 2000′ tall ice dam in this area, which backed up Glacial Lake Missoula and eventually burst catastrophically, releasing Ice Age Floods as often as about every ~10-60 years. Lake Pend Oreille is the largest lake in Idaho. The lake level is 2062 ft above sea level, with the surrounding terrain as high as 6002 ft. With a maximum depth of 1150 ft, this lake is the 5th deepest in the US. The location of the lake is probably related to an old river valley controlled by faults. The Lake Pend Oreille basin was carved by the repeated advances of Pleistocene ice and scoured by Ice Age Floods. With the waning of flood waters, the basin was filled with glacial out-wash and flood deposits. The lake is dammed at the south end by thick glacial and flood deposits that mark the beginning of the “Outburst Deposits”Quick Facts MANAGED BY:US Forest Service

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Green Monarch Ridge

August 12, 2022

Green Monarch Ridge Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail THIS IS WHERE IT ALL BEGAN! The Green Monarch Ridge viewpoint, just south of the Hope Fault, is positioned along the edge of the Purcell Trench Ice Lobe. Here it was responsible for damming the mouth of the Clark Fork drainage basin. This damming effect resulted in the formation of Glacial Lake Missoula, the source of the waters for much of  the PNW Pleistocene Ice Age Floods. The Purcell Trench Ice Lobe originated in Canada and flowed south into Idaho, guided by the structural control of the Purcell Trench. Following the path of least resistance into the basin now occupied by Lake Pend Oreille, it was impeded by the Green Monarch Ridge, located approximately 10 miles south of this viewpoint. Grinding and scraping, the Purcell Trench Ice Lobe backed up behind the Green Monarch Ridge, eventually building an ice plug up to 4,000 feet thick, and scouring out the deepest parts of Lake Pend Oreille. The Purcell Trench Ice Lobe divided into four sub-lobes: one went approximately west (US Highway 2), two went south (US Highway 95 and Lake Pend Oreille) and one went east (SR 200). All four sub-lobes contributed to blocking the Clark Fork drainageQuick Facts MANAGED BY:US Forest Service – Idaho Panhandle National Forest

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Celebration Park – Home of Melon Gravel

July 10, 2026

17,000 years ago, a massive Ice Age lake – now called Lake Bonneville – filled a large portion of present-day Utah. As temperatures changed, the influx of ice melt caused the lake level to rise. In addition, the Bear River, once a tributary of the Snake, was diverted by volcanic activity back into Lake Bonneville. These factors ultimately led to the breaching of a sedimentary rock dam at Red Rocks Pass, Idaho. There was only one ice-age Bonneville Flood because Lake Bonneville broke through a rock dam, unlike the Missoula Floods whose glacial ice dam repeatedly dammed Glacial Lake Missoula, then broke and rebuilt.  1,100 cubic miles of Lake Bonneville water rushed through the Snake River Canyon, and it took only six weeks for Lake Bonneville to empty the equivalent volume of modern-day Lake Michigan. The Great Salt Lake we know today is a remnant of Lake Bonneville, but at one tenth the size, it is a mere puddle compared to what the lake used to be.  The power of this catastrophic flood widened canyons as the force of the water pulled huge chunks of basalt off the cliffs and tumbled them around, smoothing their jagged edges along the way. As the canyon width narrowed, the force and velocity of the flood increased. Wherever the canyons widened, the flood lost force and velocity, the waters slowed and began dropping its bedload – in this case, giant tumbled basalt boulders instead of your typical river gravel.  These flood-rounded boulders, named melon gravel due to their distinct shape, are scattered over vast areas of land. The rocks’ unique outlines and smooth surfaces caught the eye of Native American tribes in the area, who have used them as canvases for petroglyphs for thousands of years. Visitors can see the medium sized flood deposits just outside the visitor center, or hike upriver to see gigantic melon gravel the size of heavy-duty trucks.  Celebration Park is located in the Snake River Canyon, approximately 23 miles south of Nampa, Idaho. It is home to an enormous melon gravel field deposited by the Bonneville Flood. 

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SOME PLACES TO GO and THINGS TO DO in WASHINGTON

Washington - Places to GO and Things to DO

Moses Coulee: An Ice Age Enigma

July 11, 2025

Washington state is famous for its dramatic landscapes, many carved by the immense power of the Ice Age Floods. We know the stories of the Grand Coulee, Palouse Canyon, and the Potholes. But tucked away in north-central Washington, cutting a path from northeast to southwest

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Ephrata Erratic Fan

September 5, 2022

EPHRATA ERRATICS FAN Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail The Ephrata Erratics Fan is a depositional area south of where water from the Missoula floods poured out of the lower Grand Coulee.  It is called a fan because the deposit is spread out like a

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Hanford Reach Interpretive Center and Museum

August 13, 2022

Hanford Reach Interpretive Center and Museum Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail – Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail At The REACH Museum in Richland, Washington, you can learn about the natural and human history of the Tri-Cities. It houses rotating and permanent exhibits, including

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SOME PLACES TO GO and THINGS TO DO in OREGON

Oregon - Places to GO and Things to DO

Columbia Gorge Discovery Center & Museum

July 7, 2022

Columbia Gorge Discovery Center & Museum Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail, Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail, Oregon National Historic Trail The Columbia Gorge Discovery Center & Museum is located on a 54-acre point of land adjacent to the Columbia River and is the

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Tualatin Public Library

July 7, 2022

Tualatin Public Library Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail The Tualatin Public Library, located just off Interstate 5 in Tualatin, Oregon, is home to a display of Ice Age Megafauna. The Library features a striking display of an articulated partial mastodon skeleton, which was discovered

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MONTANA – IDAHO – WASHINGTON – OREGON

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