Castle Reef
- 2.0 mi
- round trip
- 340 ft
- climb
- 5,100 ft
- high point
- Out and back
- route
- May–Sep
- best months
Is Castle Reef open right now?
Alert in the area
The Forest Service lists an alert for Rocky Mountain Ranger District.
Camp Creek Fire Trail Closure
Agency alert covering Rocky Mountain Ranger District · Order 01-10- · USFS · Rocky Mountain Ranger District
As of · Source: USFS · Rocky Mountain Ranger District. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.
Castle Reef is a 2-mile out-and-back hike on natural trail surface in the Rocky Mountain Ranger District of Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest in Montana. It gains about 340 feet from its low point of 4,638 feet to a high of 5,100 feet, and the Forest Service manages the surrounding land. The trail is rated easy. It is open year-round, and horses and bikes are allowed. It is not an accessible trail. Summer is the most comfortable time to go. Typical July highs reach about 79°F with lows near 45°F, and the Gibson Dam weather station about 3 miles away, at a similar elevation, records the most settled conditions. Winters are cold, with typical January highs around 36°F. Home Gulch Campground is about 1.4 miles away, and the Red Lake Stock and Wagner Basin hikes are both within 1.6 miles. Mortimer Gulch Campground sits about 3.6 miles off.
Local outfitters
- Choteau Mountain View RV Campground28 mi away
Not on Roamze yet. Their page has how to reach them.
Best time to go · May–Sep
Best time to visit Castle Reef
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
36° / 12°
5 wet
Feb
36° / 12°
6 wet
Mar
42° / 18°
7 wet
Apr
50° / 25°
7 wet
May
59° / 33°
10 wet
Jun
67° / 39°
10 wet
Jul
79° / 45°
7 wet
Aug
78° / 43°
6 wet
Sep
67° / 36°
6 wet
Oct
54° / 29°
6 wet
Nov
42° / 20°
5 wet
Dec
35° / 13°
5 wet
Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Gibson Dam, MT, 3.2 mi away at 4,590 ft. The station sits about 500 ft lower than this place, so expect it a little cooler here. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.
Keep exploring — more trails worth the drive
Photo: Sam Beebe, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)Red Lake Stock
~3 min drive
2.84-mile out-and-back trail to Red Lake in Montana with 1,012 ft gain
Photo: Sam Beebe, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)Wagner Basin
~3 min drive
0.88-mile out-and-back trail to Wagner Basin in Montana with 244 ft of elevation gain.
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Blacktail Creek
~5 min drive
16.61-mile out-and-back trail in Montana with 2,316 ft elevation gain.
Photo: Forest Service - Northern Region, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)North Fork Beaver-Leavitt
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5.38-mile out-and-back trail in Montana with 1,055 ft gain.
Photo: Sam Beebe, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)Beaver-Mortimer Connector
~5 min drive
2.98-mile out-and-back trail in Montana with 274 ft gain.
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Mortimer Gulch
~7 min drive
11.52-mile out-and-back trail in Montana with 1,157 ft elevation gain.
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Mortimer Pass
~8 min drive
3.98-mile out-and-back trail in Montana with 380 ft gain.
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RED LAKE
~3 min drive
1.88-mile out-and-back trail in Montana with 471 ft elevation gain
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North Fork Sun River
~7 min drive
26.69-mile out-and-back trail in Montana with 2,178 ft of elevation gain.
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Blacktail Creek
~12 min drive
3.30-mile out-and-back trail in Montana with 342 ft elevation gain.
