Hiking the Ten Lakes Scenic Area

Scott Wagner - FlatheadTrails.com
May 8, 2010

Ten Lakes Scenic Area, northeast of Eureka, MT in the Fortine Ranger District of Kootenai National Forest, is situated within the northwest portion of the Whitefish range. While it never has been designated an official wilderness area, it is managed as such by the Forest Service. There are a number of trails into and within the Ten Lakes area which provide a wealth of hiking and horse packing opportunities. There are also traditional camping areas at Big and Little Therriault Lakes.

The Ten Lakes area is accessed from US Highway 93 (three miles north of Fortine) by Grave Creek Road (#114). Turn right and follow 14 miles to the junction with Road #319. Keep to the left and continue 14 miles to Road #7085 then on to the end.

Our family hiked the 11 mile Wolverine/Bluebird Loop in mid-August of 2009 (trail numbers 82, 83, 84 and 339). We chose to begin on Trail #83 heading west towards Paradise and Bluebird Lakes from the horse camp near Little Therriault Lake. This loop consists of moderate trails, the most difficult portion being the steep incline if heading towards Green Mountain from Bluebird and Paradise Lakes. The elevation of the loop varies from about 5500 feet at the trailhead near the horse camp at Little Therriault Lake to approximately 7400 feet, so expect cool nights. Being only one to two miles from the Canadian border, the scenery is spectacular. Beautiful peaks interspersed by dense Sub Alpine Fir, Larch and Spruce forests with occasional meadows of wildflowers are pleasing to the eye.

The Bluebird and Wolverine Lakes areas have a number of nice places to set up camp and we camped at both. Both of these Lakes sit at the base of steep rising mountains and cliffs. From our camp on the east end of the upper Wolverine Lake, we watched a herd of Bighorn Sheep grazing on the mountain one morning. We also did an afternoon hike up nearby Poorman Mountain where the foundation remains of an old lookout tower are located. Both lakes as well as the others in the area offer some excellent trout fishing.

The trails on this loop were well defined with wooden foot bridges crossing many of the small creeks. An old cabin used in earlier days by border patrolmen still stands near Wolverine Lakes. This cabin, while not maintained by the Forest Service, is kept up by interested people and is available for use on a first come basis. There are some food hanging structures in the area although as they were not near the places that we chose to set up camp; we hung our food in a tree due to the possibility of bears in the area. The only negative thing about our trip was having to dodge the horse manure on the trail leading to the horse camp.

Below: View to the north from Poorman Mountain.       Above: Upper Wolverine Lake

Further information on the Ten Lakes Scenic Area trails can be obtained from the Fortine Ranger Station at P.O. Box 116, Fortine, MT 59918. Their phone is 406/882-4451.

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