USFS National Forest System Trails · Flathead National Forest · Montana · Updated June 2026
Wire Trail (USFS trail 78) is a 6.9 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 Wire Trail?
| Use | Status | Season on record |
|---|---|---|
| Mountain bike | Accepted but discouraged | — |
| Class 1 e-bike (pedal-assist, 20 mph) | Allowed | year-round |
| Class 2 e-bike (throttle, 20 mph) | Allowed | year-round |
| Class 3 e-bike (pedal-assist, 28 mph) | Allowed | year-round |
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
In Flathead National Forest, Montana, Wire Trail (USFS trail 78) covers 6.9 mi of National Forest System trail. This profile summarizes what the official US Forest Service trail record says about riding it: how long the trail is, what it's built on, how steep the route grades out, and which forms of bike use the agency has designated. The tread is mapped as native material. Its grade-based difficulty is Advanced (grade band 12-20%) — a steep 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 — 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 4 on the agency's 1-to-5 development scale, where 1 is the most primitive, minimally maintained tread and 5 is the most developed. Treat this as a planning reference rather than a live conditions report, and verify any time-sensitive closure or order with the ranger district that manages Flathead National Forest.
Frequently asked questions
- Can you mountain bike on Wire Trail?
- Mountain-bike use on Wire Trail 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 Wire Trail?
- Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 e-bikes are designated on Wire Trail in the USFS data.
- How long is Wire Trail?
- Wire Trail measures about 6.9 mi in total, summed across its mapped National Forest System segments.
- What is the surface of Wire Trail?
- USFS data records the tread surface of Wire Trail as native material.
- How difficult is Wire Trail?
- Its grade-based difficulty is Advanced (grade band 12-20%), 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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