Longboarding Beartooth Highway

Beartooth Highway is an extremely beautiful high elevation highway that crosses the border of Montana and Wyoming. This 68 mile section of the US-212 has been designated a National Scenic Byway All-American Road. This incredible scenic drive climbs over the Beartooth Pass at a whopping 10,947 feet above sea level.

From the pass the road is smooth, downhill and curvy – perfect longboarding conditions. Longboarding Beartooth Highway makes for an unforgettable downhill longboard run that few people experience. High elevation lakes are scattered throughout the drive as you pass mountain peaks, glaciers and stunning rock formations.

There are also numerous overlooks and trailheads to get off the road and explore this gorgeous wilderness. We had the opportunity to backpack one trail in particular, the Beartooth High Lakes Trail, which you can read more about here.

Quick Info: Longboarding Beartooth Highway

Directions:
The Beartooth Highway is a section of U.S. Route 212 crossing the Montana and Wyoming state line. The Beartooth Highway connects the city of Red Lodge, Montana and the Northeast entrance to Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. I began this longboard run at a pull out for Beartooth Pass Vista Point. This pull out is about 6.3 miles south of the Montana/Wyoming border on Beartooth Highway/US 212.

Distance:
From Beartooth Pass Vista Point, I skated about 6 miles south to a turn out near Long Lake. There was a construction area while we were here. But the road does continue downhill for about 22 miles making it possible to do a much longer run.

First Impressions of Beartooth Highway:
The Beartooth Highway is a stunning drive the entire way. Once you reach the top of the Beartooth Pass the vast view of snow capped mountains is breathtaking! The longboarder in me lit up with excitement as I saw the smooth paved highway winding downhill for miles and miles through one of the most beautiful mountain landscapes I have ever seen. I could not wait to get on my board.

Pros:
Amazing views, smooth pavement, comfortable speed, fun 6+ mile downhill mountain run.

Cons:
It is a highway so cars may pass by fast.

Know Before you Go:
You’ll probably want to drive to this pass. And you’ll probably want to longboard down more than once so it’s a good idea to have a shuttle car. Due to road construction at the time I was only able to skate about 6 miles of the Beartooth Highway. The entire downhill run can be extended up to 22 miles! Wear a helmet. Also, this highway is closed during the winter.

Riders Thoughts:
Seeing the Beartooth Highway in real life is an amazing experience, and to get to longboard down this road really made me feel alive. If you’re interested in checking out this scenic byway by board or vehicle, there’s a great free campspot conveniently located on the Montana side of Beartooth Highway right in a canyon at the foot of the Beartooth Highway switchbacks.

Longboarding Beartooth Highway

Naturally, the Beartooth Pass is at the top of the mountain so it is downhill in both directions. Going north downhill, the highway is extremely steep with many very sharp turns and switchbacks. Driving on this steep road is intimidating, so there was no way I was going to longboard down this side. That’s not to say it can’t be done, but I would not recommend it.

Longboarding south from the Beartooth Pass is an amazing 6 mile downhill longboard run. The ride is very enjoyable because the pavement is nice and smooth for the entire 6 mile run that I did. The size of these mountains and the mountain road were a little intimidating at first because they are just so massive.

You can’t help but feel small in the middle of this vast high elevation wilderness. We were here in July, the middle of the summer and there were still patches of snow all over the place.

The smooth pavement gave me confidence that my soft wheels could handle the turns at the speeds I was going. So I became comfortable enough to enjoy the ride and take in the breathtaking landscape in all directions.

The Beartooth Highway is often steep and cliffside which makes for exciting turns and great views. There are many blind turns on the highway keeping your attention to the road and what is next to come – whether it be traffic, a steep section of hill, yet another blind turn, or another amazing mountain view.

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I really enjoyed longboarding down the Beartooth Highway because most of the run was downhill and maintained an enjoyable speed. There are sections of larger steep hills but the majority of the run was a mellow downhill. There are even a few slight uphill areas that you need to kick up. I don’t mind these sections because I enjoy longboarding for the physical activity that it is.

The switchbacks while longboarding Beartooth Highway descend down the mountain side and pass through a vast open high elevation wilderness with dramatic mountain peaks all around. The road runs cliffside in some areas where we saw a few wild fox, as well as mountain goats.

When not next to the cliff, the road is often following the top of a cliff with the guard rail lining the edge. Or you’ll find the road winding downhill to the next curve in the road or passing a beautiful lake. You’ll pass many pristine high elevation lakes while longboarding Beartooth Highway.

My run lasted about 6 miles – I stopped after a long downhill straight away where there is a turn out at Long Lake.

So far, this has been the best longboarding adventure I have experienced! There was new beauty to see around every bend in the road and the run was a great combination of downhill speed, cruisin’, and even some kicking. The length of the run was an awesome distance too, with a descent of about 2,300 feet on six miles of smooth blacktop. It was great to have Katie following in the truck so I could do this entire run multiple times. We figured we might never be here again so… why not?

Thanks For Reading!

We hope you enjoyed reading about our experience longboarding Beartooth Highway! If this article gets your feet tingling for a new longboard, we can help you out with that! Check out the latest line up of hand painted longboards from Lost Coast Longboarding! Click here to see our shop.

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Questions or comments? Know of any epic longboard runs I should try? Please leave them in the comment section below!

And to read about more of The Lost Longboarder’s adventures, check out some of these articles:

• Wetlands Loop Trail
• Longboarding Rio Grande del Norte
• Coal Creek Trail