The mountain range spans an area of 2,590 square miles (6,708km2) and its two highest peaks are the 7,352-foot (2,241m)Cherry Peak and the 6,837-foot (2,084m)Patricks Knob.[1]
Several decent-sized roadless areas exist in the Montana portion of the Coeur d'Alenes. Around 43,000 acres (17,000ha) of roadless country centered on 5,980-foot (1,823m) Mount Bushnell, south of Thompson Falls, provides good habitat for deer, elk, and mountain lion.[2] This area is/was densely forested with lodgepole pine generated from the Great Fire of 1910.[2] Thirty miles (48km) of trails provide good hiking opportunities in this roadless area.[2] Talus slopes, grassy parks in the highest reaches, and boggy creek bottoms characterize the landscape here in addition to the forests.[2] Lush riparian areas are home to the Coeur d'Alene salamander and tailed frog.[3]
Just east of the Mount Bushnell area are approximately 40,000 acres (16,000ha) of roadless land centered on Cherry Peak, highest in the Coeur d'Alenes. Vertical relief exceeds 4,500 feet (1,372m) in less than two miles (3.2km) from the Clark Fork River to this area's highest peaks.[2] Several tiny alpine lakes are hidden in cirque basins on Eddy Mountain.[2]Subalpine fir and devil's club are commonly found.[2]
Another 18,000 acres (7,300ha) are roadless around Patrick's Knob. This area contains thick forests of Douglas-fir and larch in the west and scattered trees in the east; a large and commonly seen herd of bighorn sheep winters here.[2] An old bootlegger's cabin is located on Fourteen Mile Creek.[2]
The Bitterroot Range is a mountain range and a subrange of the Rocky Mountains that runs along the border of Montana and Idaho in the northwestern United States. The range spans an area of 24,223 square miles (62,740 km2) and is named after the bitterroot, a small pink flower that is the state flower of Montana.
The Henry M. Jackson Wilderness is a 103,297-acre (41,803 ha) designated wilderness area in the state of Washington, United States. The area lies adjacent to the southwest corner of the Glacier Peak Wilderness, northwest of Stevens Pass on U.S. Highway 2 and northeast of the town of Skykomish, Washington. Wild Sky Wilderness is located immediately southwest of the Henry M. Jackson Wilderness. While the wilderness straddles the Cascade Mountain Range, most of it is in the westside ecotype. The wilderness lies in parts of Snoqualmie, Mount Baker, and Wenatchee national forests.
The Idaho Panhandle National Forests are a jointly administered set of three national forests located mostly in the U.S. state of Idaho. In 1973, major portions of the Kaniksu, Coeur d'Alene, and St. Joe National Forests were combined to be administratively managed as the Idaho Panhandle National Forests (IPNF). The IPNF consists of more than 2.5 million acres (10,000 km2) of public lands in the panhandle of north Idaho, with small areas extending into eastern Washington (4.7%) and western Montana (1.2%). The northernmost portion of the IPNF share a boundary with Canada. The Forest Supervisor's office is located in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho with district office's in Bonners Ferry, Sandpoint, Priest River, Fernan and Smelterville, and St. Maries and Avery.
Norse Peak Wilderness is a 52,315-acre (21,171 ha) designated wilderness area located in central Washington in the United States. It protects the portion of the Cascade Range north of Chinook Pass, south of Naches Pass, and east of Mount Rainier National Park. It is bordered by the William O. Douglas Wilderness to the south. The wilderness is named for a prominent peak which overlooks Crystal Mountain Ski Area. Roughly triangular, it is about 10 miles (16 km) across and contains no roads.
The Elkhorn Mountains are a mountain range in southwestern Montana, part of the Rocky Mountains and are roughly 300,000 acres (1200 km²) in size. It is an inactive volcanic mountain range with the highest point being Crow Peak at 9,414 ft (2,869 m), right next to Elkhorn Peak, 9,381 ft (2,859 m). The range is surrounded by the cities of Helena, Montana City, Townsend, Whitehall, and Boulder and is part of the Helena National Forest in Montana's Jefferson County.
Aldo Leopold Wilderness, along with Gila Wilderness and Blue Range Wilderness, is part of New Mexico's Gila National Forest. It became part of the National Wilderness Preservation System in 1980 by an act of the United States Congress and has a total of 202,016 acres (81,753 ha). The wilderness area lies along the crest of the Black Range.
The Sapphire Mountains are a range of mountains located in southwestern Montana in the northwestern United States. From a point near the Clark Fork River and the city of Missoula, they run in a southerly direction for a distance of approximately 60 miles (100 km), making up much of the border between Ravalli County and Granite County. To the west is the Bitterroot Valley, and to the east is Rock Creek. The southern end of the range meets the larger Anaconda Range at West Pintler Peak.
The Bull of the Woods Wilderness is a wilderness area located in the Mount Hood National Forest in the northwestern Cascades of Oregon, United States. It was created in 1984 and consists of 37,607 acres (15,219 ha) including prime low-elevation old-growth forest, about a dozen lakes of at least 1-acre (4,000 m2) and many large creeks and streams. Adjacent areas, including Opal Creek Wilderness to the west, create a pristine area of nearly 84 square miles (218 km2). There are seven trails that access the wilderness area with an additional seven trails within the protection boundaries themselves. Combined the system provides 75 miles (121 km) of challenging terrain for both pedestrian and equestrian recreation. The name of the peak and thus the wilderness area comes from logging jargon in which the "bull of the woods" was the most experienced logging foreman in an operation.
The Pioneer Mountains cover 2,000 square miles (5,200 km2) in Beaverhead County in southwestern Montana, USA.
The Little Belt Mountains are a section of the Rocky Mountains in the U.S. state of Montana. Situated mainly in the Lewis and Clark National Forest, the mountains are used for logging and recreation for the residents of Great Falls, Montana. Showdown is a ski area located within the mountains located off US Highway 89 which splits the mountains in half connecting White Sulphur Springs and Belt, MT. The highest point in the Little Belt Range is Big Baldy Mountain at 9,467 feet (2,886 m).
The Big Snowy Mountains are a small mountain range south of Lewistown in Fergus County, Montana. Considerably east of and isolated from the main crest of the Northern Rockies, they are one of the few points of significant elevation in the immediate area and are considered one of Montana's island ranges. The range's highest elevation is 8,681 feet (2,646 m). The smaller Little Snowy Mountains are a contiguous range immediately to the east.
The Castle Mountains, highest point Elk Peak, el. 8,589 feet (2,618 m), are an island range east of White Sulphur Springs in Meagher County, Montana, United States. About 30,000 acres of the Castles were roadless as of 1995. The western portion of the Castles are moist, while the eastside is dry, porous limestone hills. The range gets its name from "castle turrets", 50-foot high igneous rock spires on the western slopes. The range was the focus of mining activity in the previous century; crumbling remains of old miners' cabins and diggings are present throughout the area. The landscape is characterized by a central cluster of peaks over 8,000 feet and extensive grassy parks surrounded by lodgepole pine and limber pine. The Castles are lightly used by recreationists except for hunters in the fall. On the peak of Castle Mountain itself is a logbook for the few who reach the top. There is no trail that leads to the peak.
The Garnet Range, highest point Old Baldy Mountain, elevation 7,511 feet (2,289 m), is a mountain range northeast of Drummond, Montana in Powell County, Montana.
The Gravelly Range, highest peak Black Butte, el. 10,542 feet (3,213 m), is a mountain range southwest of Cameron, Montana in Madison County, Montana.
The Henrys Lake Mountains, highest point Sheep Point, el. 10,609 feet (3,234 m), are a small mountain range northwest of West Yellowstone, Montana, in Madison County, Montana. These mountains are also referred to as the Lionhead Mountains, and straddle the Continental Divide along the Idaho-Montana border. On the northwest corner of these mountains is Quake Lake, created when the 1959 Hebgen Lake earthquake caused a massive landslide and dammed the Madison River. Nine subalpine lakes sit in high cirques in the higher reaches, with several peaks topping 10,000'. Coffin Lake is the largest and most popular, on the Montana side. About 32,000 acres are roadless in the Montana portion, with an unknown amount in Idaho. Dense forests, pristine streams, rolling tundra, and grassy parks provide year-round habitat for grizzly bears, elk, and bighorn sheep. Rocks and soils are inherently unstable, a factor in the landslide that caused much loss of life in 1959. The instability exists because the range is basically limestone blocks sitting on top of shale and Yellowstone volcanic rocks.
The Highland Mountains, highest point Table Mountain, el. 10,223 feet (3,116 m), are a small mountain range southwest of Whitehall, Montana in Silver Bow and Madison County, Montana.
The John Long Mountains, el. 7,923 feet (2,415 m), is a small mountain range northwest of Philipsburg, Montana in Granite County, Montana. The Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest and Lolo National Forest manage these mountains. A sizable roadless area of about 65,000 acres existed, as of 1990, in the John Long Mountains, centered on Silver King Mountain in the southern part of the range. It's unknown whether and to what extent this area's size has been reduced by logging. Lightly used trails traverse whitebark pine forests on the higher ridges, and forests of lodgepole pine, Douglas-fir, and heavy downfall on the eastern slopes. The western slopes have groves of douglas-fir amidst extensive grassy parks. Silver King Mountain is 7,581'.
The Tendoy Mountains are a small mountain range northwest of Lima in Beaverhead County in the U.S. state of Montana. The mountains are a subrange of the Beaverhead Mountains, part of the Bitterroot Range. The highest point in the range is Dixon Mountain at 9,674 feet (2,949 m). The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and US Forest Service manage the range, and most of these remote mountains are roadless, with the largest contiguous area about 68,000 acres in size.
The Ruby Range is a mountain range in Madison and Beaverhead counties Montana. The range lies east of Dillon and southwest of Sheridan. The highest point, Ruby Peak with an elevation of 9,391 feet (2,862 m), lies in the northeast portion of the range. Gordon Peak with an elevation of 8,478 ft (2,584 m) lies in the southwest part of the range to the southeast of Dillon. The range is oriented NE–SW with a length of about 42.7 kilometres (26.5 mi). The Beaverhead River lies to the northwest of the range. Ruby River runs along the southeast and east flanks of the range with Ruby Reservoir on the southeast flank. Blacktail Deer Creek drains the southwest portion of the range and the Blacktail Mountains lie to the southwest. The Tobacco Root Mountains and the Greenhorn Range lie to the northeast and east respectively.
The Rattlesnake Mountains are a prominent mountain range located just 4 miles north of Missoula, Montana, USA. The highest point in the range is McLeod Peak,. Much of the range is protected in the Rattlesnake Wilderness and Rattlesnake National Recreation Area on the Lolo National Forest. An additional 36,000 acres (15,000 ha) of the range are protected on the Flathead Indian Reservation as the South Fork Tribal Primitive Area; this area is off-limits to non-tribal members. Including the Tribal Primitive Area, then, about 100,000 acres (40,000 ha) of the Rattlesnakes are roadless.
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