The Missouri Breaks - Montana's Missouri Breaks

From Winifred, a narrow one lane graded road descends into the river valley and meets the Missouri River at the crossing for the McClelland/Stafford Ferry. Somewhere near the middle of the river, the ferry changes names. On the south side, it's called the Stafford Ferry and on the north side it's called the McClelland Ferry. The Blaine County Commissioners office manages its operation. The current ferry boat is only 5 years old. The original was made of wood while the new one is made of steel. It weighs 60,000 pounds and measures 22 feet wide and 50 feet long.

There are two ferry boat captains who alternate days of operation. They live in the ferry quarters on the north side of the river. Travelers going north drive up to the dock on the south side of the river and honk the horn. Hopefully, the captain will hear the horn and begin the short hike from the quarters to the dock on the north side of the river. The ferry boat is then powered up and driven to the south side where the traveler and vehicle is loaded. If honking the horn does not work, the second option is a mailbox with a small two-way radio. The instructions are to turn the radio on, call the captain, and turn the radio off.

There are only three ferry boats still in operation within the Missouri Breaks. The use of ferry boats on the Missouri River began in the 1860s. The McClelland/Stafford Ferry began operating in 1915. Some sources claim more than two dozen ferry boats were in operation before bridges began replacing them. Fortunately the three remaining boats have been kept in operation in an effort to retain some of Montana's ferry-boat history.

After leaving the ferry on the north side, the road connects to the Cow Island Trail. When steamboats were taking supplies to Fort Benton, they frequently could not get past Cow Island. If that was the case, the cargo was loaded on wagons and taken to the fort using Cow Island Trail.

Eventually, the Cow Island Trail turns away from the road and becomes a horse path. The road continues east and intersects with the paved road north of Landusky. From there, another graded road turns west and accesses another ferry crossing that was abandoned years ago. There are several buildings including one with a grass rooftop. The smaller one room buildings would have made good living quarters for workers or even to rent out to travelers.

The original power plant built at that location ran on coal, which produced steam to power the generators. The power was also used to operate a mine and mill. The ferry was in operation from 1916 to 1923 when the mill burned down.

Another dirt road leads to the Cow Island crossing. During the 1800s, cattlemen used the shallow waters at Cow Island as a way to get their herds from one side of the river to another. The road to Cow Island offers the most beautiful scenic drive in the Missouri Breaks. It is washed out, steep, and would be a challenge to anything less than a 4x4.

There is a homestead and pieces and parts of abandoned machinery near the banks of the river. One structure is built into a hillside with dirt covering everything except the front entrance and windows. An old well is still open so watch your step. Previous travelers have thrown lumber across the opening but those are not permanent covers.