Travelers' Rest - New State Park

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Travelers Rest, near Lolo, became Montana’s 42 nd State Park in March. After a year of patient negotiation, The Conservation Fund purchased the property from Pat and Ernie Deschamps and simultaneously donated it to Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks. The park is now operated through a unique partnership between FWP and the Travelers’ Rest Preservation Project (TRPP). FWP owns the site while TRPP is responsible for operating and maintaining the 15-acre park. The effort to preserve Travelers’ Rest began in 1995 when the local chapter of the Lewis and Clark Trail Heritage Foundation looked into learning more about their namesake. Lewis and Clark and the Corps of Discovery stayed at Travelers’ Rest on both their westward and eastward journeys. Two independent researchers each proposed that the newly acquired site, a mile upstream from the current National Historic Landmark sign on Hwy 93, is a more accurate location of the Lewis & Clark campsite. This same area is also an ancient crossroads for several Native American tribes, including the Salish, Nez Perce, and Lemhi Shoshone. The site is currently undeveloped. Plans are underway to provide interpretation at the site in preparation for the upcoming Lewis and Clark commemoration.