Shows who owns the land under your feet and where active mining claims are, on a map that follows you as you walk.
Geodeo: Rockhounding Spots MapShows who owns the land under your feet and where active mining claims are, on a map that follows you as you walk.
Rockhounding in Montana: where you can collect
Whether you can pick up a rock in Montana depends on who manages the ground you are standing on, and whether someone holds a mining claim on it. This page sums up both from federal land and claim records.
Who manages the land, and what each allows
About 27% of Montana's land is managed by the Bureau of Land Management (8.6%) or the U.S. Forest Service (18%). Those two agencies allow hobby rock collecting on most of their ground, by hand and for personal use, though special areas inside them set their own rules.
| Manager | Share of land | Collecting rules |
|---|---|---|
| Private land | 56% | Private land. You need the owner's permission to enter or collect. State trespass law |
| U.S. Forest Service | 18% | Personal use only. Small amounts for your own collection, collected by hand. Some forests set a daily weight; check the district office. 36 CFR 228 Subpart A Vertebrate fossils need a permit. Bones, teeth and other vertebrate fossils stay where they are unless you hold a research permit. 16 U.S.C. 470aaa-3 |
| Bureau of Land Management | 8.6% | Hobby collecting allowed. Reasonable amounts of rocks, mineral specimens, semiprecious gemstones and common invertebrate or plant fossils for personal use. No selling, no explosives, no motorized or mechanical digging. 43 CFR 8365.1-5 Petrified wood limit. 25 lb plus one piece per day, 250 lb per calendar year. Quotas can't be pooled. 43 CFR 3622.4 Vertebrate fossils need a permit. Bones, teeth and other vertebrate fossils stay where they are unless you hold a research permit. 16 U.S.C. 470aaa-3 |
| Tribal land | 7.6% | Tribal land. Collecting needs the tribe's permission. Contact the tribal government first. Tribal law |
| State land | 6.2% | State rules apply. State trust and park land each have their own rules. Many state parks prohibit collecting; some trust land needs a permit. State law |
| National Park Service | 1.3% | No collecting. Removing rocks, minerals or fossils from a national park unit is prohibited. 36 CFR 2.1(a)(1) |
| U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 1.2% | No collecting. Taking minerals or other natural objects from a national wildlife refuge is prohibited without a permit. 50 CFR 27.61 |
| Ownership not recorded | 0.5% | Ownership unclear. The public record doesn't say who manages this spot. Treat it as private until you confirm. — |
| Bureau of Reclamation | 0.3% | Rules are set by the managing office; ask before you collect. |
| County and city land | 0.2% | County or city land. County and city parks set their own rules, and many forbid removing natural objects. Ask the park office or conservation board before you collect. Local ordinance |
| Other federal land | 0.2% | Rules are set by the managing office; ask before you collect. |
Watch for active mining claims
Land that BLM's Mineral & Land Records System maps as holding unclosed mining claims makes up about 0.9% of Montana, as of 2026-10-07. BLM maps claims by their legal land description, so this counts the parcels claims sit in rather than exact claim corners.
Active mining claim. The claimant holds the mineral rights. Don't collect the claimed mineral; ask the claimant or move on. 30 U.S.C. 26 A claim is often unmarked on the ground, and collecting the claimed mineral from an active claim can be treated as trespass or theft. Check BLM's claim map before you dig, and read how mining claims work.
Recorded mineral sites on BLM and Forest Service land
The U.S. Geological Survey's Mineral Resources Data System records 3,414 past mines, prospects and mineral occurrences on BLM or Forest Service land in Montana, counting the better-documented records Geodeo shows by default. The minerals recorded most often: Gold (2,121), Silver (1,756), Lead (1,134), Copper (1,073), Zinc (495), Tungsten (137), Iron (101), Uranium (87). A sample, favoring gem and specimen minerals:
- Lost Jack: Semiprecious Gemstone · Past Producer · U.S. Forest Service · 20 mi S of Pryor. Source
- Snowbird Mine: REE, Semiprecious Gemstone, Fluorine-Fluorite · Past Producer · U.S. Forest Service · 18 mi SW of Cyr. Source
- Coffee Pot Lode: Beryllium, Gemstone · Past Producer · U.S. Forest Service · 11 mi W of Cyr. Source
- Sugarloaf Mountain Prospect: Semiprecious Gemstone · Prospect · U.S. Forest Service · 10 mi E of Deer Lodge. Source
- Little Bill Placer Claim: Feldspar, Quartz, Garnet, Titanium · Prospect · U.S. Forest Service · 21 mi SW of Philipsburg. Source
- Squaw Creek Lode: Gemstone · Prospect · U.S. Forest Service · 13 mi NE of Wisdom. Source
- Jack Pine Mine: Phosphorus-Phosphates, Uranium, Fluorine-Fluorite · Past Producer · U.S. Forest Service · 6 mi E of Avon. Source
- Centennial Phosphate Mine: Phosphorus-Phosphates, Uranium, Vanadium, Fluorine-Fluorite · Past Producer · Bureau of Land Management · 7 mi SE of Lakeview. Source
- Madison Range District: Phosphorus-Phosphates, Fluorine-Fluorite, Uranium, Vanadium · Past Producer · U.S. Forest Service · 7 mi W of Hebgen Lake Estates. Source
- Basin (Cataract, Comet) District: Gold, Silver, Quartz, Tin · Past Producer · U.S. Forest Service · 4 mi N of Basin. Source
- Spar Mine: Fluorine-Fluorite · Past Producer · U.S. Forest Service · 8 mi S of St. Regis. Source
- Highland Mountains Area: Phosphorus-Phosphates, Chromium, Fluorine-Fluorite, Nickel · Past Producer · U.S. Forest Service · 7 mi S of Butte-Silver Bow. Source
- Half Man Prospect: Quartz, Copper · Past Producer · U.S. Forest Service · 11 mi S of Essex. Source
- Lucky Jack: Fluorine-Fluorite · Past Producer · U.S. Forest Service · 9 mi S of St. Regis. Source
- Shakopee Mine: Silver, Lead, Copper, Fluorine-Fluorite · Past Producer · Bureau of Land Management · 3 mi W of Marysville. Source
- Wilson Gulch Prospect: Fluorine-Fluorite · Past Producer · U.S. Forest Service · 9 mi W of Superior. Source
- Silver Bow Deposits: Fluorine-Fluorite, Gold, Silver, Barium-Barite · Past Producer · U.S. Forest Service · 6 mi W of Walkerville. Source
- Thumper Lode Mica Mine: Mica, Quartz, Feldspar · Past Producer · U.S. Forest Service · 9 mi S of Gallatin Gateway. Source
- Northern Pacific: Lead, Fluorine-Fluorite, Coal, Copper · Prospect · Bureau of Land Management · 4 mi NE of Warm Spring Creek. Source
- West Fork Madison River P2o5: Chromium, Fluorine-Fluorite, Nickel, REE · Prospect · U.S. Forest Service · 11 mi N of Lakeview. Source
These are records of where minerals were found, not invitations to collect. Some sit on active claims, land ownership can change, and old mine shafts and tunnels are deadly: stay out of them.
Where collecting is off limits
- National parks: No collecting. Removing rocks, minerals or fossils from a national park unit is prohibited. 36 CFR 2.1(a)(1)
- National wildlife refuges: No collecting. Taking minerals or other natural objects from a national wildlife refuge is prohibited without a permit. 50 CFR 27.61
- State park. State parks almost always prohibit removing rocks, minerals or fossils. A few allow it in marked areas; ask the park office. State park rules
- Closed to the public. Military land is off limits without base authorization. Installation rules
- Tribal land. Collecting needs the tribe's permission. Contact the tribal government first. Tribal law
- Private land. You need the owner's permission to enter or collect. State trespass law
Wilderness, national monuments and conservation areas inside BLM and Forest Service land set their own rules. Special area rules. National monuments, conservation areas and research natural areas each set their own collecting rules, and some ban it outright. Check with the managing office before you collect. Unit management plan The BLM's rockhounding page covers the basics.
Know before you dig
Land lines are rarely marked in the field, and a canyon can cross from BLM land to a private ranch or an active claim within a few steps. Geodeo puts the land manager, the collecting rules and active claim boundaries on a map that follows your location, so you can check the spot you are standing on.
Land: BLM Surface Management Agency map and USGS PAD-US, as of 2026-09-29. Sites: USGS Mineral Resources Data System. Claims: BLM Mineral & Land Records System, as of 2026-10-07. Shares are of mapped land inside the state line. Rules are a summary; the managing office has the final word.