Montana · Trail 142

Solomon Ridge

Solomon Ridge Trail is a 9.6 miles trail in Lolo National Forest, Montana. The Forest Service rates it trail class 2, moderately developed. It is open to hiking, horse and pack stock and mountain biking. It enters Welcome Creek Wilderness.

9.6 miles Class 2 Hiking Horse and pack stock Mountain biking Welcome Creek Wilderness

Trail conditions, closures and hazards are not tracked here. The Lolo National Forest official page carries current alerts and closure orders.

4fires
active

Black Bear · 33 mi from the trail midpoint · 2,126 acres

3 more within 50 miles

Incident details ↓

Map

One end Other endLine simplified to about 100 metres. Basemap from the USGS National Map.

One end	46.6499, -113.6537 · Directions ↗
Other end	46.6298, -113.8067 · Directions ↗

The ends are the two ends of the longest connected chain of segments. The record does not say which is the usual start. The trail is recorded as 2 segments.

The trail

Length	9.6 miles
Trail class	2, moderately developed
Type	land trail
Surface	native material
Typical grade	12-20 percent
Typical tread width	18-24 inches
Motor vehicles	Closed to all motorized use year-round
Accessibility	Not evaluated
Trail numbers	142
Forest	Lolo National Forest (unit 0116)
States	Montana
Detail published	management level, with uses

Values are the set across all segments. Class 1 is minimally developed and class 5 is fully developed. Grade and width are the forest's typical values, not measured extremes.

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →

The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Potomac, 18 miles from the trail midpoint at 3,690 feet, station USC00246685 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 15 inches a year. The dotted line is average snowfall, about 52 inches a year on the same inches scale. The station sits about 3,600 feet lower than the trail midpoint, so temperatures on the ground run cooler.

Allowed uses

Hiking	Allowed year-round
Horse and pack stock	Allowed year-round
Mountain biking	Allowed year-round

A use is listed when the Forest Service records it as managed, accepted or discouraged on any segment. Discouraged still means legal. Uses marked restricted are left out. Where the forest publishes a Motor Vehicle Use Map, that map governs motorized use.

Wilderness

Welcome Creek Wilderness WildernessFS · about 65% of the line is insideWilderness Connect ↗

Inside a designated wilderness, bicycles and motor vehicles are prohibited by law regardless of the trail record, and permits or group limits may apply.

Trailheads

The Forest Service recreation layer records no trailhead within a third of a mile of this trail's line. Many trails start from a road pullout or another trail with no trailhead record. The forest's recreation pages list the trailheads it does publish.

Camping nearby

Campsite Atlas · 4.1 mi

Norton Campground

First-comeFS

Forest Service · 4.9 mi

Dalles Campground

Opens May 9

Campsite Atlas cards carry site counts and booking links from Recreation.gov. Forest Service cards come from the recreation layer and link the agency page.

Fire nearby

Wildfire
Black Bear
33 mi from the trail midpoint · 2,126 acres · 80% contained
Wildfire
Nature Grove
35 mi from the trail midpoint · 1,422 acres · 0% contained
Wildfire
Bear Gulch
36 mi from the trail midpoint · 10 acres
Wildfire
Moose
39 mi from the trail midpoint · 6,005 acres · 15% contained

Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge. Closure orders are on the forest's official page.

Reference

Questions people ask

How long is the Solomon Ridge Trail?

9.6 miles, the sum of the 2 segments the Forest Service records under this name in Lolo National Forest.

Source: Forest Service trail layer

What is allowed on the Solomon Ridge Trail?

hiking, horse and pack stock and mountain biking. The trail is closed to motor vehicles year-round.

Source: Forest Service trail layer

Where does the Solomon Ridge Trail start?

The line begins at 46.6499, -113.6537 and ends at 46.6298, -113.8067. No Forest Service trailhead is recorded within a third of a mile of it. The record does not say which end is the usual start.

Source: Forest Service trail layer

Is the Solomon Ridge Trail in a wilderness area?

Yes. It enters Welcome Creek Wilderness. Wilderness rules ban bicycles and motor vehicles and often limit group size.

Source: Welcome Creek Wilderness Wilderness

Where can I camp near the Solomon Ridge Trail?

Norton Campground (4.1 mi) and Dalles Campground (4.9 mi) are within five miles of the trail. Site counts and booking links are on Campsite Atlas.

Source: Campsite Atlas

How developed is the Solomon Ridge Trail?

Trail class 2, which the Forest Service describes as moderately developed. Class 1 is a minimal, unimproved route and class 5 is fully developed, often paved.

Source: Forest Service trail layer

How steep and how wide is the Solomon Ridge Trail?

The typical grade is 12-20 percent. The typical tread is 18-24 inches wide.

Source: Forest Service trail layer

Who manages the Solomon Ridge Trail?

Lolo National Forest, Forest Service unit 0116. The trail is in Montana.

Source: Lolo National Forest official page

Is there a fire near the Solomon Ridge Trail?

4 active incidents within 50 miles of the trail midpoint as of 2026-09-18, the nearest Black Bear at 33 miles. Check the forest's closure orders before you go.

Source: Fire nearby

Source

This page is built from 2 segments named SOLOMON RIDGE in the Forest Service TrailNFS_Publish layer, administrative unit 0116. Wilderness overlap is tested against the National Wilderness Preservation System layer from Wilderness Connect. Trailheads and Forest Service campgrounds come from the Forest Service Recreation Opportunities layer. Data refreshed September 17, 2026. The methodology page explains how segments become trails.