2000 Map of Mount Cowen

About this map

Mount Cowen stands as the dramatic centerpiece of this high-altitude landscape, where the administrative boundaries of the Livingston Big Timber Ranger District meet. The map reveals a complex alpine environment protected within the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness and the broader Gallatin National Forest. This terrain is defined by its verticality, with prominent summits like Mount McKnight and Black Mountain overseeing a network of glacial basins. Water is a defining feature here, collected in high-country basins such as Pine Creek Lake, Lake McKnight, and Trapper Lake. These reservoirs feed numerous drainages, including the Boulder River and the headwaters of Pine Creek, which carve through the steep topography. The lack of roads or permanent structures reflects the primitive state of the wilderness area at the turn of the millennium, preserved for its natural character and remote watersheds like Jungle Creek and Tumble Creek.