On day 105 of “The Ultimate USA Road Trip” we drive from Miles City to Sidney, Montana. Part of the route is part of the Montana Dinosaur Trail, which runs through the entire state of Montana and consists of 14 locations. Each location offers a glimpse into the state's historic discoveries and offers visitors a better understanding of the Dinosaurs that once inhabited our planet. Many dinosaur fossils have been unearthed in Montana and the state boasts some of the most important sites and renowned paleontologists. There are museums at the locations. A number of museums are included in this route, but you can also deviate from the route to discover other sights along the route, more information about the Montana Dinosaur Trail can be found on the website whose link is included in this review.

We drive north to the town of Jordan where we stop to refuel and drink coffee. Keep in mind to refuel on time even if you still have enough fuel, you are driving through a quite deserted area and there are only a few gas stations.
In Jordan we also visit the first museum, the Garfield County Museum, which opened in August 1984. There are several fossils, a full-size Triceratops that was originally excavated north of Jordana and the head of a T-Rex. In the museum a “Homestead” (farm) and an old replica of a forge have been built with many interesting items from the time of the farm. There is an old-fashioned school building on the site. The museum is free to the public, but donations are always welcome.

We drive approximately 65 miles on MT 200 through the vast Montana landscape to the town of Circle, where we visit the McCone County Museum. It was established in 1980 in this new steel building of 25 x 25 meters. It consists of 7,000 items of historical importance to this area. The wildlife collection consists of more than 200 birds and animals mounted and displayed in their natural habitat. Eight cement dinosaurs are on display on the outdoor area, and the site also contains an old schoolhouse, church, “Homestead”, an old caboose (train car) and the old Northern Pacific Depot. In Circle we also enjoy lunch at the Wooden Nickle, a nice family restaurant in the center.

We drive south to the town of Glendive, where we visit Visit Makoshika State Park, the name is a variant spelling of a Lakota expression meaning bad land or bad spirits. Admission is $6 and you can enjoy scenic drives (unpaved) through the “Badlands” of Makoshika with pine and juniper strewn rock formations with beautiful vistas. The park also houses the fossil remains of dinosaurs such as tyrannosaurus and triceratops. The visitor center at the park entrance houses a triceratops skull and other interpretive displays of the Badlands.
The route that runs through the park takes you past a few beautiful viewpoints where you have a truly great view of this rugged landscape. For enthusiasts, there is the option to hike on the trails and spend the night at the campsite.

We'll also visit the Glendive Dinosaur and Fossil Museum, a private dinosaur museum founded by Otis Kline and owned by the nonprofit Advancing Creation Truth. It promotes a Young Earth creationist (YEC) explanation of evolution, based on a literal interpretation of the Genesis creation story in the Bible. This creationist museum promotes the belief that dinosaurs and humans lived at the same time, including the belief that dinosaurs were on Noah's Ark.

Within walking distance you can visit the Frontier Gateway museum, this partly open-air museum with exhibitions from prehistory to the 21st century. It includes seven buildings on an acre of land, these are a blacksmith's shop, two country stores, a buggy shed, a fire hall, an agricultural machinery exhibition, as well as a sheep wagon, a log cabin and a schoolhouse. The main displays in the main building include fossils, Native American artifacts, homesteaders, ranchers, settlers, and railroads.

From Glendive it is a 95km drive to the end point of this day, Sidney Montana. Settlers arrived in the area in the 1870s and a post office was established in 1888. Six-year-old Sidney Walters and his parents were staying with Hiram Otis, the local justice of the peace, and Otis decided that Sidney was a good name for the town. The following year, Montana became a state and Sidney was founded in 1911.