Madison Range
The Madison Range is the westernmost section of what is collectively referred to as the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Most of the range lies within Beaverhead-Deerlodge and Gallatin National Forests. A small portion of the range has been further protected with the creation of the Lee Metcalf Wilderness. The region has grizzly and black bears and at least one pack of wolves. Most other larger mammal species native to the region continue to exist in the range.
Quake Lake lies not far to the south of Hilgard Peak. The lake was created by a landslide which dammed the Madison River at the time of the M7.5 1959 Hebgen Lake earthquake.
Climate
Yellow Mule is a Remote Automated Weather Station on Buck Ridge, located 7.5 miles (12.1 km) north of Big Sky Meadow Village. Yellow Mule has a subalpine climate (Köppen Dfc), bordering on an Alpine climate (Köppen ET).
Climate data for Yellow Mule (RAWS), Montana, 2002–2020 normals: 9200ft (2804m) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 22.1 (−5.5) |
21.3 (−5.9) |
28.1 (−2.2) |
34.8 (1.6) |
44.6 (7.0) |
54.3 (12.4) |
65.2 (18.4) |
62.7 (17.1) |
53.6 (12.0) |
39.0 (3.9) |
27.5 (−2.5) |
19.7 (−6.8) |
39.4 (4.1) |
Daily mean °F (°C) | 16.4 (−8.7) |
14.9 (−9.5) |
21.1 (−6.1) |
26.6 (−3.0) |
36.5 (2.5) |
46.1 (7.8) |
56.1 (13.4) |
53.6 (12.0) |
45.5 (7.5) |
32.0 (0.0) |
21.5 (−5.8) |
14.0 (−10.0) |
32.0 (0.0) |
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 10.6 (−11.9) |
8.6 (−13.0) |
14.1 (−9.9) |
18.4 (−7.6) |
28.5 (−1.9) |
37.8 (3.2) |
46.9 (8.3) |
44.5 (6.9) |
37.3 (2.9) |
25.0 (−3.9) |
15.5 (−9.2) |
8.2 (−13.2) |
24.6 (−4.1) |
Source: XMACIS2 |