Helena, Montana travel question

Hi,

I'll be traveling to Helena, Montana at the end of September. The air
routings to get there from Philadelphia don't really work for me, so
I'm planning to either fly into Great Falls or Missoula and drive to
Helena. Mileage-wise, it seems to be about the same from both to
Helena (Great Falls is 89, while Missoula is 116). I've been to
Montana several times, and generally prefer Missoula to Great Falls.

My question is: what are the real-world driving times from both towns
to Helena? It looks to be all Interstate from Great Falls, while
Missoula requires a bit of non-interstate driving. Are both the same
scenery-wise?

On a related note, what is the actual driving time from Helena down to
West Yellowstone?

Thanks,
Brian W.
Philadelphia, Pa.

Can anyone help me out with this question? Somebody here must be from Montana...

(Brian Wasson) wrote in message . com...
Hi,

I'll be traveling to Helena, Montana at the end of September. The air
routings to get there from Philadelphia don't really work for me, so
I'm planning to either fly into Great Falls or Missoula and drive to
Helena. Mileage-wise, it seems to be about the same from both to
Helena (Great Falls is 89, while Missoula is 116). I've been to
Montana several times, and generally prefer Missoula to Great Falls.

My question is: what are the real-world driving times from both towns
to Helena? It looks to be all Interstate from Great Falls, while
Missoula requires a bit of non-interstate driving. Are both the same
scenery-wise?

On a related note, what is the actual driving time from Helena down to
West Yellowstone?

Thanks,
Brian W.
Philadelphia, Pa.

(Brian Wasson) wrote in message . com...
Can anyone help me out with this question? Somebody here must be from Montana...

Brian,

I'm from Montana. Here's the deal...
Real world driving time Missoula to Helena is 1 hour 55 min, plus or
minus 10 or 15 minutes depending on the traffic you get stuck behind
on the non-interstate portion. Great Falls to Helena is about 80
minutes plus or minus 5 min.

The scenery between M and H is almost all in the mountains, whereas
the secenery between GF and H is a mixture of mountains and flat areas
with a long, straight flat area for about 35 miles just north of
Helena. We used to do the last 35 miles from GF into Helena at 120mph
(or as fast as your car could go). Ah, the good old days... .

Perfect! Thanks for the info...

(smackey) wrote in message om...
(Brian Wasson) wrote in message . com...
Can anyone help me out with this question? Somebody here must be from Montana...

Brian,

I'm from Montana. Here's the deal...
Real world driving time Missoula to Helena is 1 hour 55 min, plus or
minus 10 or 15 minutes depending on the traffic you get stuck behind
on the non-interstate portion. Great Falls to Helena is about 80
minutes plus or minus 5 min.

The scenery between M and H is almost all in the mountains, whereas
the secenery between GF and H is a mixture of mountains and flat areas
with a long, straight flat area for about 35 miles just north of
Helena. We used to do the last 35 miles from GF into Helena at 120mph
(or as fast as your car could go). Ah, the good old days... .