USFS National Forest System Trails · Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest · Montana · Updated June 2026
Dry Wolf Alternate (USFS trail 401-A) is a 1.6 mi trail in Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest, Montana. Mountain-bike use here is accepted but discouraged in USFS data, with Class 1 e-bikes also designated.
Can I bike Dry Wolf Alternate?
| Use | Status | Season on record |
|---|---|---|
| Mountain bike | Accepted but discouraged | — |
| Class 1 e-bike (pedal-assist, 20 mph) | Allowed | Jan–Oct, December |
| Class 2 e-bike (throttle, 20 mph) | Allowed | Jan–Oct, December |
| Class 3 e-bike (pedal-assist, 28 mph) | Allowed | Jan–Oct, December |
Zooming out: across Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest, 91% of rideable trail miles are open to mountain bikes — a Bike Access Grade of A.
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About this trail
In Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest, Montana, Dry Wolf Alternate (USFS trail 401-A) covers 1.6 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. No grade band is recorded, so a steepness-based difficulty isn't available for this trail. Note that mountain-bike use here is discouraged in USFS records — confirm with the ranger district before riding. On the electric side, Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 e-bikes are also designated (Jan–Oct, December) — 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 Dry Wolf Alternate?
- Mountain-bike use on Dry Wolf Alternate 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 Dry Wolf Alternate?
- Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 e-bikes are designated on Dry Wolf Alternate in the USFS data.
- How long is Dry Wolf Alternate?
- Dry Wolf Alternate measures about 1.6 mi in total, summed across its mapped National Forest System segments.
- What is the surface of Dry Wolf Alternate?
- USFS data records the tread surface of Dry Wolf Alternate as native material.
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 Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest (USFS trail geometry isn't mapped).
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