The Beartooth Highway is an
All-American Road in the
western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
on a section of
U.S. Route 212 in
Montana
Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...
and
Wyoming
Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...
between
Red Lodge and the Northeast entrance of
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States located in the northwest corner of Wyoming, with small portions extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U ...
. It crests at Beartooth Pass in Wyoming at above
sea level
Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an mean, average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal Body of water, bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical ...
, and was called "the most beautiful drive in America," by late
CBS News
CBS News is the news division of the American television and radio broadcaster CBS. It is headquartered in New York City. CBS News television programs include ''CBS Evening News'', ''CBS Mornings'', news magazine programs ''CBS News Sunday Morn ...
correspondent
Charles Kuralt
Charles Bishop Kuralt (September 10, 1934 – July 4, 1997) was an American television, newspaper and radio journalist and author. He is most widely known for his long career with CBS, first for his "On the Road" segments on '' The CBS Evening ...
.
Because of heavy snowfall at the top, the pass is usually open for about five months per year, from mid-May to mid-October, weather conditions permitting.
[Beartooth Highway Points of Interest](_blank)
Red Lodge Montana Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
Route description
The Beartooth Highway is the section of
U.S. Route 212 between
Red Lodge and
Cooke City, Montana. It traces a series of steep zigzags and
switchbacks, along the Montana–Wyoming border (
45th parallel) to the Beartooth Pass in Wyoming. The approximate elevation rise is from to in in the most daring landscapes.
When driving east to west, the highest parts of the Beartooth Highway level off into a wide plateau near the top of the pass, then descend to the junction with
Wyoming Highway 296 (Chief Joseph Scenic Byway) near Cooke City, the northeast gateway to
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States located in the northwest corner of Wyoming, with small portions extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U ...
. On the way one passes numerous lakes typical of the
Absaroka–Beartooth Wilderness
Absaroka–Beartooth Wilderness was created from existing National Forest lands in 1978 and is located in Montana and Wyoming, United States. The wilderness encompasses two distinct mountain ranges: the Beartooth and Absaroka ranges. These ra ...
which borders the highway along much of its route.
The highway officially opened June 14, 1936.
At this elevation and latitude, snowstorms can occur even in the middle of the summer, and the pass is also known for strong winds and severe thunderstorms. Drivers should plan on a driving time of at least two hours for the trip from Red Lodge to Cooke City, and it is advised to check with the Red Lodge Chamber of Commerce or the Beartooth Ranger District beforehand in case of road closures.
Montana Traveler Information
and Wyoming Travel Information Service
both provide online information on Beartooth Highway travel conditions for their respective portions of the highway.
Altitude sickness
Altitude sickness, the mildest form being acute mountain sickness (AMS), is a harmful effect of high altitude, caused by rapid exposure to low amounts of oxygen at high elevation. People's bodies can respond to high altitude in different wa ...
is also a risk for susceptible individuals going to this altitude with such a rapid increase in elevation.
The Beartooth Highway passes through portions of
Custer,
Shoshone
The Shoshone or Shoshoni ( or ), also known by the endonym Newe, are an Native Americans in the United States, Indigenous people of the United States with four large cultural/linguistic divisions:
* Eastern Shoshone: Wyoming
* Northern Shoshon ...
, and
Gallatin national forests, and near the Absaroka–Beartooth Wilderness.
Despite this, and the
U.S. highway number, and also connecting to state highway 296, it is not maintained by the
Wyoming Department of Transportation
The Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) is the state agency that manages transportation infrastructure and services inWyoming. According to its official mission statement, it aims"to provide a safe, high quality, and efficient transpor ...
or even the
U.S. Forest Service
The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency within the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands covering of land. The major divisions of the agency are the Chief's ...
, with WYDOT stating it does not meet standards for
Wyoming state highways. It is instead maintained by the
National Park Service
The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...
, despite not being part of the park (like the
Foothills Parkway or
Skyline Drive
Skyline Drive is a National Parkway that runs the entire length of the National Park Service's Shenandoah National Park in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, generally along the ridge of the mountains. The drive's northern terminus is at ...
) or being its own unit (like the
Blue Ridge Parkway
The Blue Ridge Parkway is a National Parkway and National Scenic Byway, All-American Road in the United States, noted for its scenic beauty. The parkway, which is the longest linear park in the U.S., runs for through 29 counties in Virginia and ...
and
Natchez Trace Parkway). The
Montana Department of Transportation
The Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) is a governmental agency in the U.S. state of Montana, responsible for numerous programs related to the construction, maintenance, and monitoring of Montana's transportation infrastructure and oper ...
does maintain its portions in Custer and Gallatin national forests at the east and west ends of the highway, respectively.
Neither MDT nor NPS perform
snow removal
Snow removal or snow clearing is the job of removing snow after a snowfall to make travel easier and safer. This is done both by individual households and by governments institutions, and commercial businesses.
De-icing and anti-icing
De-icin ...
except for once in the spring, typically in May, but sometimes not until June if there has been heavy snowfall. Once the road opens,
Beartooth Basin Ski Area opens near the state line at Beartooth Pass, for a short summer-only season that lasts until July.
History
In August 1872, the pass was crossed by
Civil War
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
General
Philip Sheridan
Philip Henry Sheridan (March 6, 1831 – August 5, 1888) was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the American Civil War. His career was noted for his rapid rise to major general and his close association with General-i ...
and 120 men returning from an inspection tour of
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States located in the northwest corner of Wyoming, with small portions extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U ...
. Rather than take the long detour down the
Clarks Fork Yellowstone River
The Clarks Fork of the Yellowstone River (sometimes called the Clark's Fork River) is a tributary of the Yellowstone River, 150 mi (241 km) long in the U.S. states of Montana and Wyoming.
It rises in southern Montana, in the Gallati ...
to return to
Billings, Sheridan took the advice of an old hunter named Shuki Greer, who claimed intimate knowledge of the
Beartooth Mountains. When the road was opened in 1936, it essentially followed Sheridan's route over the pass.
2005 closure
During the spring of 2005, several large
mudslide
A mudflow, also known as mudslide or mud flow, is a form of mass wasting involving fast-moving flow of debris and dirt that has become liquified by the addition of water. Such flows can move at speeds ranging from 3 meters/minute to 5 meters/ ...
s and
rockslides on May 19–20 damaged or destroyed the Montana side of the Beartooth Highway in a dozen places between mile markers 39 and 51. The road was closed for reconstruction, and a $20.4 million construction contract issued which stipulated an October 2005 completion date. Construction was completed ahead of schedule; however, the highway did not reopen for a year.
An estimated of rock was removed from a section of the highway near the top of the switchbacks, and construction crews drilled down to solid bedrock to create new supports for the road.
Major intersections
Gallery
References
Current ConditionsNational Scenic Byways Project: Beartooth Highway US Department of Transportation: National Scenic Highways Program.
External links
Beartooth Highway website*
Historic American Engineering Record
Heritage Documentation Programs (HDP) is a division of the U.S. National Park Service (NPS). It administers three programs established to document historic places in the United States: Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS), Historic American E ...
(HAER) documentation, filed under Cody vicinity, Park County, WY:
**
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{{Montana
All-American Roads
Shoshone National Forest
National Forest Scenic Byways
Transportation in Carbon County, Montana
Transportation in Park County, Montana
Transportation in Park County, Wyoming
Historic American Engineering Record in Montana
Historic American Engineering Record in Wyoming