North Dry Creek

The North Dry Creek Trail (Trail 132) roughly follows Dry Creek through the northeast Gallatins and provides a scenic, crowd-free experience just a short distance from Bozeman. After an initial climb into the Gallatin foothills the trail winds through golden meadows ripe with wildflowers before entering the burn zone of the 2001 Fridley Fire, which is clearly on the road to recovery. A 9000' unnamed mountain (I call Flathead Mountain) about seven miles in makes for a great destination but as there's no termination point for this trail feel free to customize it to your liking and ability. The views, especially of Paradise Valley and the Absarokas, are exceptional due to the openness of this hike. Be sure to bring a hat and sunscreen on a sunny day to combat the heat since there's very little shade along the way.