The U.S. Forest Service offer a range of rustic and reasonably priced accommodations for rent if you want to spend one or more nights in a Montana mountain cabin. These cabins were originally used by forest rangers, firefighters, trail workers, miners, sheep herders and fire lookouts. You can drive, hike, bike, ski or snowmobile to one of 107 rentals available across the state.
Reserve cabins and lookouts online at recreation.gov. Search for specific cabins, or browse cabins across the state or near a specific city. Pay attention to the list of amenities so you know what to take with you and what to expect when you get there. Creature comforts such as running water, electricity and indoor bathrooms are not always included.
Live the life of a Montana fire lookout for up to five nights at a stretch. Pack in food, water and bedding to this spartan structure, perched atop Garnet Mountain south of Bozeman. Take in panoramic views of the surrounding Gallatin Mountain range. Hike or ride your ATV a steep four miles from the trailhead during the summer; and snowshoe, ski or snowmobile up to 10 snowy miles in the winter. The cabin sleeps four.
Use this comparatively luxurious cabin as a base camp for hiking and hunting during the early summer, fall and winter. This 1924 vintage cabin, located in the Fleecer Mountains south of Butte, still houses Forest Service crews during peak summer months. Fleecer Station boasts electricity, an indoor toilet, cold running water, heat and a propane cooking stove. The cabin's two bedrooms accommodate five people, while the nearby corral and pasture take care of their equine companions. The Continental Divide National Scenic Trail is just a mile away, and there are miles of trail open to motorcycles and ATVs.
This is another "luxury" Forest Service cabin, which accommodates six in style with electricity, showers, indoor toilet, heat, refrigerator and potable water. After checking out the fantastic hiking into the mountains and along the Stillwater River, you may decide that the five-night limit is too short for this superbly located cabin. Drive right up to this cabin, which is available during summer months only. Use a four-wheel-drive vehicle during wet weather, as the road is slick.
Climbing the four flights of stairs to the cabin atop the Mission Lookout is not for the faint of heart. Revel in the experience of seeing the world from the vantage point used for spotting forest fires since 1959, and soak up 360-degree views of two wilderness areas and Swan Lake in the valley below. Drive to this outpost year-round. Should you tire of the vistas, head down the hill to fish on Swan Lake, pick huckleberries in the fall or catch dinner in nearby Seeley Lake.
Bring your friends to this two-room cabin, which sleeps up to eight people in bunk beds--just like summer camp. Fish in the nearby lakes, and cook your catch on the outdoor grill or the massive propane cook stove inside the cabin. Drive to the door during the summer months, and when the snow flies, ski, showshoe or snowmobile the last four miles into the cabin. Bring horses, ATVs, mountain bikes or hiking boots. After a long day outdoors, drive 17 miles to White Sulfur Springs and soak in its namesake hot mineral waters.
