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MONTANA 4x4 TRAIL GUIDE · MT-0055

Ridge Road

BLM Cottonwood Travel Management Area · Carbon County, Montana (nearest town Bridger)
NOT RATEDVerify: no source describes the road surface; no record of AGF driving it
ABOUT 3 MIAGF measurement on BLM's map; approximate, verify
NO ROUTE NUMBERBLM Billings, Oct. 23, 2026
OPEN TO ALL USEAs drawn on the map BLM sent; verify
PRIVATE LAND ON THE CUB CREEK APPROACH: ON BLM'S MAP, CUB CREEK CROSSES A PRIVATE PARCEL ABOUT 0.8 MILE SOUTHEAST OF SILVERTIP ROAD. NO PUBLIC RIGHT-OF-WAY THROUGH IT IS CONFIRMED. Cub Creek's mapped line stops where it enters the parcel (about 45.12722, -108.94784) and resumes where it leaves (about 45.12362, -108.9462), about a quarter mile apart (read by AGF from BLM's map; approximate). Do not drive through it unless BLM Billings confirms public access. Hunt Creek Road is the alternative: on BLM's map it runs on BLM land from the Silvertip junction to Ridge Road's east end, but access and land status are unconfirmed: verify with BLM Billings. BLM's Oct. 14, 2026 right-of-way statement covers Cottonwood Road only, not Cub Creek. THIS IS BLM'S "RIDGE ROAD": A SHORT CONNECTOR BETWEEN CUB CREEK AND HUNT CREEK ROAD, ENTIRELY IN MONTANA. BLM Billings told AGF on Oct. 23, 2026 that Ridge Road is the connector between Cub Creek and Hunt Creek, that those are its beginning and end points, and that it does not have its own route number. BLM's Ridge Road does not match onX's 7.4-mile "Ridge Road #1005" into Wyoming (secondary). This guide does not cover onX's route or anything in Wyoming. Travel designation: on the map BLM sent AGF (titled "Final Route Designations: 10/31/2023"; legend "Alternative A Route Designations"), Ridge Road, Cub Creek and Hunt Creek Road are drawn as open to all use. BLM said no decision was issued on the 2025 Cottonwood travel plan. BLM also said the attached map shows the current routes and what they are open to. Which plan year applies, and any change since: verify with the BLM Billings Field Office (406-896-5013) before you go. Ridge Road itself is drawn on BLM land (verify). Stay on designated routes, and do not stop, camp or turn around on private land. Side roads are not implied open. Official closures, posted signs and private property override this guide. Read Know Before You Go.
NO RECORD OF AGF DRIVING RIDGE ROAD. NOT RATED: NO SOURCE DESCRIBES THE ROAD SURFACE. No record of AGF driving this route (AGF Verified: NO). AGF's GPS archive was not re-checked for this guide. Difficulty, terrain, vehicle fit, season and trip time: verify.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS

Ridge Road, Cub Creek to Hunt Creek Road

This guide covers only BLM's Ridge Road: about 3 miles (AGF measurement on BLM's map; approximate) from its west end on Cub Creek (about 45.07566, -108.89472) to its east end where it meets Hunt Creek Road and Bobcat Pass Road (about 45.07341, -108.85344). Both endpoints were read by AGF from the georeferenced map BLM sent; they are approximate, not field waypoints.

NOT INCLUDED: Cub Creek, Hunt Creek Road, Bobcat Pass Road, side roads, private land and anything in Wyoming. Nearby routes such as Long Draw Road and Hatcher Pass have their own AGF guides.
NOT YET RATED

Not Rated · No Surface Description Found

NO RECORD OF AGF DRIVING THIS ROUTE. AGF rates a trail by its hardest unavoidable obstacle in normal dry conditions. No official or first-hand description of Ridge Road's surface was found, so AGF has not rated it. An earlier draft's 2/10 leaned on onX's "Ridge Road #1005" page, which does not match this road. Surface, ruts and obstacles: verify. Wet dirt roads are a condition change, not part of a base rating.

Not rated: verify.

Snow, mud, runoff, deadfall and fire are condition changes, not part of the base rating.

ROUTE & MAP

Getting There

Silvertip Road is a county road (BLM Billings, Oct. 14, 2026). On BLM's map, Cub Creek and Hunt Creek Road both leave Silvertip Road at one junction (about 45.1369, -108.9563; approximate) and run southeast: Hunt Creek Road about 7 miles to Ridge Road's east end, and Cub Creek about 5.7 miles to its west end, including about a quarter mile across the private parcel (AGF measurements on BLM's map; approximate; the long southeast stretch of Hunt Creek Road is unlabeled on the map). Cub Creek crosses a private parcel about 0.8 mile from Silvertip Road (see the warning above). Turn-by-turn directions: verify. For the approach on Silvertip Road and its private-land rules, see AGF's Long Draw Road guide.

LOADING MAP…
BLM Montana-Dakotas georeferenced maps →BLM Billings Field Office →ROUTE FILE: not published yet

The pin is Ridge Road's east end, where it meets Hunt Creek Road and Bobcat Pass Road, read by AGF from BLM's georeferenced map (approximate). The west end on Cub Creek is about 45.07566, -108.89472. No route line or downloadable track is published: AGF has no GPS record of this road.

VEHICLE FIT

Rig Requirements

Not rated: verify.

Vehicle fit: verify. Avoid when wet.

TRIP PLANNING

Know Before You Go

Season
Verify (BLM's map shows no seasonal designation)
Typical trip
Verify
Camping
Verify land status; never on private land
Trailer parking
Verify
Turnaround
Verify
  • The BLM Billings Field Office page listed no closures on Oct. 15, 2026. It refers fire restrictions to mtfireinfo.org (not checked): verify before any campfire.
  • Contact: BLM Billings Field Office (406-896-5013), 5001 Southgate Dr., Billings.

AGF Live: seasonal notices and weather, fire and road information near the pin appear here when the site script runs. Otherwise, check hunting season dates with Montana FWP and conditions on Know Before You Go.

SOURCES

Sources & Review

  • BLM Billings Field Office: emails from Jenny Alexander, Outdoor Recreation Planner, to AGF (Oct. 21 and 23, 2026) (official, written; Ridge Road is the connector between Cub Creek and Hunt Creek (its beginning and end points); it does not have its own route number; no decision was issued on the 2025 Cottonwood travel plan; the attached map shows the current routes and what they are open to; BLM Billings referred Wyoming questions to the BLM Cody Field Office)
  • BLM map sent to AGF: "Cottonwood TMA - Final Route Designations: 10/31/2023" (legend: "Alternative A Route Designations"), with Ridge Road's endpoints highlighted (Oct. 23, 2026) (official; georeferenced PDF attachment, not posted online; Ridge Road, Cub Creek and Hunt Creek Road drawn in the "Open to all use" color; Cub Creek crosses a parcel shown as private land; endpoint coordinates read by AGF from the map's georeferencing (approximate))
  • BLM Billings Field Office: email from Jenny Alexander, Outdoor Recreation Planner, to AGF (Oct. 14, 2026) (official, written; "The 2023 plan is tabled for now- so current designations are those show on the map above" (the BLM Montana-Dakotas georeferenced maps page); no vehicle-size limits except single track in the motorcycle area; Silvertip is a county road; Cottonwood Road is public the whole way via BLM right-of-way across private pieces (Cottonwood Road only))
  • BLM Billings Field Office (5001 Southgate Dr., Billings; 406-896-5013; no closures listed Oct. 15, 2026; fire restrictions referred to mtfireinfo.org)
  • BLM Montana-Dakotas georeferenced maps (official; BLM Billings pointed AGF here for the Cottonwood Travel Management Area map (Oct. 14, 2026))
  • onX Offroad: Ridge Road #1005 (secondary (crowd); 7.4 mi into Wyoming; its label and length do not match BLM's Ridge Road; its map center (45.0730705, -108.8524175) is about 90 m from BLM's east endpoint)
  • Montana FWP: Hunting seasons (2026 deer/elk archery Sept. 5–Oct. 18; youth deer Oct. 15–16; general Oct. 24–Nov. 29)

Last reviewed Oct. 26, 2026. Rescoped from the earlier "Ridge Road #1005 (Elk Basin)" draft to BLM's Ridge Road after BLM Billings identified its endpoints (Oct. 23, 2026). There is no record of AGF driving Ridge Road; it is not rated, and its length and endpoints are estimates from BLM's map.

AGF ratings describe normal, dry-condition difficulty. They do not mean a route is legal, open or passable today. Found an error, a closure or a locked gate? Report it or suggest a trail.