The Centennial Sandhills Preserve

Montana

Painted Milk Vetch Painted Milk Vetch is a rare plant found on the Sandhills © Andrey Zharkikh/Creative Commons

Phone: +1 406-443-0303
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Overview

Description

NOTE: This preserve is completely undeveloped so bring a detailed topographical map if you plan to hike around. The road into the preserve is impassable in winter and can be challenging in during late fall and early spring. A high-clearance, all-wheel drive vehicle is recommended any time of year.

In southwestern Montana, on the northeastern side of the vast Centennial Valley, is a unique ecological system of dynamic sandhills. The 1,200-acre preserve, part of a larger community of sandhills, supports four rare plant species and several uncommon plant communities. 

The Centennial Sandhills thrive on disturbance. Before European settlement, regular fire cleared out large older plants, allowing wind to scour the ground, moving soil and sculpting a shifting landscape that sustained a diversity of plants and animals. Migrating herds of bison also helped keep bunchgrasses and shrubs from taking over. But, when the bison and natural fire all but disappeared, the system teetered out of balance. Woody sagebrush crowded out patches of rare plants, and the animals that lived with them.

Access

OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

This preserve is completely undeveloped.

Location

Lakeview, MT

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Explore our work in this region

The Nature Conservancy purchased the sandhills as part of the larger 11,500-acre Staudenmeyer Ranch acquisition.  Most of the land was transferred to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, expanding the Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge. We retained the sandhills portion because of their unique character and need for specialized management to maintain the conditions necessary for the rare plants that occur there.

TNC stewardship staff are testing land management practices that are ecologically beneficial, financially viable, and helpful to advancing conservation elsewhere in the valley. For example, staff are studying how prescribed burns combined with grazing, and placement of protein feed blocks to concentrate grazing in specific locations affect the plants and sand formations and removing or modifying fences to make them more wildlife-friendly. 

Each summer, the preserve headquarters houses seasonal staff from various conservation partners in addition to TNC employees. The HQ is a vibrant conservation hub during the summer field season, with multiple different crews out each day working to restore and maintain the integrity of the Centennial Valley and the surrounding area. Staff members work on all aspects of land stewardship and ecological science projects, from noxious weed control to Ph. D.-level research.

The preserve is completely undeveloped and there is no sign to indicate its location. You are welcome to hike the area, but it is best to camp at the nearby Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge. An all- or four- wheel drive vehicle with good clearance is recommended on North Valley Road, which can be deep sand in spots. It can become very difficult to drive in wet weather.

What to See: Plants

Fendler's cateye

Painted milkvetch

White-stemmed pale evening primrose

Sand wild rye

What to See: Animals

Pronghorn antelope

Sage thrasher

Brewer’s sparrow

Long-billed curlew

Pygmy rabbit

Wolf

Grizzly bear

Check the weather and road conditions before making a trip. Roads can become impassable after rain and in winter and early spring.

Combine a visit with a trip to Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge.

Directions

From Interstate 15 take Exit 0 at Monida, Montana (Sign marks turnoff for Red Rock Lakes Wildlife Refuge). Follow signs through Monida (a nearly abandoned town) toward the Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge and Lakeview. Travel approximately 37 miles east through the Centennial Valley on an improved (partially gravelled) dirt road to Elk Lake Road. Take a left (there is a sign at the junction marking the turnoff to Elk Lake Resort). Follow the road another 3 miles and turn west onto North Valley Road (some maps say North “Side” Road). Once on North Valley Road, you will be travelling through Sandhills habitat for about 14 miles. The first 8 miles are part of the refuge, the next 6-7 miles are the preserve.

From West Yellowstone, follow US 20 for about 14 miles west to just before milepost 398. Turn right onto Red Rock Road (signs mark the turnoff to Lakeview, Red Rock RV Park, and Elk Lake Resort). Follow Red Rock Road about 5 miles to a "T". Take a left (sign identifies this as the direction to Elk Lake Resort). Follow the gravel road up over Red Rock Pass and into the Centennial Valley - you will travel about 11 miles from the "T". Take a right at Elk Lake Road (a sign marks the turnoff for Elk Lake Resort ). Follow the road another 3 miles and turn west onto North Valley Road (some maps say North “Side” Road). Once on North Valley Road, you will be travelling through Sandhills habitat for about 14 miles. The first 8 miles are part of the refuge, the next 6-7 miles are the preserve.

From Reynolds Pass, Montana From the north/Highway 87, follow 87 south into Idaho. Continue 5 miles past the ID-MT state line on Raynolds Pass. Turn south (right) at the Sawtell historical marker (sign also identifies this as the turnoff for Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge). Follow the paved road around the west shore of Henry's Lake for approximately 5 miles onto Red Rock Pass Road (gravel road). Stay on this road up over Red Rock Pass and into the Centennial Valley - you will travel about 13 miles from the end of the pavement. Take a right at Elk Lake Road (a sign marks the turnoff for Elk Lake Resort ). Follow the road another 3 miles and turn west onto North Valley Road (some maps say North “Side” Road). Once on North Valley Road, you will be travelling through Sandhills habitat for about 14 miles. The first 8 miles are part of the refuge, the next 6-7 miles are the preserve.