Beartooth Mountains

The Beartooth Mountains are a high-elevation mountain range on the Montana-Wyoming border in the western United States. The range includes rugged, glaciated peaks and plateaus and contains Montana’s highest summit, Granite Peak.

The area is notable for its alpine lakes, cirques and extensive high plateaus. The Beartooth Highway (U.S. Route 212) traverses the range and reaches Beartooth Pass at about 10,947 feet, providing seasonal access to high-country trails, fishing and climbing.

Geologically the range is formed from some of the oldest exposed Precambrian rocks in the region that have been uplifted and sculpted by glaciation; the high elevation and rugged terrain support alpine ecosystems and extensive backcountry recreation.

The Beartooths straddle the Montana-Wyoming state line, east of Yellowstone National Park and near towns such as Red Lodge (Montana) and Cooke City (Montana). The range forms part of the headwaters for rivers that flow off the high plateaus.

• Highest point: Contains Montana's highest summit, Granite Peak, at 12,807 feet (3,903 meters).
• Highway pass: U.S. Route 212 - the Beartooth Highway - reaches Beartooth Pass at about 10,947 feet and is a principal high-elevation access route for the range.

What to See #

• Granite Peak: The highest named summit in the range and the highest point in Montana at 12,807 feet (3,903 meters), popular with mountaineers.
• Beartooth Highway: A scenic mountain highway (U.S. Route 212) that climbs to Beartooth Pass at about 10,947 feet and provides direct high-elevation access to alpine plateaus and lakes.
• Wilderness area: A designated wilderness area that protects large tracts of high alpine terrain, glacial cirques and numerous lakes and streams within the range.