Summertime fills up, like cramming 10 pounds of spuds into a 5-lb bag. There are visitors from other states, there’s maintaining a garden—watering, weeding, maintenance, harvesting, and keeping ahead of bugs, not to mention all the regular hiking, climbing, floating, and fishing one can fit between mid-May and early October. Bozemanites are also often gone, road tripping or peak bagging.

​This time of year, there’s more space on the calendar. There’s time to explore Bozeman itself and see what our many events, businesses, clubs, museums, and numerous nonprofits have to offer. This is “hometown tourism.”

​Importantly, jumping into activities helps people cope with winter. Let the fun and the funky beat any January funk. Over the years, I’ve heard several people ask why others love to ski, snowboard, or snowshoe. It’s simple: These are winter ways to get a lot of fresh air, and some exercise, sunshine, and socializing. They’re mood boosters.

​Check out Bridger Bowl and Big Sky Resort; look into lessons. Rocky Creek Farm just east of downtown offers Nordic skiing, going on eight miles worth, groomed for classic XC and skate. They also have a winter farm stand (full info at www.gallatinvalleybotanical.com). Make a trip out and then hit another event. Here are other good ways to get out of your house in the winter, by location:

Gallatin Valley Fairgrounds
Midsummer to fall isn’t the only time for farmers' markets. Bozeman has a well-organized Winter Market (Saturdays 9am – noon at the Fairgrounds) featuring grass-fed beef, bison tallow products, root/fall veggies, various kinds and sources of local honey, art, wood craft items, and more. The 2026 schedule includes every Saturday in January and February, minus February 28th. It then resumes in March.

Visit www.bozemanwinterfarmersmarket.com for more info.

The Fairgrounds are home to Gallatin Ice. This organization uses two adjacent, large indoor rinks, Bottcher Memorial (Haynes Pavilion) and Ressler Motors, for around an acre of groomed goodness. The rinks are home to four hockey teams: Bozeman Stingers, Bozeman Ice Dogs, and MSU Men’s and Women’s. Schedules and tickets for games are online. The rinks also offer scheduled public skate times, skate rentals, and lessons for youth and adult hockey, figure skating, and curling.

There’s also outdoor skating around Bozeman, with rinks at Beall Park, Bogert Park, and Southside Park. Rink construction is dependent on weather. (As of this writing in December, these are not yet open; still 45ºF after sunset, which is why there are indoor rinks.) There’s a good chance they’ll be taking blades by mid-January—2026 is starting as a weak La Niña year.

On Saturday and Sunday, January 24th and 25th, the Fairgrounds hosts the PRO Skijor’s Frontier Tour. Skijoring is a winter sport featuring skiers pulled by horses. Think ski course plus rodeo, or water skiing on frozen water with literal horsepower. Each tour stop has timed heats, different division competitions, music, food, and ski- and Western-themed vendors.

The Emerson & The Willson
The Emerson Center for the Arts & Culture was a school from 1920 to 1992. The efforts of dedicated artists saved it from demolition, and it’s been a gem in the community for years. This month, check out The Arc’teryx Backcountry Skiing Film Festival Thursday, January 15th from 7 – 9pm in the Crawford Theater. Tickets are required. There’ll be some epic scenes and good times.

The 2026 Fly Fishing Film Tour will be held Friday, January 23rd from 7 – 10pm, also in the Crawford. Tickets are required. This is also a should-do for anyone into casting and catching.
Next winter, support the Bozeman Ice Festival, organized by the Montana Mountaineering Association (MMA). The Emerson hosts evening events; Spire Climbing Center and Hyalite Canyon (250 routes for top-shelf climbing density in North America, accessed by the only US Forest Service road plowed all winter) are venues for daytime events. In 2025 the festival ran December 10 – 14.

The Willson (near the Emerson), built in 1902 with an Art Deco addition in 1937, was a school until 2009. It was renovated in 2015; today, the Willson Auditorium is the main venue for the Bozeman Symphony. This month: Masters of Melody: Mozart, Copeland, +Haydn. Saturday, January 24th, 7:30 – 9:30pm, and Sunday, January 25th from 2:30 – 4:30pm. Next month, it’s Cinematic Legends: The Music of Hans Zimmer and Ennio Morricone. Friday and Saturday, February 13th and 14th from 7:30 – 9:30pm.

MOR and MSU
The Museum of the Rockies (MOR) is a Smithsonian-affiliated organization, and houses the largest collection of North American dinosaur fossils in the world. Their exhibit, “Becoming Jane” features primate researcher Jane Goodall (1934-2025) and runs through Sunday, January 18th.

An ongoing MOR exhibit includes Cretaceous Crossroads, about the major role of Montana—strategically sitting at land and sea boundaries—during the last period of the Mesozoic Era.
Upcoming:  FROGS – A Chorus of Color, from February 6th to September 6th. These exhibits fill up with summer tourists, so February to April is a good time view some amazing live amphibians with the family or a few friends. Many parts are interactive.

Also, remember that the Museum Store (great for gifts) and Rocky Rex’s Roasts, the museum’s cafe, don’t require museum admission.

Town and Gown relations in Bozeman have shifted. Not love-to-hate—more like friend-to-stranger. We’ve heard locals, especially newcomers, wonder if they can even step foot there. Don’t be afraid to tour MSU and attend its many events. You won’t be barked at for walking or riding a bike across campus. You’re not going to be asked for ID if you enter the Plant Science or Chemistry buildings and view student posters. Just respect faculty and campus parking (there are visitor lots/areas) and know that many buildings lock at 6pm and weekends. If you have any questions, stop by or call (994-INFO) the Ask-Us Desk at the Student Union Building (SUB). 

Also, consider taking MSU courses; going back to school or starting first-time. One in 10 MSU undergrads and eight in 10 grad students are 25 or older. Actively support your local student scholars —MSU is a top 50 research institution out of 5,500 colleges/universities in the country—and athletes. You don’t need to be an MSU parent or student to attend.

MSU Basketball. This is a great way to leave home and meet new people, or at least yell in a socially acceptable setting. The MSU Men’s’ team had a very close battle with Stanford last November. Their upcoming home schedule at Worthington Arena is online. Notably, MSU Men host U of M Grizzlies, January 17th, at 7pm. The same day, MSU Women host the Griz at 2pm. Let’s fill every seat.

The MSU “Spread the Warmth” MLK Jr. winter clothing (caps, mittens, gloves) drive runs January 5 – 19. That said, look into the various ways you can volunteer your time in the valley. Volunteering is a great way to get out of the house, especially in winter.    

Downtown & Cannery District
Bozemanites still love trivia, and several bars host trivia night. Watering holes fill up with tourists in the summer, making winter an even better time to support these Bozeman businesses.

Mondays: Wildrye Distilling, 6pm; Bacchus Pub, 7pm; and Sports Trivia at the Rockin’ R Bar, 7:30pm.

Tuesdays: 406 Brewing in Manhattan, 6pm. Not in Bozeman but worth including; drive safely, yo.

Wednesdays: SHINE Beer Sanctuary, 6pm; Rockin’ R Bar general trivia, 7:30pm; The Molly Brown, 8pm.
Cribbage is a Montana staple, especially in the winter, like euchre in the Midwest and Spades in the South. SHINE has cribbage night every Tuesday, 5 – 9pm.

Thursdays, 6 – 9pm, are Fly-Tying Nights at Bozeman Fly Supply, by Rook’s Games and Café Zydeco. This isn’t a class, just good, casual hang-out time tying with fellow tiers.

Finally, how Bozeman has or hasn’t changed is a common topic among long-term residents. One thing is true: it used to be unabashedly nerdy—dorky jocks, granolas, geeky hicks, or athletic, outdoorsy, down-to-earth intellectuals. It’s a college town first and a tourist and newcomer town second, and should get back to its roots. There are two Bozeman winter traditions which have died as Gen Xers and Early Millennials got older: summer-in-winter parties and snow picnics.

The first are shindigs with the thermostat turned up. Thirty-somethings (kids at Grandma’s), twenty-somethings, and even college kids rented, borrowed, or bought humidifiers, and more houseplants. The point is to turn a house into summer. People wear shorts and short sleeves. Sandals optional. Plenty of beverages and grub. Superbowl LX is February 8th.

The second also looks weird to haters, but is good, simple fun. Throw down a big tarp on the snow. Then a blanket or three. Bust out fried chicken, hot potato salad, hot cocoa, hot cider, you name it. College students and families with kids alike used to do this in Cooper and Southside Parks. There are 40 other city parks. Pick a sunny day and you’ll likely get too warm for your coat. No ants. Enjoy.

As always, check out the Bozeman Magazine events calendar.