Hiking the St. Regis River Trail, LoLo National Forest, Montana!

We’ve driven by St. Regis, Montana more than a dozen times in our travels over the years and each and every time we say “we need to stop there someday and explore”. It only made sense that our first couple of nights out of our home state of Washington landed us at a picturesque RV park in St. Regis! First off, we can’t say enough about the Nugget RV Park. Fantastic people managing the place, quiet, breathtaking scenery, and the pool quickly became our favorite place to cool off after spending the day hiking!

Up early to beat the heat, we chose the Saint Regis River Trail as it afforded the most bang for its buck and it sure did not disappoint! It’s listed as an 18.9 mile out and back excursion. Our goal was to navigate the trail for a quick 6 mile or so out and back with the caveat to go further if we were truly enjoying the trail. Have a look at the elevation gain on Alltrails - you’ll quickly see that the steep incline at the beginning and spike at the end winding down to the river below affords a few deep breathing exercises. We certainly earned our huckleberry milkshake at the St. Regis Travel Center!

Once the trail climbs away from the river you are afforded sneak peeks of the water from high above. At the 3ish mile mark you’ll find a sign warning mountain bikers of a steep descent which takes you down to the river once again. The exertion is worth every penny! We had the entire hike to ourselves (aside from the many woodpeckers and birds that followed along), and stopped at the rivers edge for a quick snack. If you find yourself in the St. Regis area - we highly recommend!