Custer Gallatin National Forest · Montana

Watkins Creek

7.8 mi of trail, end to end · Watkins Creek Trailhead: 10 mi out and back in the Service's write-up · native material surface · trail No. 215 · trail class 3 · typical grade 12-20% · tread 18-24 inches wide · hiking, horse, bike

Trailhead Watkins Creek Trailhead Drive there

Watkins Creek Trailhead 10 mi out and back · the Forest Service's write-up

Watkins Creek Trailhead starts off with Trail #215, it is a trailhead that connects to three trail opportunities including:

Trail #215 to #209 - Coffin Lake - A roundtrip 10 mile out and back hike - Coffin Lake gains 1800 feet elevation beginning in an open meadow and gain elevation to the alpine lake.

Trail #215 continues on and connects to the Continental Divide Trail

A third choice is #215 to trail #209 which then connects to trail #216, West Fork of Watkins Creek leading to Sheep Lake. Sheep Lake can also be accessed through Trail #218 off Hwy 87.

Refer to Forest Map and Motor Vehicle Use Map for foot and bicycle use in the area.

This trailhead on fs.usda.gov

Every trail in Custer Gallatin National Forest

All 817 trails in Custer Gallatin National ForestFind a trailForest on fs.usda.gov

About this trail's facts

The lines are the US Forest Service's National Forest System trails layer (public domain), read 2026-10-16 and simplified for the map; the length is the line's, end to end, and the class, surface, grade and tread width are the forest's own entries where it publishes them - a forest that publishes the centreline alone has none. The trailheads and the points along the way are the Service's recreation points, and the write-ups its own recarea text, unedited. Heights come from USGS 3DEP through Terrain Tiles on AWS (Mapzen/Tilezen), read along each line and rounded; a short trail on steep ground can be off by a few tens of feet. Closures change: check the forest's own site before you go.