Little Belt Mountains
The Little Belt Mountains are a section of the Rocky Mountains in the U.S. state of Montana. Situated mainly in the Lewis and Clark National Forest, the mountains are used for logging and recreation for the residents of Great Falls, Montana. Showdown is a ski area located within the mountains located off US Highway 89 which splits the mountains in half connecting White Sulphur Springs and Belt, MT. The highest point in the Little Belt Range is Big Baldy Mountain at .

The Little Belts have been mined for silver since the 1880s, and for sapphire since 1896. The sapphires, called Yogo sapphires as they are mined near Yogo Creek, occur in a formation long and across.

The mountains are named for a butte in the range, Belt Butte, itself named for a band of white rock which encircles it.

The Showdown Ski Area holds the state's record for snowfall, of snow in one winter.

Although an undramatic mountain range of gently rolling peaks and expansive conifer forests, the Little Belts contain two large roadless areas. The smaller area, about in size, is protected as the Middle Fork-Judith Wilderness Study Area. This area includes the Middle and Lost Forks of the Judith River, which cut deep canyons through multicolored limestone cliffs. The Middle Fork-Judith WSA contains over 29 miles of streams containing Yellowstone cutthroat and rainbow trout. Higher elevations are covered in lodgepole pine and whitebark pine, while lower elevations contain ponderosa pine and douglas fir intermixed with grassy parks and meadows. The larger area, encompassing the Tenderfoot Creek drainage, in the western portion of the range, is unprotected and about in size; it includes some private lands as well as about of roadless Lewis and Clark National Forest lands. The Smith River Canyon, a popular float trip, is along the western edge of this area.

Ponderosa pine and douglas-fir are the predominant tree species in the Little Belts, and wildlife includes black bear, elk, and white-tailed and mule deer.
Q5463
Rocky Mountains
LOC
Q30
U.S.
LOC
Q1212
Montana
LOC
Q1822187
Lewis and Clark National Forest
LOC
Q466190
Great Falls, Montana
LOC
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Showdown
LOC
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US Highway 89
LOC
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White Sulphur Springs
LOC
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Belt, MT
LOC
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silver
Concept
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sapphire
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Yogo sapphire
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Showdown Ski Area
LOC
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Wilderness Study Area
LOC
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Judith River
LOC
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Yellowstone cutthroat
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rainbow trout
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lodgepole pine
Concept
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whitebark pine
Concept
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Lewis and Clark National Forest
LOC
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Smith River
LOC
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Ponderosa pine
Concept
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douglas-fir
Concept
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black bear
Concept
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elk
Concept
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mule deer
Concept
Q6649061
Little Belt Mountains
LOC
1880-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1880
DATE
1896-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1896
DATE
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89
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+29^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
29
NUMBER
mountain range
country
located in the administrative territorial entity
country
significant place