Bear Creek
- 8.6 mi
- round trip
- 1,303 ft
- climb
- 4,996 ft
- high point
- Out and back
- route
- May–Sep
- best months
Is Bear Creek open right now?
Alert in the area
The Forest Service lists an alert for Lolo National Forest.
East Fork Big Creek Road & Trail Closure- Superior Ranger District
Agency alert covering Lolo National Forest · Order 26-003- · USFS · Lolo National Forest
As of · Source: USFS · Lolo National Forest. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.
Bear Creek is a hard hike in the Seeley Lake Ranger District of Lolo National Forest in Montana, managed by the Forest Service. The trail is about 8.6 miles long, with a one-way climb of about 1,300 feet from a low point of roughly 4,500 feet to a high of about 5,000 feet. The route is natural-surface and bikes are allowed. Summer is the most comfortable time to go. Typical averages from a nearby weather station at Lincoln put July and August highs around 81°F with lows in the low 40s, while winter highs stay near freezing. Windy Pass sits just 0.1 mile away, and the Bear Creek/Penney Lake and Mineral Hill hikes are within a mile. Big Nelson Campground is about 2.4 miles off.
- Windy PassHiking0.1 mi
- BEAR CREEK/ PENNEY LAKEHiking0.5 mi
- Mineral HillHiking0.9 mi
- Windy Pass/ Mineral CreekMountain biking1.3 mi
- Windy Pass TrailHiking2 mi
- Outfitter TrailHiking2.1 mi
- Big Nelson Cg ComplexCamping2.4 mi
- East Fork North Fork Blackfoot RiverCanoeing6.9 mi
Source: Roamze catalog (indexable pages within 10 miles, PostGIS distance)
- BEAR CREEK/ PENNEY LAKEHiking · Next door
- Mineral HillHiking · ~2 min drive
- COOPERS LAKEHiking · ~4 min drive
- Outfitter TrailHiking · ~4 min drive
- Windy Pass TrailHiking · ~3 min drive
- Porcupine BasinHiking · ~10 min drive
- Lake Creek Outfitter TieHiking · ~4 min drive
- Lake MountainHiking · ~4 min drive
- East SpreadHiking · ~11 min drive
- COPENHAVER CUTOFFHiking · ~6 min drive
Best time to visit Bear Creek
Best months: May–September. Best months have typical highs of 55–85 °F, lows of 30 °F or warmer (32 °F where the station doesn't record snow), at most one snowy day and no more than 12 wet days.
Jan
32° / 12°
9 wet
Feb
35° / 15°
8 wet
Mar
44° / 22°
9 wet
Apr
53° / 27°
9 wet
May
63° / 33°
11 wet
Jun
71° / 40°
12 wet
Jul
81° / 44°
8 wet
Aug
81° / 42°
7 wet
Sep
70° / 35°
7 wet
Oct
54° / 29°
8 wet
Nov
39° / 20°
8 wet
Dec
30° / 13°
8 wet
Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Lincoln Rs, MT, 16.6 mi away at 4,575 ft. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.
