Spot Mountain is a mountain summit located in the

Two Medicine Two Medicine is the collective name of a region located in the southeastern section of Glacier National Park (U.S.), Glacier National Park, in the U.S. state of Montana. It has a campground alongside Two Medicine Lake. From the period starting in ...

area of Glacier National Park, in Glacier County,

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 ...

, United States. It is situated in the

Lewis Range The Lewis Range is a mountain range located in the Rocky Mountains of northern Montana, United States and extreme southern Alberta, Canada. It was formed as a result of the Lewis Overthrust, a geologic thrust fault involving the overlying of ...

, nine miles northwest of East Glacier Park Village, and approximately five miles east of the

Continental Divide A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not ...

. Precipitation runoff from the mountain drains into tributaries of

Cut Bank Creek The Cut Bank Creek is a tributary of the Marias River in the Missouri River basin watershed, approximately 75 mi (123 km) long, in northwestern Montana in the United States, which having deeply eroded steep cliff banks eponymously give ...

and

Two Medicine River The Two Medicine River is a tributary of the Marias River, approximately 60 mi (97 km) long, in northwestern Montana in the United States. It rises in the Rocky Mountain Front in Glacier National Park at the continental divide and ...

, which merge to form the

Marias River The Marias River is a tributary of the Missouri River, approximately 210 mi (338 km) long, in the U.S. state of Montana. It is formed in Glacier County, in northwestern Montana, by the confluence of the Cut Bank Creek and the Two M ...

Topographic relief Terrain (), alternatively relief or topographical relief, is the dimension and shape of a given surface of land. In physical geography, terrain is the lay of the land. This is usually expressed in terms of the elevation, slope, and orientati ...

is significant as the south aspect rises nearly above Lower Two Medicine Lake in two miles. The mountain's name was officially adopted in 1929 by the

United States Board on Geographic Names The United States Board on Geographic Names (BGN) is a Federal government of the United States, federal body operating under the United States Secretary of the Interior. The purpose of the board is to establish and maintain uniform usage of geogr ...

Geology

The mountains in Glacier National Park are composed of

sedimentary rock Sedimentary rocks are types of rock (geology), rock formed by the cementation (geology), cementation of sediments—i.e. particles made of minerals (geological detritus) or organic matter (biological detritus)—that have been accumulated or de ...

laid down during the

Precambrian The Precambrian ( ; or pre-Cambrian, sometimes abbreviated pC, or Cryptozoic) is the earliest part of Earth's history, set before the current Phanerozoic Eon. The Precambrian is so named because it preceded the Cambrian, the first period of t ...

Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately 143.1 Mya. ...

periods. Formed in shallow seas, this sedimentary rock was initially uplifted beginning 170 million years ago when the

Lewis Overthrust The Lewis Overthrust is a geologic thrust fault structure of the Rocky Mountains found within the bordering national parks of Glacier in Montana, United States and Waterton Lakes in Alberta, Canada. The structure was created due to the collision o ...

fault pushed an enormous slab of

precambrian The Precambrian ( ; or pre-Cambrian, sometimes abbreviated pC, or Cryptozoic) is the earliest part of Earth's history, set before the current Phanerozoic Eon. The Precambrian is so named because it preceded the Cambrian, the first period of t ...

rocks thick, wide and long over younger rock of the

cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 143.1 to 66 mya (unit), million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era (geology), Era, as well as the longest. At around 77.1 million years, it is the ...

period.

Climate

According to the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Spot Mountain is located in an alpine

subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a continental climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of ...

zone with long, cold, snowy winters, and cool to warm summers. Winter temperatures can drop below −10 °F with wind chill factors below −30 °F. Due to its altitude, it receives precipitation all year, as snow in winter, and as thunderstorms in summer.

Gallery

File:Spot Mountain from Scenic Point.jpg, Spot Mountain seen from Scenic Point File:Eastern lobe of Spot Mountain.jpg, Eastern lobe of Spot Mountain File:Alpine Hiker on Spot Mountain.jpg, Hiker on Spot Mountain File:4449 10 17 2009x3 033x - Flickr - drewj1946.jpg, Spot Mountain seen with Two Medicine River train trestle

References

External links

* Weather forecast
Spot Mountain
{{Geographic Location , Center = Spot Mountain , North =

Mad Wolf Mountain Mad Wolf Mountain is located in the Lewis Range of the Glacier National Park in the U.S. state of Montana. Mad Wolf Mountain is just west of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation, and rises abruptly above the Great Plains The Great Plains is a ...

, Northeast = South Fork

, East =

Blackfeet Indian Reservation The Blackfeet Nation (, ), officially named the Blackfeet Tribe of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation of Montana, is a federally recognized tribe of Siksikaitsitapi people with an Indian reservation in Montana. Tribal members primarily belong ...

, Southeast = Lower Two Medicine Lake , South = Scenic Point , Southwest =

Rising Wolf Mountain Rising Wolf Mountain - Mah-kwi-i-po-ats-ists (Wolf Rising Mountain), () is located in the Lewis Range, Glacier National Park in the U.S. state of Montana. The peak is in the southeastern section of the park and rises dramatically above the Two M ...

, West = Red Mountain , Northwest =

Eagle Plume Mountain Eagle Plume Mountain () is located in the Lewis Range, Glacier National Park in the U.S. state of Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bo ...

Mountains of Glacier County, Montana Mountains of Glacier National Park (U.S.) Lewis Range Mountains of Montana Two-thousanders of the United States

Geology

Climate

Gallery

See also

References

External links