Bob Marshall Wilderness. Located in the Flathead, Lolo and Lewis & Clark National Forests in Montana.

The 1,009,356 acre Bob Marshall Wilderness is located in Northwestern Montana approximately 75 miles west of Great Falls. The “Bob” straddles the Continental Divide with elevations ranging from 4,000 feet along the valley floors to more than 9,000 feet at mountain summits. The Wilderness includes the headwaters of the Flathead River to the west and the Sun River to the east.

Access to the “Bob” is by trails originated from forest roads located in most of the major drainages leading into the area. Major roads encircle the “Bob” including U.S. Highway 2 to the north, U.S. Highway 89 and 287 to the east and Montana Highways 200 and 83 to the south and west.

The Wilderness is noted for its excellent hunting, fishing, scenery, and geology. Its vast beauty is highlighted by a huge escarpment known as the “Chinese Wall”. The wall averages 1,000 feet in height and extends 22 miles along the Continental Divide. Topography ranges from rugged, precipitous ridgetops to gently sloping alpine meadows and forested river bottoms. Wildlife includes wolverine, deer, elk, moose, grizzly bear, black bear, mountain goat, mountain sheep and mountain lion.

The United States Congress designated the Bob Marshall Wilderness in 1964 and it now has a total of 1,009,352 acres. The entire wilderness is in Montana. It is managed by the Spotted Bear and Rocky Mountain Ranger Districts. The Bob Marshall Wilderness was named after early forester, wilderness preservation pioneer, and Wilderness Society cofounder Bob Marshall. This region was set aside as the South Fork, Pentagon, and Sun River Primitive Areas in 1941, and designated as wilderness in 1964.

Here is one of the most completely preserved mountain ecosystems in the world, the kind of wilderness most people can only imagine: rugged peaks, alpine lakes, cascading waterfalls, grassy meadows embellished with shimmering streams, a towering coniferous forest, and big river valleys.