Fortine was named for an early settler, Octave Fortine. It was a station on the Great Northern Railroad line. The first post office was established in 1905. Located in the extreme northwest corner of Montana near Fortine is the Ten Lake Scenic Area of the Kootenai National Forest. It offers more than 89 miles of trails of remote backpacking and hiking opportunities through rugged terrain with spectacular mountain views reaching into Canada. Many high mountain lakes offer fishing for the angler and scenic views for the photographer. Mountains rise to elevations of more than 7,800 feet. High alpine mountains, cool clear high mountain lakes, peaceful meandering trails, all combine to make Ten Lakes Scenic Area a backpacker's delight.
Alpine glaciers shaped much of the present rugged scenery. As the glaciers grew they carved deep scallops, or cirques, and high, rim-rocked basins sheltering the many lakes of the area. The area is named for the Ten Lakes basin along the Canadian border. Other alpine lakes, often bordered on one side by subalpine vegetation and on the other by a headwall or rook harboring old snowdrifts, hide in nearly every high basin and cirque. Offering spectacular beauty are the Therriault Lakes and Bluebird Basin areas. Camping, hiking and horseback riding are the favorite uses of the area. Little and Big Therriault Campgrounds provide campsites, fire rings, water pumps and vault toilets. Kootenai National Forest also offers great cross-country ski trails.