Kootenai National Forest · Montana

Bear Paw

1.0 mi of trail, end to end · native material surface · trail No. 923 · trail class 3 · typical grade 12-20% · tread 18-24 inches wide · hiking, horse, bike

#923 Bear Paw Trailhead the Forest Service's write-up

This short Cabinet Mountains Wilderness trail leads from the end of FSR 1022 to Goat Ridge Trail #921. From this junction, Goat Ridge Trail #921 continues up Goat Ridge to the junction with Wanless Lake Trail #924, and in the opposite direction Goat Ridge Trail #921 leads out to Green Mountain.

The trail crosses McKay Creek at the trailhead. This crossing can be challenging during high runoff.

Bear Paw Trail #923

Restrictions <ul><li>No motorized vehicles.&nbsp;</li><li>Mountain biking: allowed on the entire length of Bear Paw Trail #923.</li><li>Cabinet Mountains Wilderness has limits&nbsp;on the number of persons and stock when traveling in parties. Included is a list of all &nbsp;<a href="http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5413129.pdf">prohibited acts</a>. You can learn more about wilderness by visiting <a href="http://www.wilderness.net/">Wilderness.net</a></li><li>Properly possess and store all food, refuse, and other attractants pursuant to Kootenai National Forest <a href="http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd534160.pdf">Food Storage Order </a>(CFR 261.58 (cc)).</li><li>Please practice Pack-in-Pack-out and Leave-No-Trace ethics.</li></ul>

This trailhead on fs.usda.gov

Every trail in Kootenai National Forest

All 465 trails in Kootenai 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.