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2024 Map of Lothair SW

Name: 2024 Topographic Map of Lothair SW
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 2024
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 2024

About this map

Lake Elwell dominates this northern Montana landscape, where its irregular, branching shoreline meets the deep drainages of the high plains. The impounded waters of the Marias River create a complex geography of flooded coulees and high plateaus, reflecting the modern management of water in this semi-arid region. In the northern reaches, Willow Creek flows through a series of dramatic breaks, including Emerson Coulee and Bishop Coulee, which cut deeply into the surrounding benchland.

Transportation follows the rigid lines of the Public Land Survey System, with roads like 4800 Rd S and 200 Rd E defining the grain of the land. Mountain Highway 366 serves as the primary east-west artery across the southern half of the quadrangle. This 2024 survey by the U.S. Geological Survey illustrates how the modern road network navigates the natural obstacles formed by Smith Coulee and Pondera Coulee, showing the persistence of traditional ranching and agricultural access routes.