The BA&P Hill Trail provides a fascinating glimpse into Butte's early history, winding its way through the town's historic neighborhoods and abandoned mineyards. The area was known as the "The Richest Hill on Earth" for its gold, silver and copper deposits. The former Butte, Anaconda & Pacific Railroad, on which the trail is built, was founded in 1892 to transport these precious ores from Butte mines to smelters in Anaconda. In 1913, BA&P also became the first freight railroad in the world to electrify.
For a look at this history, follow the interpretive signs along the way, stop at the World Museum of Mining mid-trail and view the line's last surviving engine at the Anselmo Mine Yard.
The eastern half of the trail (Butte end), from the museum east to Wyoming Street, is paved; the western half (Rocker end) from the museum to Grizzly Trail (a road) is gravel. At the western terminus, you can travel just 0.2 mile farther down Grizzly Trail to a large parking area on the south side of the road, where you can pick up the Silver Bow Creek Greenway.
Mid-trail, parking can be found at the World Museum of Mining (155 Museum Way) and the Anselmo Mine Yard, just off Excelsior Street. You can also park at the Silver Bow Creek Greenway parking area on the western end of the BA&P Hill Trail along Grizzly Trail (a road) in Rocker. From the parking area, travel 0.2 mile down Grizzly Trail road (heading east toward Butte), and watch for the gravel BA&P Hill Trail on the south (right) side of the road. It peels off the road just before the road goes under the railroad trestle.
This trail does not have any events yet.
Be the first to add one!
_124935_nb.jpg)
The Blacktail Creek Trail, through southeastern Butte, was renamed the Ulrich-Schotte Nature Trail in honor of local citizens who championed the...
The creation of the Silver Bow Creek Greenway is part of a massive Superfund cleanup of Silver Bow Creek, which has suffered more than a century of...
_80407_nb.jpg)
Just a few miles south of Butte, the Milwaukee Road Rail-Trail through Thompson Park offers a fun, four-mile ride through two tunnels and across a...
The Headwaters Trail System is a paved network of trails, portions of which run along the former Milwaukee Railroad corridor, through the City of...
This pleasant trail is busy during hot summer days, when families come out in droves to swim, fish and paddle non-motorized boats around this small...
When Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (RTC) was founded in 1986, just a handful of rail-trails dotted the landscape. Today, there are more than 2,000...
The Missouri Headwaters State Park offers 5 miles of unpaved trails to explore its picturesque landscapes by foot, horseback, or mountain bike. The...
The Story Mill Spur is named for Nelson Story, who, in the 1880s, built a flour mill near the East Gallatin River. As mayor of Bozeman, Story was...
The Gallagator Linear Trail runs diagonally for more than 1.5 miles through the east side of Bozeman. The trail, which has a crushed stone surface for...
The Bitterroot Trail is a paved pathway largely paralleling US 93 between Missoula and Hamilton in Montana's scenic Bitterroot Valley. The trail...
The Kim Williams Nature Trail provides a scenic stroll or bike ride alongside the Clark Fork River, connecting several parks in downtown Missoula. It...
The Mansion Heights Trail passes along the northern end of a neighborhood development of the same name toward the top of Missoula's South Hills. The...
Download the TrailLink mobile app and take TrailLink with you!
Donate and Get a FREE 2018 RTC Guidebook!
TrailLink is a free service provided by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (a non-profit) and we need your support!
