Togwotee Pass (pronounced TOH-guh-tee) is a high

mountain pass A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since mountain ranges can present formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human and animal migration t ...

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 ...

, at an

elevation The elevation of a geographic location (geography), ''location'' is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational equipotenti ...

of 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 ...

. On 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 ...

in the Absaroka Range of northwestern

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 ...

in Teton County, it is between Dubois and Moran Junction in the

Jackson Hole Jackson Hole (originally called Jackson's Hole by mountain men) is a valley between the Gros Ventre Range, Gros Ventre and Teton Range, Teton mountain ranges in the U.S. state of Wyoming, near the border with Idaho, in Teton County, Wyoming, T ...

valley. U.S. Highways 287 and 26 traverse the pass, which is approximately east of Moran Junction. The pass provides the most direct access to

Grand Teton National Park Grand Teton National Park is a national park of the United States in northwestern Wyoming. At approximately , the park includes the major peaks of the Teton Range as well as most of the northern sections of the valley known as Jackson Hole. G ...

from eastern Wyoming. Located between Two Ocean Mountain and Breccia Peak, sweeping vistas of the

Teton Range The Teton Range is a mountain range of the Rocky Mountains in North America. It extends for approximately in a north–south direction through the U.S. state of Wyoming, east of the Idaho state line. It is south of Yellowstone National Park, ...

are visible from the western slopes of the pass. A ski run (mainly a traverse) at the Jackson Hole ski resort is also named Togwotee Pass

Togwotee Pass WY1

Located in the Bridger-Teton National Forest and adjacent to Shoshone National Forest, the pass receives heavy winter

snowfall Snow consists of individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water througho ...

and is a top destination for

snowmobiling A snowmobile, also known as a snowmachine (chiefly Alaskan), motor sled (chiefly Canadian), motor sledge, skimobile, snow scooter, or simply a sled is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow. Their engines normally ...

backcountry skiing Backcountry skiing ( US), also called off-piste (Europe), alpine touring, freeriding or out-of-area, is skiing in the backcountry on unmarked or unpatrolled areas either inside or outside a ski resort's boundaries. This contrasts with alpine s ...

and

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing whereby skiers traverse snow-covered terrain without use of ski lifts or other assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreational activity; however, some still use it as a m ...

. Annual snowfall at the pass often exceeds (reports of over of snow are also known) in any given winter and the road can be shut down for days at a time during

blizzard A blizzard is a severe Winter storm, snowstorm characterized by strong sustained winds and low visibility, lasting for a prolonged period of time—typically at least three or four hours. A ground blizzard is a weather condition where snow th ...

s. The Continental Divide Snowmobile Trail passes through the immediate area.

History

The pass is named for Togwotee, a subchief under Chief Washakie of the Sheepeater tribe, a branch of the

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 ...

s. Togwotee led The Jones Expedition over this pass in 1873. Before the expedition, the pass was reported to be an important trade route for native tribes.

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, Togwotee Pass has a dry-summer

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 ...

, abbreviated "Dsc" on climate maps. The hottest temperature recorded at Togwotee Pass was on June 24, 1988 and July 13, 2002, while the coldest temperature recorded was on December 23, 1983.

References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite book , last=Jones , first=William A. , title=THE RECONNAISSANCE Of NORTHWESTERN WYOMING INCLUDING YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office , year=1875 , pag
1
isbn=0331948184 , url=https://archive.org/details/reportuponreconn00jone {{cite book , last=Sanborn , first=Margaret , date=1978 , title=The Grand Tetons : the story of the men who tamed the western wilderness , url=https://archive.org/details/grandtetonsstory0000sanb , url-access=registration , publisher=New York : Putnam, pag
267
, isbn=0399120459 , author-link=Margaret_Sanborn {{cite book , last=Sanborn , first=Margaret , date=1978 , title=The Grand Tetons : the story of the men who tamed the western wilderness , url=https://archive.org/details/grandtetonsstory0000sanb , url-access=registration , publisher=New York : Putnam, pag
38
, isbn=0399120459 , author-link=Margaret_Sanborn Shoshone National Forest Mountain passes of Wyoming Great Divide of North America Mountain passes of Teton County, Wyoming