Lolo Pass OHV Trails
The Lolo Pass OHV trail network in the Lolo National Forest covers the designated motorized routes along the Lolo Creek drainage and the surrounding Bitterroot Range terrain west of Missoula, Montana, the historic route that Meriwether Lewis and William Clark used to cross the Bitterroot Mountains in September 1805, and that Nez Perce Chief Joseph's band traveled during the 1877 retreat. The trail network runs on existing forest roads and designated motorized single-track through the dense Northern Rockies conifer forest that gives western Montana its distinctive riding character: western larch, Douglas fir, Engelmann spruce, and ponderosa pine on the lower and mid-elevation slopes; the Bitterroot Range's granitic bedrock producing the rocky, rooted trail surfaces characteristic of the Idaho-Montana border country; and the dramatic topographic relief of the Bitterroot divide where the ridges climb from 4,000 feet at Lolo to over 7,000 feet at the Idaho state line along the divide. ATVs, UTVs, and dirt bikes are permitted on designated National Forest motorized routes; Montana OHV registration is required. The Lolo Ranger District (406-329-3750) manages the district's motor vehicle use map and posts seasonal road gate closures; the Lolo Hot Springs area and Powell Ranger Station on the Idaho side serve as regional anchors for trail planning. Dispersed camping under standard National Forest 14-night limits. The combination of historical significance, dramatic terrain, and working national forest management makes Lolo one of Montana's defining OHV riding experiences.