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I organized a PCA group drive over Beartooth Pass and Chief Joseph Highway this week. If you have never driven this road, it is a bucket list item for sure. If you have driven it, you already know what I’m talking about. My motivation for this drive was to go for a nice road trip with my dad, who has never been over this pass and hasn’t been on any long drives in the 993. The trip made for a great father-son bonding experience.
We got an early start, rounded up 9 cars and found ourselves in Red Lodge around noon for a group lunch, to fortify ourselves for the long series of hairpin turns that would lead us up to 11k feet and into truly alpine country.
The first few miles of the pass makes for some truly fantastic driving. A mix of 25mph to 50mph corners separated by undulating straights with breathtaking views (if you can take your eyes off the road), put me into a zen-like state of flow as we steadily put on altitude. Occasionally I would glance in the rear view and enjoy the lineup of Porsches howling behind me.
We stopped at the first pullout to enjoy the views and take a short breather.
In the pullout we ran into another PCA member who happened to be traveling through on his way home from the Banff Treffen. He regaled us with stories of snow and cold, unable to drive at all during the event due to inclement weather, he was happy to be on his way back south again and driving in the sunshine. He joined us as we made our way up and even further up.
At the 11k foot summit we carefully drove a short dirt road, probably the furthest ‘off-road’ many of these cars have ever gone. The wind was howling, the air was bracing, and although we were feeling oxygen deprived, a few of us made a short hike to the high-point, scrambling through some scree and up the final rocky peak to the very top where the views were even more incredible - so long as you could keep your footing with the wind pushing and pulling you off balance.
As we wound our way through the alpine lakes and tundra on the other side of the pass we found ourselves in slightly more traffic so we had to slow down our pace and had a chance to enjoy the views more thoroughly. It’s an incredible road, traveling through country that looks like it should only be open to backpackers.
We all felt incredibly lucky to be there on such a perfect fall day. Just before the turn to the Chief Joseph Highway, there is a scenic waterfall, that we stopped to enjoy.
The Chief Joseph Highway is a lower elevation road that follows the Clark’s Fork river. It made for a lovely drive. Smooth, well paved, perfect corners, mountains rising all around, and a lovely river as a centerpiece. We saw very few other cars and made a fast pace to Dead Indian Pass. Unfortunately, this is where fate snuck in and decided to add a little additional adventure to our outing. Just before the pass itself, I noticed that the rear of my car didn’t feel quite right. On throttle it would move a little right and off throttle it would move a little left. Luckily there was a dirt pullout which I drove into and stepped out of the car to see my suspicions confirmed. I had a flat tire.
Luckily, my car still has the spare, tools, and compressor, so we went to work jacking the car up and replacing the flat tire with the spare. Relegated to a 60mph max, I limped my way the remaining 90 miles back to Red Lodge. I let the others go first so they could enjoy the road as it was meant to be driven, but they were kind enough to wait for me from time to time to ensure all was still well. To my surprise, even though I had to drive slowly, my car still drove like a Porsche. These cars are fun no matter what the situation.
Once back in Red Lodge we stopped at a tire shop and learned that my tire was unrecoverable. It had a rock bruise, which apparently is pretty common on this road due to the alpine setting. I resigned myself to more driving on the spare tire to get myself home.
We had a great dinner in Red Lodge and then one of our group headed back up the pass to catch the sunset.
He made a rather entrancing video of his drive that evening:
My dad and I spent the night in Red Lodge and then continued to limp towards home. Partway there, my wife met us with my spare wheels and I was finally able to change back to some real rubber again.
Now that I’m back home I’ve replaced my 265 RE71r tires in the rear with 275 RE71r and am enjoying the additional grip (and slightly better ride) that they are providing. All’s well that ends well!
I hope you enjoyed this write-up and if you are in the Big Sky or Absaroka PCA regions, I hope you can join us for our next event. It’s always a great time.
Last edited by Tlaloc75; Sep 23, 2018 at 03:12 PM.
Always entertaining when the PCA organizer has equipment failure. Glad to see the group was sympathetic/supporting and you were prepared. Nicely done!.
Yes, 212 from Billings into Yellowstone via Beartooth is on my map for my northern tour of US bucket list trip. Glad to add the Chief Joseph leg. What's the earliest you'd attempt this? I remember running up to Lassen here in Ca late April and getting surprised with snow and closed roads.
Always entertaining when the PCA organizer has equipment failure. Glad to see the group was sympathetic/supporting and you were prepared. Nicely done!.
Yes, 212 from Billings into Yellowstone via Beartooth is on my map for my northern tour of US bucket list trip. Glad to add the Chief Joseph leg. What's the earliest you'd attempt this? I remember running up to Lassen here in Ca late April and getting surprised with snow and closed roads.
Great pictures!
I wouldn’t try it before July unless you watch the road conditions carefully and see it is clear for at least a few weeks and there are no early summer storms predicted. I just heard from a guy that was stuck up there for a night pulling cars out of the ditch on a Fourth of July weekend. So while it isn’t common, it definitely can happen. I think the best time is just after Labor Day since the fall weather is generally quite good and the traffic will start thinning out. Wait too long and the snow will set in again. We were pushing it a little bit doing it last week. Temperatures are coming down and we are seeing more precipitation, so I imagine the road is going to start seeing snow soon. It officially closes on October 15th, though it sometimes closes sooner if it gets enough early snow that it isn’t worth the effort to clear.
You will love the drive!
Last edited by Tlaloc75; Sep 24, 2018 at 05:07 PM.
Great info, I didn't realize the window was so small and seeing as I've already done the "stuck in heavy snowfall" gig so I think I'll pin Montana for mid-September, work the trip around that.
Your pictures confirm my suspicions, great roads.
Great info, I didn't realize the window was so small and seeing as I've already done the "stuck in heavy snowfall" gig so I think I'll pin Montana for mid-September, work the trip around that.
Your pictures confirm my suspicions, great roads.
July and August are better for weather. Early September is better for traffic. Mid September is usually good, but can be a touch risky if you hit it on the wrong days.
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While the Blue Ridge Mountains here in the east have some outstanding driving roads with beautiful views, it's not quite the same as being up at 11,000 ft! Maybe I'll get the car out that way some day...
Last edited by SpeedyC2; Sep 24, 2018 at 11:55 AM.
Reason: Typo
While the Blue Ridge Mountains here in the east have some outstanding driving roads with beautiful views, it's not quite the same as being up at 11,000 ft! Maybe I'll get the car out that way some day...
I’ve driven the Blue Ridge Mountains in a 1985 Vanagon. That was a different kind of exciting
Nice job organizing this and posting the summary. I wish I could have made it even more now that you posted this. Shame about the flat tire, but glad it didn’t stop you.
I didn’t actually know that. I see now that it says to do this in the manual and I see a few confirming Rennlist threads. I also see a few others have used it in the back without ending it all in a fiery death. Porsche overengineering at work?
I’m guessing it would have driven more safely with the spare in front as the rear would have been that much more stable. I did have to drive very gingerly with the spare in the rear. Good thing to know for next time - if there is a next time.
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Great Drives - Beartooth Pass
