USFS · Montana

Lolo National Forest

Lolo National Forest is a national forest located in western Montana, United States with the western boundary being the state of Idaho. The forest spans 2 million acres (8,000 km2) and includes four wilderness areas; the Scapegoat and the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness are partially within the forest while the Welcome Creek and Rattlesnake Wildernesses are solely in Lolo National Forest. The forest was created in 1906 from 4 different previous forests which were combined for administrative purposes. Lolo National Forest is west of the Continental divide and has a biodiversity influenced by both continental and maritime weather creating a transitional forest that has a high number of different plant and tree species.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Forest2.6 million acresUSFSMT39 campgrounds within 10 mi70 Forest Service sites552 trails
Official page at U.S. Forest Service ↗
4 fires
active
Rx D6 Horseshoe West Unit 23 (prescribed burn) · 10 mi from the center · 115 acres
3 more within 50 miles
Incident details ↓

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Forest
Managed byU.S. Forest Service
StateMontana
Size2.6 million acres
Forest Service code0116, region 01
Center point47.15° N, 113.16° W
Night skyAbout as dark as the ground gets (Black Marble reading 10)

Boundary map

5 outlines

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees Federal campground Forest Service recreation site

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near Lolo National Forest20°30°40°50°60°70°January: 2.63 inches of precipitation, 30.4 inches of snowFebruary: 1.92 inches of precipitation, 18.5 inches of snowMarch: 1.44 inches of precipitation, 15.2 inches of snowApril: 1.37 inches of precipitation, 4.5 inches of snowMay: 1.88 inches of precipitation, 0.7 inches of snowJune: 2.31 inches of precipitation, 0.4 inches of snowJuly: 1.07 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowAugust: 0.96 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowSeptember: 1.19 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowOctober: 1.96 inches of precipitation, 2.3 inches of snowNovember: 2.52 inches of precipitation, 18.0 inches of snowDecember: 2.35 inches of precipitation, 28.9 inches of snowJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 22.0°F averageFebruary: 24.7°F averageMarch: 32.5°F averageApril: 40.2°F averageMay: 49.4°F averageJune: 56.4°F averageJuly: 63.7°F averageAugust: 62.8°F averageSeptember: 54.6°F averageOctober: 42.4°F averageNovember: 30.5°F averageDecember: 21.8°F average0 in10 in20 in30 in40 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Seeley Lake RS, 18 miles from the center point at 4,100 feet, station USC00247448 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 22 inches a year. The dotted line is average snowfall, about 119 inches a year on the same inches scale.

Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.

Where to camp

Campsite Atlas →

23 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary and 16 more are within ten miles of it. Nearest first. Distances are from the campground point to the boundary edge, from the Campsite Atlas index.

FS · Inside
Big Larch Campground
Reservable58 sites
FS · Inside
Big Nelson Campground
First-comeMT
FS · Inside
Bighorn Campground
First-comeMT
FS · Inside
Bitterroot Flat Campground
First-comeMT
FS · Inside
Cabin City Campground
Reservable25 sites
FS · Inside
Cascade Campground
First-come2 sites
FS · Inside
Copper King Campground
First-comeMT
FS · Inside
Fishtrap Lake Campground
First-comeMT
Show 4 more

27 more within ten miles are not listed here.

Trailheads and sites

Forest Service directory · 70

The Forest Service lists 70 recreation sites in this forest, among them 32 campgrounds, 14 cabins, 4 viewing Wildlifes, 4 picnic areas. Each links to its page on fs.usda.gov, which carries the season, fees and current status.

Show all 60

The 60 closest to the center point are listed; 10 more are on the Forest Service site.

Distance is from the center point of the boundary, not from a road or town.

Trails

Every trail on Trailhead Atlas →

The Forest Service trail layer records 552 named trails in this forest, 2,409 miles in all. The 10 longest are listed here.

TrailMiles
CC Divide ↗55.5
Stateline ↗47.4
Rte of the Olympian / Milwauke ↗31.3
McCabe Cr - N Fk Blackfoot ↗28.9
Reservation Divide ↗28.2
Hobnail Tom ↗27.4
Dry Fork ↗25
Gold Creek ↗25
West Morrell-Rice Ridge Loop ↗23.8
Ford Pass / Old Mullan Pass ↗22.4

Lengths and allowed uses come from the Forest Service trail layer by way of Trailhead Atlas. This trail list was copied from Trailhead Atlas on November 1, 2026 and is copied again on each weekly run. Trails in plain text have no page there yet.

All 552 trails in Lolo National Forest on Trailhead Atlas ↗

Fire nearby

Within 50 miles · as of 2026-11-01
  • Prescribed
    Rx D6 Horseshoe West Unit 23

    10 mi from the center point · 115 acres

  • Prescribed
    Rx D6 Horseshoe West Unit 38

    11 mi from the center point · 40 acres

  • Prescribed
    Rx D6 Seeley Creek Ski Trails

    15 mi from the center point · 10 acres

  • Prescribed
    Rx D6 Westside Bypass 117

    17 mi from the center point · 30 acres

Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge, and is measured from the center of a boundary that may be many miles across. Check the agency page for closures.

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Register listings within 15 miles · 174 in all · Register Atlas

Landmarks are listed first, then by distance from the boundary.

Guidebooks for Montana

We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.

  • 100 Classic Hikes: Montana
    Douglas Lorain, 2018
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Day Hiking Glacier National Park and Western Montana
    Aaron Theisen, 2018
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Hiking waterfalls in Montana
    John Kratz, 2017
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Hiking Montana: Bozeman
    Bill Schneider, 2015
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Hiking Glacier and Waterton Lakes National Parks
    Erik Molvar, 2018
    Find at Bookshop.org

Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject heading or by title.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Lolo National Forest?

2.6 million acres.

Source: Forest Service boundary data

Who manages Lolo National Forest?

The U.S. Forest Service.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

What state is Lolo National Forest in?

Montana.

Source: How states are assigned

Can I camp at Lolo National Forest?

Dispersed camping is allowed on most national forest land outside developed sites. Check the forest page for closures. The federal campgrounds within ten miles are listed under Where to camp.

Source: Where to camp

How do I get to Lolo National Forest?

A point inside the boundary is at 47.154° N, 113.155° W. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

Is there a fire near Lolo National Forest right now?

4 active incidents within 50 miles as of 2026-11-01, the nearest Rx D6 Horseshoe West Unit 23 at 10 miles. Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge.

Source: Fire nearby

Are there historic places near Lolo National Forest?

The National Register has 174 listings within 15 miles, including Camp Paxson Boy Scout Camp (24mo77) and Cougar Peak Lookout.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name, acreage and code: the Forest Service Enterprise Data Warehouse.
  • States and territories: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons and coarse outlines of the territories and outlying islands. A place is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area. A boundary that touches no outline is listed under the nearest one.
  • Description: Lolo National Forest on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Trailheads and sites: the Forest Service Recreation Opportunities layer, matched by forest code.
  • Trails: the Trailhead Atlas open-data file of Forest Service trails, matched by forest code.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.