USFS National Forest System Trails · Flathead National Forest · Montana · Updated June 2026
Waving Bear (USFS trail 6400) is a 2 mi trail in Flathead National Forest, Montana. Mountain-bike use here is accepted but discouraged in USFS data, with Class 1 e-bikes also designated.
Can I bike Waving Bear?
| Use | Status | Season on record |
|---|---|---|
| Mountain bike | Accepted but discouraged | — |
| Class 1 e-bike (pedal-assist, 20 mph) | Allowed | Jun–Nov |
| Class 2 e-bike (throttle, 20 mph) | Allowed | Jun–Nov |
| Class 3 e-bike (pedal-assist, 28 mph) | Allowed | Jun–Nov |
Zooming out: across Flathead National Forest, 27% of rideable trail miles are open to mountain bikes — a Bike Access Grade of C.
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About this trail
Waving Bear (USFS trail 6400) runs 2 mi through Flathead National Forest in Montana. The figures here are pulled from the official US Forest Service trail data for Flathead National Forest, covering the trail's mileage, tread, grade band, and the bike and e-bike uses the agency lists as designated. The tread is mapped as native material. Its grade-based difficulty is Intermediate (grade band 10-12%) — a moderate steepness profile derived from USFS slope data, not a technical mountain-bike rating. For traditional mountain bikes, use is discouraged according to USFS data. On the electric side, Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 e-bikes are also designated (Jun–Nov) — Class 1 being pedal-assist only, Classes 2 and 3 adding a throttle and higher assisted speed. The route is mapped as USFS Trail Class 3 on the agency's 1-to-5 development scale, where 1 is the most primitive, minimally maintained tread and 5 is the most developed. Because conditions, closures, and local orders change between data refreshes, confirm the current status with the managing ranger district before you ride.
Frequently asked questions
- Can you mountain bike on Waving Bear?
- Mountain-bike use on Waving Bear is discouraged in USFS records, though Class 1 e-bike use is designated. Confirm current rules with the managing ranger district.
- Are e-bikes allowed on Waving Bear?
- Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 e-bikes are designated on Waving Bear in the USFS data.
- How long is Waving Bear?
- Waving Bear measures about 2 mi in total, summed across its mapped National Forest System segments.
- What is the surface of Waving Bear?
- USFS data records the tread surface of Waving Bear as native material.
- How difficult is Waving Bear?
- Its grade-based difficulty is Intermediate (grade band 10-12%), derived from USFS slope data. This reflects steepness, not technical mountain-bike difficulty.
How we read this data
Grade-based difficulty above is the USFS grade (route steepness), not a technical mountain-bike rating — a gentle-grade trail can still be rocky or technical, and vice versa. Bike and e-bike status come verbatim from the USFS managed-use fields for this trail; we never infer access we can't cite. See our methodology for how the dataset is built and what each field means.
Where it is
Approximate location of Flathead National Forest (USFS trail geometry isn't mapped).
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