Rattlesnake National Recreation Area

Federal wilderness area beginning 3km from downtown, with trails and swimming holes

The Rattlesnake National Recreation Area and Wilderness lies directly north of Missoula, beginning where the city's streets end. The main trail up the Rattlesnake Creek drainage starts from the parking area at the end of Van Buren Street and immediately enters the Recreation Area, with the designated Wilderness beginning a few kilometres further up. The creek itself is clear and cold — in summer, swimming holes along the lower trail are popular with locals.

The Recreation Area has dozens of kilometres of trail, ranging from the flat, easy lower valley walk to strenuous routes reaching lakes above the treeline. Sawmill-Curry trail loop is a good half-day option. The watershed is also Missoula's municipal water supply, which explains why it remained undeveloped despite being so close to town.

Mountain biking is permitted in parts of the Recreation Area but not the Wilderness. Dogs must be on leash. Bears are present; standard precautions apply.

things to do hike wilderness
A story
The Rattlesnake National Recreation Area and Wilderness is unusual in American wilderness law: it begins roughly 3 kilometres from downtown Missoula, making it one of the nearest federally designated wilderness areas to any city in the United States. Congress created it in 1980 partly in response to lobbying from University of Montana students and faculty who had been using the watershed for recreation for decades. The watershed is also Missoula's municipal water supply, which was the original reason it remained undeveloped.

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