U.S. Route 212 in Montana and Wyoming
Highway in Montana and Wyoming
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
U.S. Route 212 (US 212) is a part of the U.S. Highway System that travels from Yellowstone National Park east to Edina, Minnesota. In Montana and Wyoming, it starts at the northeastern entrance of Yellowstone National Park near Silver Gate, Montana and extends approximately 376 miles (605 km) to the South Dakota state near Colony, Wyoming, with it crossing between the two states numerous times.
US 310 from Rockvale, MT to Laurel, MT
I-90 from Laurel, MT to Crow Agency, MT
US 87 from Billings, MT to Crow Agency, MT
I-94 in Billings, MT
US 212 at the South Dakota state lineU.S. Route 212 | |||||||||
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| Beartooth Highway Warrior Trail Highway | |||||||||
 US 212 highlighted in red (Montana) and blue (Wyoming) | |||||||||
| Route information | |||||||||
| Maintained by MDT and WYDOT | |||||||||
| Length | 376.446 mi (605.831 km) | ||||||||
| Major junctions | |||||||||
| West end | Northeastern entrance of Yellowstone National Park | ||||||||
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| East end | US 212 at the South Dakota state line | ||||||||
| Location | |||||||||
| Country | United States | ||||||||
| States | Montana, Wyoming | ||||||||
| Counties | MT: Park, Carbon, Big Horn, Rosebud, Powder River, Carter WY: Park, Crook | ||||||||
| Highway system | |||||||||
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Route description
The official western terminus of US 212 is at the Northeast Entrance of Yellowstone National Park near the Wyoming–Montana state line; however, some commercially produced maps show the highway within the park itself, contiguous with Northeast Entrance Road, starting from its western end at Tower Junction on the Grand Loop. From the park, US 212 begins as the Beartooth Highway, tracing the historical route of Civil War General Philip Sheridan over the Beartooth Mountains. In his book Dateline America published in 1979, the late CBS correspondent Charles Kuralt referred to the highway as "the most beautiful drive in America".[3] The highway travels through an eight-mile (13 km) segment in Montana, past Cooke City, to the Wyoming state line, where it passes through the state for approximately 35 miles (56 km) and crossing Beartooth Pass at an elevation of 10,974 feet (3,345 m) above sea level. US 212 crosses back into Montana and travels approximately 25 miles (40 km) to Red Lodge, which is the eastern terminus of the Beartooth Highway.
US 212 continues northeast from the Beartooth Mountains for 31 miles (50 km) to Rockvale, where it joins US 310 and the two routes share a 13-mile (21 km) concurrency to Laurel. Here US 212 joins Interstate 90 (I-90), while US 310 ends, and they travel nine miles (14 km) east to Billings. On the east side of Billings, US 87 joins I-90 and US 212 and the three routes continue 58 miles (93 km) east to Crow Agency, located within the Crow Indian Reservation.
US 212 leaves I-90 and US 87, becoming the 164-mile (264 km) Warrior Trail Highway,[4] and heads east and southeast through the high plains of Montana. It passes the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, through the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation, to the Wyoming state line southeast to Alzada. US 212 travels for 20.5 miles (33.0 km) through the isolated northeastern extremity of Wyoming before crossing into South Dakota, approximately 13 miles (21 km) northwest of Belle Fourche, South Dakota.
Major intersections
| State | County | Location | mi[1][2] | km | Destinations | Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montana | Park | Yellowstone National Park | 0.000 | 0.000 | Northeast Entrance Road | Continuation into Yellowstone National Park; US 212 / Beartooth Highway western terminus | |||
| Yellowstone National Park boundary (Northeast Entrance); fees required | |||||||||
| Silver Gate | 0.658 | 1.059 | |||||||
| Cooke City | 3.930 | 6.325 | Winter closure gate | ||||||
| Beartooth Highway (US 212) closed mid-October – Memorial Day weekend[5] | |||||||||
| | 5.600 | 9.012 | Colter Pass – elevation 8,048 ft (2,453 m) | ||||||
| Montana–Wyoming state line | 8.340 0.000 | 13.422 0.000 | |||||||
| Wyoming | Park | | 3.930 | 6.325 | Winter closure gate | ||||
| Pilot Creek Parking Lot | Section between Pilot Creek Parking Lot and WYO 296 open year-round[5] | ||||||||
| 9.017 | 14.511 |   Chief Joseph Scenic Byway (WYO 296 east) | |||||||
| Winter closure gate | |||||||||
| 28.600 | 46.027 | Beartooth Pass – elevation 10,974 ft (3,345 m) | |||||||
| Wyoming–Montana state line | 34.764 43.104 | 55.947 69.369 | |||||||
| Montana | Carbon | | 55.709 | 89.655 | Winter closure gate | ||||
| Red Lodge | 66.799 | 107.503 |   S-308 east – Belfry | ||||||
| 68.291 | 109.904 |   MT 78 north (Third Street) – Absarokee, Columbus | Roundabout; Beartooth Highway eastern terminus | ||||||
| Joliet | 92.982 | 149.640 |  S-421 north – Columbus | ||||||
| Rockvale | 99.791 | 160.598 |   US 310 west – Bridger | Western end of US 310 concurrency | |||||
| Laurel | 112.436 | 180.948 |   I-90 west – Butte US 310 north (Main Street) to I-90 BL | I-90 exit 434; eastern end of US 310 concurrency; western end of I-90 concurrency | |||||
| See I-90 (exits 434–510) | |||||||||
| Big Horn | Crow Agency | 189.084 | 304.301 |   I-90 west / US 87 south – Sheridan | I-90 exit 510; eastern end of I-90 / US 87 (continuation from exit 452) concurrency | ||||
| 189.633 | 305.185 | Battlefield Tour Road (S-342 south) – Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument | |||||||
| Busby | 212.706 | 342.317 |  S-314 south – Decker, Sheridan | ||||||
| Rosebud | Lame Deer | 231.026 | 371.800 |    MT 39 north to I-94 / Cheyenne Avenue – Colstrip, Business District | Roundabout | ||||
| Ashland | 251.079 | 404.072 |  S-447 north – St. Labre Mission, Miles City | ||||||
| 251.710 | 405.088 |  S-566 south – Birney | |||||||
| Powder River | | 255.202 | 410.708 |  S-484 south (Otter Creek Road) – Fort Howes | |||||
| 292.405 | 470.580 |  MT 59 south – Birney | Western end of MT 59 concurrency | ||||||
| Broadus | 295.075 | 474.877 |  S-391 south (Moorehead Road) | ||||||
| | 296.971 | 477.928 |  S-398 north (Powder River East Road) – Powderville | ||||||
| 299.523 | 482.036 | MT 59 south – Gillette | Eastern end of MT 59 concurrency | ||||||
| Carter | Boyes | 318.162 | 512.032 |  S-544 south – Belle Creek | |||||
| | 325.616 | 524.028 |  S-277 north – Ekalaka | ||||||
| Alzada | 353.068 | 568.208 |  S-323 north – Ekalaka | ||||||
| 353.425 | 568.782 |  S-326 south – Hulett, Devils Tower | To WYO 112 south | ||||||
| Montana–Wyoming state line | 355.996 0.00 | 572.920 0.00 | |||||||
| Wyoming | Crook |
No major junctions | |||||||
| Wyoming–South Dakota state line | 20.450 | 32.911 | US 212 east – Belle Fourche | Continuation into South Dakota | |||||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
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