‘World Away’: Painted Hills Trail Network Expands With Sandhill Addition

Photo: Integrated Trail LAB

By Lilly Keller

Bozeman Daily Chronicle

Outdoor enthusiasts can now explore the expanded Painted Hills and Highland Glen trail system southeast of Bozeman, featuring 1.5 miles of new trails and a 10-car parking lot—just in time for winter.

The Sandhill trail and parking area, developed by Gallatin Valley Land Trust, Outlaw Partners and Bridger Development Strategies, have been in progress since June 2022, alongside the new Sandhill residential community.

Matt Parsons, Gallatin Valley Land Trust’s trails director, said the idea for a new trail emerged after connecting with Derek Williams, founder of Bridger Development Strategies, who wanted the trail to be an “integral” part of the open space around the Sandhill community.

“What’s really exciting is how close this new trail is to downtown and the character of it being a single-track trail,” Parsons said. “It has a variety of terrain; the views are spectacular. It feels like you’re a world away, while actually, you’re only two or three miles from Main Street.

The gravel and single-track trail, accessible from Kagy Boulevard east of the Painted Hills trailhead, offers an alternative route through Department of Natural Resources & Conservation (DNRC) land. This new addition creates a three-mile loop within the existing Painted Hills trail network.

To enhance trail sustainability, GVLT rerouted a steep section of the Painted Hills Trail through Sandhill community open space, replacing slippery switchbacks with a longer, gradual climb to reduce erosion.

The nonprofit also removed a culvert and added a boardwalk to support wetland restoration and improve watershed health by limiting sediment runoff. Additionally, a bicycle rollover was installed at the north gate—matching the one at the south gate—allowing cyclists to ride through without dismounting and reducing wear on the gate.

“Because we knew the Sandhill trail was going to be built, we took a hard look at our existing Painted Hills trail,” Parsons said. “We were having this situation on the north gate going into the DNRC land, we were getting hundreds of users on this trail every day and so that gate was slamming several hundred times a day and we had to check it weekly throughout the season to make sure it didn’t swing through and either hurt someone or let the horses out.”

The upgrades were funded in part by a Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Recreational Trails Program grant and Athletic Brewing’s “Two for the Trails” program.

According to GVLT, the Painted Hills trail has already seen more than 50,000 visitors in 2024. Parsons hopes the new trail and enhancements to Painted Hills, established in 2019, will continue attracting new and returning community members.

“I think people will be excited to check out the new trail; it’ll probably reduce some traffic on the Painted Hills trail,” he said. “Time will tell, but I think overall it will probably draw more people.”

Since its opening Monday, the Sandhill Trail now will be maintained by the Sandhill Homeowners Association.