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3-Day DISCOVER TOURS 

SPEND A WEEKEND BACK IN MONTANA & WYOMING OF 1876

WALK BACK IN TIME FOR A WEEKEND IN 1876

   

Leave work behind Thursday and fly to Billings, Montana, for a walk back in time to 1876!      

Relax!  All the arrangements are made for you; the only thing you have to do is book your flight arriving to Billings, MT by Thursday night, fly home Monday morning.

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Option 1

  

THE LAKOTA AND CHEYENNE BROTHERHOOD

The Lakota and Cheyenne encampment was large but not anything like the exaggerated proportion that has been portrayed since that day. Approximately 650 tipis were arranged along the Little Bighorn River, loosely conforming to traditional tribal designations. In the village there was approximately 850 men and boys who might fight.
As Reno advanced, most people were going about their everyday business; some of the men were fishing, some were digging wild turnips, Chief Gall was eating his lunch, but the calm was disrupted when Little Bear came thundering into the village: his son had just been killed by scouts and the soldiers were coming. Immediately the Hunkpapa Lakota of Sitting Bull, the people camped at the south end of the village in Reno’s line of fire, prepared to defend the village.

 

Spend 3 days earning the truth of what happened at the Little Bighorn. See the site where Sitting Bull’s vision is carved into the sacred rocks of the soldiers falling upside down into camp signifying there would be great victory in the coming battle. Go off the beaten track to the original site of the Rosebud Fight – a seminal event for the Cheyenne which occurred just a week before the Little Bighorn and still defines courage and traditional values for the Cheyenne  to this day. Then enjoy a comprehensive tour of the Little Bighorn  - hear the bona-fide stories and explanations of what happened June 25th, 1876, from an indigenous historian who has spend a lifetime studying both side of the battle; for if you don’t know both sides, how can you understand the truth?
 

    Day 1:    Deer Medicine Rocks and the Northern Cheyenne Reservation

    Day 2:    The Fight Where the Girl Saved Her Brother

    Day 3:    Little Bighorn Battlefield

Option 2

  

POWDER RIVER TO THE LITTLE BIGHORN

Sitting Bull was a spiritual and civil leader, his days of war had passed, and he did not participate in the fight as a combatant. Instead, he gave his sacred items of war to his nephew, One Bull, and told him to defend the people when it was obvious that the soldiers had not come to talk.

But what really led to the most famous battle for freedom on the Plains?

Why did it happen? How did the battle unfold?  

What were the lasting consequences for Native people across this land?

 

At the Fetterman Battlefield (Fort Phil Kearny) learn about the character, bravery and planning skills of a young Crazy Horse. There may be not other battle defined so clearly by Lakota traditional perspectives and despite the reticence of local historians to accept the equitable telling of this story, our guides explain how cultural imperatives, not just military maneuvers shaped history on the plains.  Go off the beaten track to the original site of the Rosebud Fight – the seminal event for the Cheyenne which occurred just a week before the Little Bighorn and from which traditional Cheyenne still derive courage and inspiration to this day. Then enjoy a comprehensive tour of the Little Bighorn  - hear the bona-fide stories and explanations of what happened June 25th, 1876, from an indigenous historian who has spend a lifetime studying both side of the battle; for if you don’t know both sides, how can you understand the truth?

 

    Day 1:    Fetterman Battlefield

    Day 2:    Rosebud Battlefield

    Day 3:    Little Bighorn Battlefield

Option 3

CULTURE CLASH ON THE PLAINS

Custer had never seen the valley of the Little Bighorn before and was reliant upon his Crow scouts and civilian guides to inform him of what might lie ahead.  He intended to keep his command concealed near the Wolf Mountains throughout June 25 so his men could rest and he and his officers could prepare the attack he intended to launch the following morning.
However, intelligence he received early on June 25 convinced him that he must attack immediately or risk the Indians scattering, which was the military’s greatest fear – that the Lakota and Cheyenne would melt into the landscape and the campaign would become a costly and lengthy pursuit, and possible humiliation if they failed to cow the Indians.

 

Custer was supposed to be part of a three-pronged attack. The first under Col. John Gibbon, marched east from Fort Ellis (near present-day Bozeman, Montana), the second led by Gen. Alfred Terry (and including Custer) headed west from Fort Abraham Lincoln near present-day Bismarck, North Dakota. The third prong consisted of Gen.  George Crook's men moving north from Wyoming into Montana. But Crook had the misfortune to meet with Cheyenne and Lakota warriors at the Rosebud and when the conflict left him reeling, he retreated south into Wyoming (ultimately heading to Apache territory, attempting to hunt down the legendary Geronimo) and people say he was never the same again. Hear the story of this, and of the Little Bighorn where you will spend your second day learning the cultural imperatives and battle tactics that made the Lakota and Cheyenne victorious against the US Army. Spend your final day among the remaining relics of the battle – whether perusing fascinating memorabilia at the fabulous Custer Battlefield Museum, or on horseback amid the battlefield terrain where you can best imagine the smoke and dust, the heat of the battle and the war cries rallying across the Greasy Grass as the story falls into and indelible place within your memories.

 

    Day 1:    Rosebud Battlefield

    Day 2:    Little Bighorn Battlefield

    Day 3:    Custer Battlefield Museum visit & Ride the Little Bighorn Battlefield

WHERE?
Montana and Wyoming
 
WHEN?
Tours usually run between May and October, but can be arranged out of season; just be prepared for colder weather.
 
STARTING/ENDING POINT
Billings, MT
 
ACTIVITY LEVEL
Your choice. If you want to see everything, you need a basic fitnes level to be able to walk, but its perfectly feasible to do most of this tour with a lesser physical component.
 
WHAT'S INCLUDED
All guiding
Hotels from Thurs-Sun nights
Tour transportation
 
WHAT'S NOT INCLUDED
Meals
Flights
 
MEALS
We do not include meals so that you are able to make your best choices on what to eat and what to spend on food. Everyone is different.
Lunch at the Little Bighorn is usually at the Custer Battlefield Trading Post, but at other sites we must take box lunches because there are no restaurants near.
Dinner venues depend on your choice of hotel package. You can choose from full service to budget accommodations and facilities at properties vary. 
 
FLIGHTS
You will need to arrive in Billings MT (BIL) on Thursday evening. Your arrival time is entirely your own choice.
Please book return flights for Monday morning.
 
We cannot guarantee to get you to the airport in time for a Sunday afternoon flight because the last day of each option is at the Little Bighorn; this is a story that cannot be told swiftly if our guides are to fulfill their commitment not just to you, but also to the participants of the battle... you see, our guides are committed to giving the best version they can to honor those who lived through the battle, and in some cases lost their lives there. Our guides speak with every group as though those participants stand among you, and their ethic is to tell the true story of what happened to those warriors as though they themsleves are listening in and fact-checking.

WEEKEND TRIPS are PRIVATE tours with logistical arrangements that can be customized to your needs.

 

TARIFFS: Discover Weekends start at $3497 per private tour, +$997per extra person (up to 4 people total per tour.)
 

Upgrades are available at extra cost, and please note: early bookings are important if you want to customize your hotel/vehicle bookings  and particularly if you plan to travel in high season.

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CALL NOW TO DISCUSS +1 307-699-6015

OR EMAIL HERE

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