USFS · Wyoming

Bighorn National Forest

The Bighorn National Forest is a U.S. National Forest located in northern Wyoming, United States and consists of over 1.1 million acres (4,500 km2). Created as a US Forest Reserve in 1897, it is one of the oldest government-protected forest lands in the U.S. The forest is well east of the continental divide and extends from the Montana border for a distance of 80 miles (130 km) along the spine of the Bighorn Mountains, an outlying mountain range separated from the rest of the Rocky Mountains by Bighorn Basin. Elevations range from 5,000 feet (1,500 m) along the sagebrush and grass-covered lowlands at the foot of the mountains, to 13,189 feet (4,020 m) on top of Cloud Peak, the highest point in the Bighorn Mountains. Around 99% of the land is above 1,500 metres (4,900 ft). The forest is named after the Bighorn River, which is partially fed by streams found in the forest. Streams in the range are fed primarily by snowmelt and snowmelt mixed with driving rainfall.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Forest1.1 million acresUSFSWY27 campgrounds within 10 mi106 Forest Service sites222 trails
Official page at U.S. Forest Service ↗
1 fire
active
Border · 35 mi from the center · 100 acres
Interagency incident data as of 2026-11-01
Incident details ↓

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Forest
Managed byU.S. Forest Service
StateWyoming
Size1.1 million acres
Forest Service code0202, region 02
Center point44.55° N, 107.36° W
Night skyAbout as dark as the ground gets (Black Marble reading 17)

Boundary map

1 outline

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 Bighorn National Forest10°20°30°40°50°60°January: 1.42 inches of precipitationFebruary: 1.67 inches of precipitationMarch: 2.08 inches of precipitationApril: 2.79 inches of precipitationMay: 3.50 inches of precipitationJune: 2.41 inches of precipitationJuly: 1.57 inches of precipitationAugust: 1.20 inches of precipitationSeptember: 2.02 inches of precipitationOctober: 2.30 inches of precipitationNovember: 1.62 inches of precipitationDecember: 1.54 inches of precipitationJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 18.9°F averageFebruary: 18.1°F averageMarch: 23.8°F averageApril: 29.4°F averageMay: 38.9°F averageJune: 48.4°F averageJuly: 56.4°F averageAugust: 55.4°F averageSeptember: 46.9°F averageOctober: 34.6°F averageNovember: 25.2°F averageDecember: 18.4°F average0 in1 in2 in3 in4 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Burgess Junction, 18 miles from the center point at 8,060 feet, station USC00481220 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 24 inches a year. The station sits about 2,400 feet lower than the center point, so temperatures on the ground run cooler.

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 →

26 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary and 1 more is within ten miles of it. Nearest first. Distances are from the campground point to the boundary edge, from the Campsite Atlas index.

FS · Inside
Bald Mountain Campground
Reservable15 sites
FS · Inside
Boulder Park Campground
Reservable32 sites
FS · Inside
Circle Park Campground
Reservable10 sites
FS · Inside
Dead Swede
Reservable21 sites
FS · Inside
Doyle Creek Campground
Reservable19 sites
FS · Inside
Hettinger Group Area
Reservable1 site
FS · Inside
Hunter Campground
Reservable9 sites
FS · Inside
Island Park Campground
Reservable10 sites
Show 4 more

15 more within ten miles are not listed here.

Trailheads and sites

Forest Service directory · 106

The Forest Service lists 106 recreation sites in this forest, among them 27 campgrounds, 26 interpretive sites, 18 trailheads, 9 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; 46 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 222 named trails in this forest, 714 miles in all. The 10 longest are listed here.

TrailMiles
Solitude Loop ↗55.2
Bucking Mule Falls ↗17.2
Little Horn ↗16.5
Story Penrose ↗12
Elkhorn ↗11.4
Walker Prairie ↗11.2
Edelman ↗10.6
Shell Bench ↗10.6
Dry Fork Ridge ↗10.3
Tongue River Canyon ↗10.2

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 222 trails in Bighorn National Forest on Trailhead Atlas ↗

Fire nearby

Within 50 miles · as of 2026-11-01
  • Wildfire
    Border

    35 mi from the center point · 100 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 Park System units within 30 miles · Park Atlas
National Recreation Area · 13 mi
Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area
National Register listings within 15 miles · 40 in all · Register Atlas

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

Guidebooks for Wyoming

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

  • Hiking Wyoming's Wind River Range
    Ben Adkison, 2023
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Hiking Wyoming's Bighorn Mountains
    Ken (Naturalist) Keffer, 2017
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Hiking Grand Teton National Park
    Bill Schneider, 2018
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Top Trails: Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks
    Andrew Dean Nystrom, 2017
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Best Easy Day Hikes Jackson Hole
    Dina Mishev, 2017
    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 Bighorn National Forest?

1.1 million acres.

Source: Forest Service boundary data

Who manages Bighorn National Forest?

The U.S. Forest Service.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

What state is Bighorn National Forest in?

Wyoming.

Source: How states are assigned

Can I camp at Bighorn 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 Bighorn National Forest?

A point inside the boundary is at 44.545° N, 107.363° W. Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area is 13 miles away. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

Is there a fire near Bighorn National Forest right now?

1 active incident within 50 miles as of 2026-11-01, the nearest Border at 35 miles. Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge.

Source: Fire nearby

Which national parks are near Bighorn National Forest?

Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area (13 mi). Park Atlas has fees, hours and alerts for each.

Source: Nearby on the other atlases

Are there historic places near Bighorn National Forest?

The National Register has 40 listings within 15 miles, including Saban, James T., Lookout and Schunk Lodge.

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: Bighorn 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.