The Bighorn National Forest is a U.S. National Forest located in northern

Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the s ...

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 territori ...

and consists of over 1.1 million acres (4,500 km²). Created as a US

Forest Reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

in 1897, it is one of the oldest government-protected forest lands in the U.S. The forest is well east of the continental divide and extends from the

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 Columb ...

border for a distance of 80 miles (130 km) along the spine of the

Bighorn Mountains The Bighorn Mountains ( cro, Basawaxaawúua, lit=our mountains or cro, Iisaxpúatahchee Isawaxaawúua, label=none, lit=bighorn sheep's mountains) are a mountain range in northern Wyoming and southern Montana in the United States, forming a ...

, an outlying mountain range separated from the rest 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 ...

Bighorn Basin The Bighorn Basin is a plateau region and intermontane basin, approximately 100 miles (160 km) wide, in north-central Wyoming in the United States. It is bounded by the Absaroka Range on the west, the Pryor Mountains on the north, the Bigho ...

. Elevations range from 5,000 feet (1,500 m) along the

sagebrush Sagebrush is the common name of several woody and herbaceous species of plants in the genus '' Artemisia''. The best known sagebrush is the shrub '' Artemisia tridentata''. Sagebrushes are native to the North American west. Following is an al ...

and grass-covered lowlands at the foot of the mountains, to 13,189 feet (4,020 m) on top of

Cloud Peak Cloud Peak is the highest peak within the Bighorn Mountains in the U.S. state of Wyoming. It rises to an elevation of and provides onlookers with dramatic views and vistas. The mountain can be climbed most easily from the western side, access ...

, the highest point in the Bighorn Mountains. Around 99% of the land is above . The forest is named after the

Bighorn River The Bighorn River is a tributary of the Yellowstone, approximately long, in the states of Wyoming and Montana in the western United States. The river was named in 1805 by fur trader François Larocque for the bighorn sheep he saw along its ba ...

, which is partially fed by streams found in the forest. Streams in the range are fed primarily by

snowmelt In hydrology, snowmelt is surface runoff produced from melting snow. It can also be used to describe the period or season during which such runoff is produced. Water produced by snowmelt is an important part of the annual water cycle in many par ...

and snowmelt mixed with driving

rainfall Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water f ...

. Within the forest is the

Cloud Peak Wilderness The Cloud Peak Wilderness is located in north central Wyoming in the United States. Entirely within Bighorn National Forest, the wilderness was established in 1984 in an effort to preserve the wildest section of the Bighorn Mountains. The wildernes ...

area in which no motorized or mechanical equipment is allowed. The only access into the 189,000 acre (765 km²) wilderness is on foot or horseback. There are 1,500 miles (2,400 km) of

trail A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or small road usually passing through a natural area. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a path or footpath is the preferred term for a pedestrian or hiking trail. ...

s in the forest, along with 32 improved campgrounds, lodges, and three scenic vehicular byways.

U.S. Route 14 in Wyoming In the U.S. state of Wyoming, U.S. Highway 14 (US 14) runs east to west across the northern part of the state. The road connects South Dakota on the east with Yellowstone National Park on the west. It is mostly a two lane surface road except f ...

, also known as the Bighorn Scenic Byway, crosses the middle of the 30-mile (48 km) wide forest. The Medicine Wheel Passage (U.S. Highway 14A) crosses in the north passing the

Medicine Wheel National Historic Landmark The Medicine Wheel/Medicine Mountain National Historic Landmark (formerly known as the Bighorn Medicine Wheel) is a medicine wheel located in the Bighorn National Forest, in the U.S. state of Wyoming. The Medicine Wheel at Medicine Mountain is a ...

, while the Cloud Peak Skyway ( U.S. Route 16) crosses the highest pass in the forest (Powder River Pass 9,677 ft/ 2,950 m) and is located in the southern section of the forest. The forest headquarters is located in

Sheridan, Wyoming Sheridan is a town in the U.S. state of Wyoming and the county seat of Sheridan County. The town is located halfway between Yellowstone Park and Mount Rushmore by U.S. Route 14 and 16. It is the principal town of the Sheridan, Wyoming, Micropo ...

. There are local

ranger A Ranger is typically someone in a military/paramilitary or law enforcement role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called “ranging”. The term most often refers to: * Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with protecting and ...

district offices in Buffalo, Lovell, and Sheridan. Visitor centers are located at Burgess Junction and near Shell Falls. Burgess Junction, at the intersection of Route 14 and Route 14A about 25 miles from

Dayton Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater Da ...

, also has a ranger station, visitor accommodation, and campgrounds.

History

The Bighorn National Forest was established as the Big Horn National Forest on 22 February 1897, and encompasses 1,198,080 acres. On 1 July 1908 the name was changed to the Bighorn National Forest through an

executive order In the United States, an executive order is a directive by the president of the United States that manages operations of the federal government. The legal or constitutional basis for executive orders has multiple sources. Article Two of t ...

. In September 1981 the national forest had 1,115,171 acres, with 1,107,670 of those acres being National Forest land. Dayton-Kane Road - Bighorn National Forest - 1920s

Dayton-Kane Road - Bighorn National Forest - 1920s

Climate

According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

system, the Bighorn National Forest has a mostly subarctic climate, abbreviated "Dfc" on climate maps.

Ecology and recreation

The Bighorn National Forest contains primarily forest along with alpine meadows and lakes at higher elevations. The forest is primarily

lodgepole pine ''Pinus contorta'', with the common names lodgepole pine and shore pine, and also known as twisted pine, and contorta pine, is a common tree in western North America. It is common near the ocean shore and in dry montane forests to the subalpin ...

, along with several

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of spruce, fir, and

aspen Aspen is a common name for certain tree species; some, but not all, are classified by botanists in the section ''Populus'', of the '' Populus'' genus. Species These species are called aspens: *'' Populus adenopoda'' – Chinese aspen (Chin ...

. While grizzly bears have not inhabited the forest since the early 20th century,

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 ...

s are widespread. Grizzly bears have made a comeback in the decades. Other large mammals include cougars, elk,

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 whi ...

pronghorn The pronghorn (, ) (''Antilocapra americana'') is a species of artiodactyl (even-toed, hoofed) mammal indigenous to interior western and central North America. Though not an antelope, it is known colloquially in North America as the American a ...

, and

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 ma ...

. Coyotes are also present in this forest. Numerous lakes are found within the forest and most are naturally stocked with

trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', '' Salmo'' and '' Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salm ...

and at least 100 other fish species. Meadowlark Lake is a popular recreation area created by the construction of a dam built by Company 841 of the

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was a major part of ...

in 1936. Water quality sampling from the lakes shows the highest acid rain deposition of any mountain chain in the Rockies.

Gallery

File:Centrocercus urophasianus Bighorn National Forest.jpg,

Sage Grouse Sage-grouse are grouse belonging to the bird genus ''Centrocercus.'' The genus includes two species: the Gunnison grouse (''Centrocercus minimus'') and the greater sage-grouse (''Centrocercus urophasianus''). These birds are distributed throug ...

in Bighorn National Forest File:Moose and baby - Bighorn National Forest.jpg, A

cow and her calf near the Shell Ranger Station File:Northern Flicker - Bighorn National Forest.jpg, A northern flicker in a tree File:Twin Buttes - June 2017.jpg, Wildflowers blooming in the short high altitude summer File:Bighorn National Forest - July 12 2017.jpg File:Bighorn National Forest - August 2017.jpg File:Autumn in Bighorns - September 2017 01.jpg

References

External links