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The Cabinet Mountains are part of the
Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico in ...
, located in northwest
Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Colum ...
and the
Idaho panhandle The Idaho Panhandle—locally known as North Idaho—is a salient region of the U.S. state of Idaho encompassing the state's 10 northernmost counties: Benewah, Bonner, Boundary, Clearwater, Idaho, Kootenai, Latah, Lewis, Nez Perce, and Sh ...
, in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
. The mountains cover an area of 2,134 square miles (5,527 km2). The Cabinet Mountains lie south of the
Purcell Mountains The Purcell Mountains are a mountain range in southeastern British Columbia, Canada. They are a subrange of the Columbia Mountains, which includes the Selkirk, Monashee, and Cariboo Mountains. They are located on the west side of the Rocky Mou ...
, between the
Kootenai River The Kootenay or Kootenai river is a major river in the Northwest Plateau, in southeastern British Columbia, Canada, and northern Montana and Idaho in the United States. It is one of the uppermost major tributaries of the Columbia River, the l ...
and
Clark Fork River The Clark Fork, or the Clark Fork of the Columbia River, is a river in the U.S. states of Montana and Idaho, approximately long. The largest river by volume in Montana, it drains an extensive region of the Rocky Mountains in western Montana and ...
and Idaho's
Lake Pend Oreille Lake Pend Oreille ( ) in the northern Idaho Panhandle is the largest lake in the U.S. state of Idaho and the List of largest lakes of the United States by area, 38th-largest lake by area in the United States, with a surface area of . It is long, ...
. The Cabinet Mountains lie to the east of the Purcell Trench. The Cabinet Mountains form the north side of the
Clark Fork River The Clark Fork, or the Clark Fork of the Columbia River, is a river in the U.S. states of Montana and Idaho, approximately long. The largest river by volume in Montana, it drains an extensive region of the Rocky Mountains in western Montana and ...
valley in Idaho and Montana. The
Cabinet Mountains Wilderness The Cabinet Mountains Wilderness, created by an act of Congress in 1964, is located in the U.S. state of Montana. Protecting the wildest portions of the Cabinet Mountains and an integral part of Kootenai National Forest and Kaniksu National Forest ...
is located east of the Bull River near Noxon, Montana in roughly the center of the range. The highest peaks are
Snowshoe Peak Snowshoe Peak is a mountain in the U.S. state of Montana. At , it is the highest peak in the Cabinet Mountains of Northwestern Montana and Idaho. __TOC__ See also * List of mountain peaks of North America ** List of mountain peaks of the United ...
(8,738 ft, 2,663 m),United States Forest Service. ''Kootenai and East Half Kaniksu National Forests'' ap 1:126,720. United States Forest Service, 2004. A Peak (8,634 ft, 2,632 m), Bockman Peak (8,174 ft, 2,491 m), and Elephant Peak (7,938 ft, 2,433 m). Although of lower altitude than many Rocky Mountain peaks to the east in Montana, the Cabinet Mountains offer a stark contrast as the surrounding river valleys are at such relative low altitude. The Cabinets are noted, along with the nearby
Selkirk Mountains The Selkirk Mountains are a mountain range spanning the northern portion of the Idaho Panhandle, eastern Washington, and southeastern British Columbia which are part of a larger grouping of mountains, the Columbia Mountains. They begin at Mica ...
to the west, as being some of the most "wild" mountains left in the contiguous United States. They are home to
mule deer The mule deer (''Odocoileus hemionus'') is a deer indigenous to western North America; it is named for its ears, which are large like those of the mule. Two subspecies of mule deer are grouped into the black-tailed deer. Unlike the related whit ...
,
elk The elk (''Cervus canadensis''), also known as the wapiti, is one of the largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in its native range of North America and Central and East Asia. The commo ...
,
moose The moose (in North America) or elk (in Eurasia) (''Alces alces'') is a member of the New World deer subfamily and is the only species in the genus ''Alces''. It is the largest and heaviest extant species in the deer family. Most adult mal ...
,
bighorn sheep The bighorn sheep (''Ovis canadensis'') is a species of sheep native to North America. It is named for its large horns. A pair of horns might weigh up to ; the sheep typically weigh up to . Recent genetic testing indicates three distinct subspec ...
,
black bear Black bear or Blackbear may refer to: Animals * American black bear (''Ursus americanus''), a North American bear species * Asian black bear (''Ursus thibetanus''), an Asian bear species Music * Black Bear (band), a Canadian First Nations group ...
,
grizzly bear The grizzly bear (''Ursus arctos horribilis''), also known as the North American brown bear or simply grizzly, is a population or subspecies of the brown bear inhabiting North America. In addition to the mainland grizzly (''Ursus arctos horr ...
,
wolverine The wolverine (), (''Gulo gulo''; ''Gulo'' is Latin for " glutton"), also referred to as the glutton, carcajou, or quickhatch (from East Cree, ''kwiihkwahaacheew''), is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae. It is a muscul ...
,
wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, and gray wolves, as popularly u ...
and many smaller species. The Cabinet Mountain geology is also believed to be potentially rich in minerals.Mineral resources of the Cabinet Mountains Wilderness, Lincoln and Sanders counties, Montana 1981, U. S. Geological Survey; U. S. Bureau of Mines. USGS Bulletin: 1501 In 1916,
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
considered a bill to create a Cabinet National Park. The idea was proposed again in 1933 but was ultimately rejected because the
National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...
director deemed the mountains to lack national significance.


Landscape


See also

*
List of mountain ranges in Montana This is a list of mountain ranges in the state of Montana. Montana is the fourth largest state in the United States and is well known for its mountains. The name "Montana" means "mountainous" in Latin. Representative James Mitchell Ashley ( R-Ohi ...


Notes

Mountain ranges of Montana Mountain ranges of Idaho Landforms of Lincoln County, Montana Landforms of Sanders County, Montana {{SandersCountyMT-geo-stub