HELENA — The cross-country ski club here thinks the idea is wonderful, but not everyone is so sure a military biathlon course belongs on a piece of the Continental Divide that supports wildlife and offers people a quiet place to recreate.

The Montana Army National Guard wants to develop the course for biathlon — rigorous Nordic skiing followed by target shooting — at an area already popular with Nordic enthusiasts. In a state with vast areas of public land for recreation, and some exhaustingly long drives, the Divide's MacDonald Pass is prized by Helenans partly because it is so close — just a 15-mile trip up U.S. 12.

The biathlon course would add 4 kilometers of ski trail to an existing system of 12 to 14 kilometers. A shooting range and parking area would be created, and some small buildings put up.

The Forest Service manages the land, has been taking public comment and hopes to have most of it by next Friday. By a small margin, the letters lean against the proposal.

‘‘I would hope that the stewardship of wildlife habitat takes precedence over warfare exercises,'' wrote Beverly Magley of Helena.

The effect on lynx, classified by the government as a threatened species, is one of the issues to be studied before the Forest Service decides whether to allow the course. It would require clearing 16 acres.

The Last Chance Nordic Ski Club is excited about the prospect of an improved trail system that would make skiing more accessible, particularly to children and the disabled, the club's Randy Beckner said in an interview Thursday.

‘‘I haven't heard of any of our members who aren't 100 percent in support of it,'' said Beckner, whose group has a membership of about 50.

Bruce Newell of Helena is so enthused about having well-designed and maintained trails that in his note to the Forest Service, he volunteered his labor.

But Margaret Regan, who skis in the area and has a cabin her grandfather built there in 1932, finds existing uses of the land and biathlon incompatible.

‘‘When you're skiing and it's so quiet that the sound of the swish of snow against your skis starts sounding significant — you're on such a hushed slope that snow is noise — then gunshots will be a disruption,'' she said.

Lt. Col. Steve Martinka said noise from test gunfire in the area last week, using a small-caliber gun, traveled hardly at all.

Trails now in place would be widened to handle traditional Nordic skiing and skate-style skiing, which requires a wider swath.

The public and biathletes would share the trails, shooting would occur only within the shooting range and only .22-caliber rifles would be allowed, according to the Forest Service. Use of the shooting range would be limited to National Guard personnel or designees.

The Guard officially has two places for biathlon training, one in Vermont and the other in Minnesota.

A western location is desired to expand opportunities for training people to the Olympics level, Martinka said. The military has a long tradition of helping athletes rise to that level, added Martinka, himself a member of the Montana Guard's championship biathlon team.

MacDonald Pass is desirable for its snow and proximity to the Guard installation at Fort Harrison in Helena, Martinka said. The estimated military outlay for the project is $1.4 million.

The Guard's willingness to provide trail maintenance for all appeals to the ski club, which now does maintenance as best it can with volunteer labor and minimal equipment. What grant money has been available to help with trail needs is shrinking, Beckner said.

‘‘As our funds dry up, it's just opportune that they come in and make it easier to groom up there,'' he said.

‘‘It's still going to be our nice backyard recreation area, only nicer.''

For Tom Kilmer of Helena, the existing trails are fine.

‘‘Sure they are narrow with lots of wild turns, dips and bends,'' he wrote. ‘‘If you want straight, flat and open you ski at the golf course.''

Supporters say the Guard's plan stands to give Helena an economic boost because biathlon competitions would bring to the community visitors ready to spend money on hotels, restaurant meals and other needs.

Critics say the increased number of people at the pass would heighten chances of vandalism at area cabins, and the wider trails would encourage illegal snowmobiling. The Montana Department of Transportation worries the expansion would result in people parking along U.S. 12, sometimes icy in the winter.

The Forest Service expects to prepare an environmental assessment of the project over the next six to 12 months, in consultation with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.