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MONTANA 4x4 TRAIL GUIDE · MT-0046

Sheep Mountain (FS 3224)

Sheep Mountain Road, Forest Road 3224, off Lulu Pass Road · drive, then hike to the summit · Cooke City, Montana
3/10AGF Difficulty · Easy · AGF-driven; rated by Aaron, Oct. 12, 2026
1.9 MIFS 3224 one way (2023 MVUM copy: 1.896 mi); about 3.8 mi round trip, plus the hike
CLOSED SEPT 5–JUNE 15FS 3224 open to motor vehicles June 16–Sept. 4 only (2023 MVUM copy; check the 2026 MVUM)
USFSGardiner Ranger District
SEASONAL CLOSURE: FS 3224 IS LISTED AS OPEN TO MOTOR VEHICLES ONLY JUNE 16–SEPT. 4, AND CLOSED SEPT. 5–JUNE 15. THE SUMMIT IS NOT DRIVABLE. FS 3224 Sheep Mountain is "Special Designation, Seasonal," open June 16–Sept. 4, maintenance level 2 (high clearance), native surface, in a 2023 copy of the FS MVUM layer, and the 2006 Gallatin travel plan lists "SHEEP MOUNTAIN ROAD #3224" with a motorized closure "Sep 5 - Jun 15." If those dates are unchanged, the road has been closed to motor vehicles since Sept. 5, 2026: verify on the 2026 Absaroka Beartooth East MVUM or with the Gardiner Ranger District (406-848-7375). In the same 2023 data, OHVs wider than 50 inches (most side-by-sides that are not street-legal) are not listed as allowed on FS 3224: verify on the 2026 MVUM. Stay on FS 3224. Motor vehicles stop at the end of the road; the summit is reached on foot, and driving off the designated road toward the summit is prohibited under the MVUM. Approach: Lulu Pass Road (the Fisher Creek road), likely Park County road 16D. Park County's 2025 road-maintenance map (county GIS, not the legal road book) shows it as county road, with the upper part "Ownership retained, Not Maintained. No routine or scheduled maintenance, not maintained for winter travel." County status: verify with Park County Road & Bridge (406-222-4137). Mines and private land: the New World district historically mixed National Forest and patented private mining claims, with mine reclamation sites (report for the FS, 2012). Respect posted private land and reclamation closures, stay out of mine workings, and do not drink untreated water from mine-affected drainages. Weather: the summit area is above 10,000 feet (AGF GPS high point: 10,518 ft). Expect fast-changing weather and lightning, and snow and avalanche terrain outside summer (AGF research). Aaron says it is easy unless the road is snow-covered or wet (owner statement). US-212 from Cooke City (Cooke City–Pilot Creek) is open to wheeled vehicles "mid-May through early November" (NPS). NPS (updated Oct. 9, 2026) says the Beartooth Highway over the pass is scheduled to close for the season Oct. 12, 2026. MVUM dates and classes on this page come from a 2023 copy of the Forest Service MVUM layer plus the 2006 Gallatin travel plan, because the Forest Service's live MVUM data has no Gardiner Ranger District roads (checked Oct. 12, 2026): check them against the 2026 MVUM before you go. Official closures, posted signs and private property override this guide. Call the Gardiner Ranger District (406-848-7375) and Park County Road & Bridge (406-222-4137) before you go, and read Know Before You Go.
AGF DROVE SHEEP MOUNTAIN ROAD AND HIKED TO THE SUMMIT. AARON RATED IT 3/10 ON OCT. 12, 2026. Aaron says he drove the road but did not drive to the top; he hiked to the summit (owner statement, Oct. 12, 2026). AGF's GPS track from July 27–28, 2019 peaks at 10,518 ft near 45.0781, -109.9326, about 0.65 km east-northeast of the end of FS 3224 and about 0.8 km north-northwest of the summit point in AGF's trail record; that fits a hike above the road end, though the simplified track does not show the summit itself. The track comes within about 0.5 km of the summit point in AGF's trail record (AGF archive check of 274 tracks, Oct. 12, 2026). The archive does not show the exact turnaround point. Access and seasons come from Forest Service and county sources, not from the AGF drive. No GPX file is published.
WHAT THIS GUIDE COVERS

Drive FS 3224, Then Hike

Drive FS 3224 Sheep Mountain Road from its junction with Lulu Pass Road to the end of the road, then hike to the summit. FS 3224 is 1.896 miles (2023 MVUM copy), about 3.8 miles round trip. The approach is Lulu Pass Road from US-212, about 4.6 miles to the FS 3224 junction (AGF estimate from 2017 state geometry; verify). The vehicle end point is the end of FS 3224 per 2017 state geometry, about 45.0761, -109.9406; the summit is about 0.65 mile east-southeast of it, straight line (AGF estimate). Hiking distance and route: verify. Summit elevation: sources conflict (verify).

NOT INCLUDED: any driving beyond the end of FS 3224 (the summit is reached on foot), Lulu Pass Road above the FS 3224 junction (its own guide), other side roads, mine and reclamation sites, and any private land.
WHY 3/10

Easy · Loose Rock on Steep Grades

AGF drove FS 3224, and Aaron rated it 3/10 on Oct. 12, 2026: he describes loose rock and steep grades, and says the road is easy unless it is snow-covered or wet (owner statement). AGF rates a trail by its hardest unavoidable obstacle in normal dry conditions. Here that is loose rock on steep grades, which fits AGF's Easy 3 when dry. The Forest Service lists FS 3224 at maintenance level 2, high clearance, native surface (2023 MVUM copy). No other source describing this road's terrain was found (the onX "Sheep Mountain" pages found are a different route). No locker- or winch-level obstacle is documented. Snow and wet ground make it harder; those are condition changes, not part of the base rating. Terrain scores are not rated yet.

Terrain scores (rock, mud, water, exposure, snow, pinstriping) are not rated yet for this trail.

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

ROUTE & MAP

Getting There

From Cooke City, drive east on US-212 to the Lulu Pass (Fisher Creek) road turnoff (2017 state framework start: about 45.0265, -109.9001) and turn north. Follow Lulu Pass Road about 4.6 miles to the FS 3224 junction, about 45.0690, -109.9493, about 0.75 mile below Lulu Pass. Turn onto FS 3224 and follow it about 1.8–1.9 miles to its end near 45.0761, -109.9406. Park at the end of the road and hike to the summit; return the same way. Mileages are AGF's estimates from generalized 2017 state geometry plus the MVUM length: verify.

LOADING MAP…
Custer Gallatin alerts →Absaroka Beartooth East MVUM →ROUTE FILE: not published yet

The pin marks the end of FS 3224, where motor vehicles stop (2017 state road geometry, approximate; Park County 2025 GIS agrees; not field-checked). The summit is a hike from here. No downloadable track is published. AGF's GPS track continues about 0.65 km past the road end (on foot, per Aaron), but the archive holds simplified geometry only and no GPX file is released.

VEHICLE FIT

Rig Requirements

Stock 4x4
Yes — capable stock 4x4 when currently legal/open
High clearance
Recommended
Tires
31-inch minimum
Rear locker
No
Front locker
No
Winch
Recommended (AGF record: remote high country, weather exposure); no winch-level obstacle is documented
Full-size
Limited
Body damage
Moderate risk

When FS 3224 is open: a high-clearance 4x4 with low range preferred, good 31-inch-class A/T tires, a full-size spare, rated recovery points, offline navigation and basic recovery gear (AGF record). Lockers are not baseline. Shorter, narrower rigs are preferable on this high mining road, and the upper turnaround room is limited; do not take trailers up (AGF record). Not for OHVs wider than 50 inches unless the 2026 MVUM allows them.

TRIP PLANNING

Know Before You Go

Season
FS 3224 open to motor vehicles June 16–Sept. 4; closed Sept. 5–June 15 (2023 MVUM copy and 2006 travel plan; check the 2026 MVUM). Snow can linger into July (AGF research estimate)
Typical trip
Half day (AGF record estimate)
Hike
End of FS 3224 to the summit: distance and route verify (about 0.65 mi straight line)
Camping
Limited; verify site rules and private land (AGF record)
Trailers
Stage in Cooke City; not on the upper road (AGF record)
Turnaround
Limited; at the road end (AGF record); verify
  • Hunting season: Montana's general deer and elk season runs Oct. 24–Nov. 29, 2026 (FWP). Expect hunters, camps and parked vehicles; wear blaze orange outside the vehicle. Archery season runs to Oct. 18. A youth deer hunt runs Oct. 15–16 (FWP).
  • Grizzly country: Custer Gallatin food storage order 01-11-00-23-02 applies on the Gardiner and Beartooth Ranger Districts, Mar. 1–Dec. 1.
  • No Custer Gallatin alert named Sheep Mountain on Oct. 12, 2026. Recheck before you go.
  • Lightning: get off the summit and ridges early when storms build (AGF advice).
  • Contacts: Gardiner Ranger District (406-848-7375) for FS 3224; Park County Road & Bridge (406-222-4137) for Lulu Pass Road.
SOURCES

Sources & Review

Last reviewed Oct. 12, 2026. No alert names the road, but FS 3224 is listed as closed to motor vehicles Sept. 5–June 15 (2023 MVUM copy and 2006 travel plan; check the 2026 MVUM), the summit is not drivable, and the area has mine sites and possible private claims. AGF drove the road and hiked to the summit; Aaron rated it 3/10 on Oct. 12, 2026. No GPX is published.

AGF ratings describe normal, dry-condition difficulty. They do not mean a route is legal, open or passable today. Spot something out of date? Use the Contact page.