| The atmospheric mountain town of RED LODGE, sixty miles south of Billings at the foot of the awesome Beartooth Mountains and originally founded to dig coal for the transcontinental railroads, makes an altogether more pleasant stop. During winter, it acts as a base for skiers using the popular Red Lodge Mountain, six miles west on US-212 (tel 406/446-2610, lodging reservation service tel 1-800/444-8977, www.redlodgemountain.com), where ski-lift passes cost $36 a day ($28 Mon & Tues from early Jan). Red Lodge faced extinction in 1924, when its largest coal mine closed, but its future was secured by the construction of the 65-mile Beartooth Scenic Highway to Cooke City at the northeastern entrance to Yellowstone National Park. Other roads in the Rockies may be higher, but none gives quite such a top-of-the-world feeling as this succession of tight switchbacks, steep grades and exciting overlooks. Even in summer the springy tundra turf of the 10,940ft Beartooth Pass is covered with snow that (due to algae) turns pink when crushed. All around are gem-like corries, deeply gouged granite walls, stretches of scree and huge blocks of roadside ice. Though Red Lodge boasts plenty of reasonable motels grouped south of town – the Yodeler, 601 S Broadway (tel 406/446-1435, www.wtp.net/yodeler; $50–75), is friendly, clean and central. By far, the nicest place to stay is the lovely historic Pollard Hotel, 2 N Broadway (tel 406/446-000 or 1-800/POLLARD; $100–250), with a pool, sauna, comfortable old library and superb restaurant (see below). One of the best B&Bs in town, Bear Bordeaux, 302 S Broadway (tel 406/446-4408; $75–100), is a well-decorated downtown home with bright, colorful rooms and great mountain views. There's a hot tub, filling breakfasts and an enormous video library (each room has a VCR). Camping at the KOA (June–Sept; tel 406/446-2364), four miles north, costs $18. Or you can rent a cabin for $36. Undoubtedly the best food in town, if not in the entire Rocky Mountain region, is served at the Pollard, where Greenlee's (tel 406/446-0001) features sublime, simple, European dishes in a wonderfully serene wood-lined dining room. Also on Broadway, Bogart's at no. 11 S (tel 406/446-1784) is popular for its Mexican and Californian cuisine, and the nearby Red Lodge Pizza Company, 123 S Broadway (tel 406/446-3933), is a lively combination pizza joint and brewhouse with one of the largest ranges of beers in town. Red Lodge has a cheerful nightlife scene, especially in winter – get a real feel for the town at the Snow Creek Saloon, 124 S Broadway, an always-busy bar popular with locals and visitors alike.
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