Rogers Pass (Montana) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Rogers Pass
Location in Montana
Elevation	5,610 ft (1,710 m)
Traversed by	MT 200
Location	Lewis and Clark County, Montana, United States
Range	Rocky Mountains
Coordinates	47°04′35″N 112°22′11″W / 47.07639°N 112.36972°W / 47.07639; -112.36972
Topo map	USGS Rogers Pass (MT)

Rogers Pass is a mountain pass in Montana, United States. It's quite high up, about 5,610 feet (1,710 m) above sea level! This pass sits right on the Continental Divide, which is like a big line that separates where water flows to the Atlantic or Pacific oceans.

The pass is next to the Helena National Forest and has Montana Highway 200 running through it. This highway offers the quickest way to travel between the cities of Great Falls and Missoula, Montana. Rogers Pass is over 100 miles (160 km) south of another pass called Marias Pass. There are no other roads that cross the Continental Divide between these two passes.

The area between Rogers Pass and Marias Pass is mostly wild and untouched. A large part of it is protected from future building and development. Big wilderness areas like Great Bear, Scapegoat, and Bob Marshall Wilderness have been joined together to form the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex. This huge protected area covers about 1,535,352 acres (6,213.35 km²). It's known for being hard to reach and is one of the last places where grizzly bears still live in the lower 48 states. You can hike about 10 miles (16 km) north from Rogers Pass on the Continental Divide Trail to reach the Scapegoat Wilderness.

How Rogers Pass Got Its Name

Rogers Pass in Montana was named by the Great Northern Railway. They named it after one of their surveyors, A.B. Rogers, who found the pass in 1887. It's pretty cool because A.B. Rogers has two passes named after him! Besides this one in Montana, there's another Rogers Pass in British Columbia, Canada, about 373 miles (600 km) to the northwest.

Back in 1881 and 1882, A.B. Rogers worked for the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR). He found the Rogers Pass in British Columbia, which the CPR then used for their transcontinental railway line across Canada. The CPR named that pass after him.

Later, James J. Hill, who was in charge of the Great Northern Railway, hired Rogers. In 1887, Rogers found the pass in Montana that now carries his name. Soon after, his career ended when he was badly hurt falling from his horse. Even though Hill and the Great Northern eventually chose Marias Pass, 100 miles (160 km) to the north, for their main railroad route, Hill made sure Rogers Pass in Montana was named after the surveyor.

Golden Eagle Migration Route

This region is a fantastic spot to watch golden eagles, and sometimes bald eagles, too! In March and April, strong winds from the west help huge groups of eagles cross the Continental Divide. They are migrating to spend the summer on the Great Plains. During these months, people have seen over 800 golden eagles and 129 bald eagles flying east.

From mid-September through October, a similar migration happens, but in the opposite direction. This route is also used by other raptors like northern goshawks, red-tailed hawks, and rough-legged hawks. Other birds like Canada geese, tundra swans, and snow geese also use the pass when they migrate. You can often watch these golden eagles and other birds from 100 to 500 feet (30 to 150 m) away!

Climate and Weather at Rogers Pass

Rogers Pass has a type of weather called a humid continental climate. This means it has warm to hot summers, but the nights are cooler. Winters are very snowy and cold, sometimes even super cold! Most of the rain and snow falls in late spring and early summer.

Record-Cold Temperature

Rogers Pass holds a special record: it's where the lowest temperature ever was recorded in the contiguous United States (the 48 states connected together). On January 20, 1954, the temperature dropped to an incredible −70 °F (−57 °C) during a very cold period. Only a few places in the world, like Alaska, Antarctica, and parts of Canada and Russia, have recorded lower temperatures.

Since a modern weather station was set up in 1964, the temperature hasn't dropped below −46 °F (−43 °C).