Origin
Great Falls, MT
Late night in Great Falls on Sunday
Local time
1:55 AM
MDT
Current temp
68°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Trip from Great Falls, MT to Cascade, MT
Compiled and reviewed by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 19, 2026 · Editorial standards
Drive Time
28m
Distance
26 mi
42 km
Drive Score
6/10
Good drive
Same Day?
Yes, doable
Fuel Cost
$4
one way
EV Charging
Good
8 stations
Best Time to Leave
4 AM
0h 26m
★
6 AM
0h 29m
8 AM
0h 34m
10 AM
0h 31m
12 PM
0h 30m
3 PM
0h 31m
5 PM
0h 33m
8 PM
0h 27m
Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.
Great Falls, MT
Wikimedia Commons
Cascade, MT
JOHN CALLERY
Trip Overview
This quick 26-mile journey from Great Falls, MT, to Cascade, MT, will take you about 28 minutes to complete. Primarily using roads like First Special Service Force Memorial Highway and 10th Avenue South, this is a very short drive, perfect for a single day trip. With a modest fuel cost of around $4, you won't need to budget much for gas. The route stays within the Mountain West region, offering a straightforward travel experience. Given its brevity, you can easily fit this drive into a larger itinerary or enjoy it as a standalone excursion.
Main Roads
| Road | Distance | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| First Special Service Force Memorial Highway | 21.8 mi | 20m |
| Country Club Boulevard | 1.3 mi | 2m |
| 10th Avenue South | 0.7 mi | 1m |
| I 15 BUS | 0.7 mi | 1m |
| 1st Street Northwest | 0.4 mi | <1m |
| 5th Street South | 0.4 mi | <1m |
| Saint Peter's Mission Road | 0.3 mi | <1m |
| 5th Avenue South | <0.1 mi | <1m |
Longest stretch:
First Special Service Force Memorial Highway
— 21.8 mi, about 20m
Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions
Step-by-step road directions between Great Falls, MT and Cascade, MT.
1
Start on 4th Street South
162 ft
·
12 sec
·
4th Street South
2
Turn left onto 5th Avenue South
427 ft
·
20 sec
·
5th Avenue South
3
Turn right onto I 15 Business
0.4 mi
·
37 sec
·
5th Street South
4
Turn right onto I 15 Business; US 89; MT 3; MT 200
0.7 mi
·
1 min
·
10th Avenue South
5
Continue on I 15 Business; US 89; MT 3; MT 200
1.3 mi
·
2 min
·
Country Club Boulevard
6
Keep slight left at fork onto I 15 BUS
0.7 mi
·
1 min
·
I 15 BUS
7
Merge onto I 15
22 mi
·
20 min
·
First Special Service Force Memorial Highway
8
Take the exit
0.3 mi
·
40 sec
Exit 256
Toward MT 68: Cascade
9
Turn left onto MT 68
0.3 mi
·
29 sec
·
Saint Peter's Mission Road
10
Continue on MT 68
0.4 mi
·
44 sec
·
1st Street Northwest
11
Arrive at destination
MT 68
Heads-up: tricky spots
5 of 75 decision points cluster between mile 0 and 25 — GPS handles the exact turns, but know they're coming. Your lane choice matters more than the turn itself.
5
0 mi into trip
|
~0m in
|
5th Avenue South
Turn left onto 5th Avenue South
Navigation decision point
4
0.1 mi into trip
|
~0m in
|
I 15 Business / 5th Street South
Turn right onto I 15 Business / 5th Street South
Navigation decision point
4
0.5 mi into trip
|
~1m in
|
I 15 Business; US 89; MT 3; MT 200 / 10th Avenue South
Turn right onto I 15 Business; US 89; MT 3; MT 200 / 10th Avenue South
Navigation decision point
4
2.5 mi into trip
|
~4m in
|
I 15 BUS
Keep slight left at fork onto I 15 BUS
Highway fork - watch signs carefully
5
25 mi into trip
|
~26m in
Take the exit toward MT 68: Cascade
Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early
Exit 256
Toward MT 68: Cascade
Fuel & Cost
Regular Gas
$4.12 one way
$8.24 round trip
$4.03/gal
25.4 MPG avg
9 kg CO2
| Fuel Type | $/gal | One Way | Round Trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| midgrade | $4.22 | $4.32 | $8.64 |
| premium | $4.53 | $4.64 | $9.28 |
| diesel | $5.61 | $5.74 | $11.48 |
No toll roads detected on this route.
Drive Cost (one way)
Fuel
$4
Estimated CO2 emission: 9.1 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.
Driving Electric?
About $3 in charging · 0 stops · 67% less CO2
| Vehicle Type | kWh | Stops | DC Fast | Home Charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average EV | 7.8 | 0 | $2.73 | $1.25 |
| Efficient EV | 6.5 | 0 | $2.28 | $1.04 |
| EV Truck/SUV | 10.4 | 0 | $3.64 | $1.66 |
Gas CO2
9 kg
EV CO2
3 kg (67% less)
This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.
DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.
Travel Intel
Current conditions at both ends of the drive.
Destination
Cascade, MT
Late night in Cascade on Sunday
Local time
1:55 AM
MDT
Current temp
32°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Time zone
Same local time
Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.
Temperature spread
36 degrees cooler at arrival
A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.
Road read
28m on the road
Use the two city cards together: check the sky where you start, then compare it with the local time and temperature at arrival.
Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.
What kind of drive is this?
Expect a turn-heavy local drive on this route, with only a 3% highway share. You'll navigate through Country Club Boulevard and 10th Avenue South before settling onto the First Special Service Force Memorial Highway for the longest stretch of 21.8 miles. The road's personality is more about navigating local thoroughfares than open-road cruising. This isn't a monotonous interstate; rather, it's a drive that requires attention to turns and local road conditions as you transition from urban Great Falls to the more rural surroundings.
Only 3% highway — the rest is turn-by-turn surface driving.
11 navigation steps total — most of the decisions cluster near the start and finish.
Longest single stretch: 21.8 mi on First Special Service Force Memorial Highway.
How Hard Is This Drive?
4/10
Expect a hands-on drive with frequent turns and local roads rather than long highway stretches. There are only a few real navigation decisions along the way. The trickiest moment comes early in the drive near 5th Avenue South.
Driving Effort
4/10
Easy - simple navigation with a manageable amount of wheel time
Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.
This is a straightforward 28m drive. You will face about 7 decision points, but nothing that requires special attention if you follow navigation.
Where does it get tricky?
The main spots that need attention: near the start (5th Avenue South): Navigation decision point; at 0.1 miles (I 15 Business / 5th Street South): Navigation decision point; at 0.5 miles (I 15 Business; US 89; MT 3; MT 200 / 10th Avenue South): Navigation decision point.
About the Cities
Starting in Great Falls, MT
Full guide →Great Falls is a city in Central Montana. It is the third most populous city in Montana with approximately 60,000 people. It is the hub for commercial and financial dealings in the center of the state.
City content from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0).
Who Is This Route For?
Weekend Trip
Doable as a same-day drive at 28m. Total distance: 26 miles.
Family Friendly
Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.
Solo Traveler
28m drive, comfortable solo distance.
EV Driver
0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.
First-Time Driver
Mostly highway driving (3%). Straightforward navigation.
Scenic Drive
Mostly surface roads route profile.
Frequently Asked Questions
The longest stretch is about 21.8 miles on First Special Service Force Memorial Highway. The full list of main roads is in the Roads section above.
Yes. At under 2 hours behind the wheel, this works well for families — plan one quick stop if you have younger kids.
Mostly yes along the main roads, but rural stretches through MT can have sparse or no coverage. Before you leave, download offline Google Maps or Apple Maps for the route, and consider downloading music or podcasts instead of streaming. If you depend on data for navigation, keep a paper backup of the turn-by-turn directions.
The main spots that need attention: near the start (5th Avenue South): Navigation decision point; at 0.1 miles (I 15 Business / 5th Street South): Navigation decision point; at 0.5 miles (I 15 Business; US 89; MT 3; MT 200 / 10th Avenue South): Navigation decision point.
Yes. A round trip is manageable in a single day if you plan a break at Cascade, MT before heading back.
How this page is built
Compiled by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, and EIA for fuel prices. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.
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