Rockhounding near Missoula, MT

99 mapped rockhounding spots within 150 miles of Missoula — most are inside a 2 to 3 hour drive. Below: a map, the closest spots, what they produce, and full coordinates with access notes.

Covering parts of Montana, Idaho, Washington.

Closest rockhounding spots to Missoula

The 6 nearest mapped spots, with straight-line distance and an approximate drive time.

Most-reported finds near Missoula

Counts reflect how many spots in this radius mention each material.

Every spot within 150 miles of Missoula

Sorted by distance from Missoula. Tap a row to open the spot detail page with full directions, access status, and nearby trips.

Spot	County	Minerals	Coordinates	Access
White Cloud MineEight Mile Creek Road	Ravalli County	Beryl	46.6526, -113.9371	Public
Ninemile CreekNinemile Road	Missoula County	Gold	47.1357, -114.5190	Public
Rock CreekRock Creek Road	Granite County	Quartz Sapphire	46.3912, -113.6830	Public
Black Pine MineFS 678	Granite County	Pyromorphite Scheelite Stolzite	46.4478, -113.3669	Public
Brown’s LakeBrowns Lake Road	Powell County	Scheelite	46.9502, -113.0155	Public
Cedar Creek and Trout Creek	Mineral County	Gold	47.1738, -114.8783	Public
Gem Mountain Sapphire Mine	Granite County	Sapphire	46.2467, -113.5922	Public
Gem Mountain Sapphire Mine	Granite County		46.2468, -113.5917	Paid / fee
PhillipsburgGranite Rd	Granite County	Chrysocolla Rhodochrosite Ore	46.3193, -113.2805	Public
GoldcreekI 90;US 12	Powell County	Gold	46.5945, -112.9434	Public
Pioneer	Powell County	Gold Calcite Chalcopyrite Quartz Pyrite	46.5139, -112.9638	Public
GeorgetownCable Mountain Road	Deer Lodge County	Gold Chrysocolla	46.1999, -113.2176	Public
Crystal Mountain MineFS 74919	Ravalli County	White Fluorite Green Fluorite Purple Fluorite	46.0066, -113.8881	Public
North Fork Clearwater RiverPierce-Supirior Road	Clearwater County	Gold	46.7218, -115.2685	Public
Lost CreekLost Creek Road	Deer Lodge County	Amazonite	46.2087, -113.0032	Public
Sula	Ravalli County	Green Beryl	45.8688, -113.9820	Public
Bathtub Mountain	Shoshone County	Staurolite	47.0796, -115.5696	Public
Dry Cottonwood Creekcdt-alt Ley	Deer Lodge County	Sapphire	46.2206, -112.6851	Public
French CreekDeep Creek Road	Deer Lodge County	Gold	45.9474, -113.0605	Public
Calvert Hill MineCalvert Loop Road	Beaverhead County	Scheelite Garnet Aquamarine Tungsten	45.8489, -113.1524	Public
Brown’s Gulch	Silver Bow County	Sapphire	46.0144, -112.6848	Public
Avery	Shoshone County	Kyanite Staurolite	47.1507, -115.7736	Public
General Area (Clearwater NF)	Clearwater County	Almandine Garnet	46.6277, -115.8065	Public
Rhodes Creek	Clearwater County	Zircon	46.5074, -115.7633	Public
Jack CreekJack Creek Road	Jefferson County	Dumortierite	46.3725, -112.2872	Public

Missoula rockhounding FAQ

Where can I go rockhounding near Missoula?+

There are 99 mapped rockhounding spots within about 150 miles of Missoula, Montana. The closest is White Cloud Mine in Ravalli County, roughly 15 miles away. The full list is on this page with coordinates and drive times.

What rocks and minerals can you find near Missoula?+

Spots within driving distance of Missoula most commonly produce gold, garnet, sapphire, quartz, silver, opal.

Is rockhounding legal near Missoula?+

Casual hand collecting of common rocks and minerals is allowed on most BLM and U.S. Forest Service land, with limits set by the local field office. National parks, most state parks, and tribal land are off-limits. Each spot page on this site lists access status; always confirm current rules with the managing agency before a trip.

How far do most rockhounders drive from Missoula?+

Most weekend trips from Missoula fall inside a 2 to 3 hour drive, which is roughly the 150-mile radius shown on this page. Closer spots are good for half-day outings; the outer ones are better as overnight trips.

More state coverage

The spots above span 3 states. Open the state page for the full county-by-county view.

Other cities near Missoula

Planning around Missoula? These nearby cities have their own mapped rockhounding spots within driving range, with some overlap in the spots you can reach.

Pack Missoula's rockhounding map in your pocket

Open RockHoundR for live land overlays, weather, geology, directions, and saved finds — wherever the drive takes you.