Tongue River (Montana)
| Tongue River | |
|---|---|
Map of the Yellowstone River watershed with the Tongue River approximately in the center | |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Wyoming, Montana |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | |
| • location | Big Horn Mountains, Wyoming |
| • coordinates | 44°49′06″N 107°27′20″W / 44.81833°N 107.45556°W |
| Mouth | Yellowstone River |
• location | Miles City, Montana |
• coordinates | 46°24′33″N 105°52′00″W / 46.40917°N 105.86667°W |
| Length | 265 mi (426 km) |
| Basin size | 5,397 sq mi (13,980 km2) |
| Discharge | |
| • location | Miles City, Montana |
| • average | 400 cu ft/s (11 m3/s) |
| • minimum | 0 cu ft/s (0 m3/s) |
| • maximum | 13,300 cu ft/s (380 m3/s) |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries | |
| • right | Pumpkin Creek, Otter Creek, Hanging Woman Creek, Prairie Dog Creek, Goose Creek, Wolf Creek |
The Tongue River is a tributary of the Yellowstone River, approximately 265 mi (426 km) long, in the U.S. states of Wyoming and Montana. The Tongue rises in Wyoming in the Big Horn Mountains, flows generally northeast through northern Wyoming and southeastern Montana, and empties into the Yellowstone River at Miles City, Montana. Most of the course of the river is through the beautiful and varied landscapes of eastern Montana, including the Tongue River Canyon, the Tongue River breaks, the pine hills of southern Montana, and the buttes and grasslands that were formerly the home of vast migratory herds of American bison.
The Tongue River watershed encompasses parts of the Cheyenne and Crow Reservations in Montana. The headwaters lie on the Bighorn National Forest in Wyoming, and the watershed encompasses the Ashland Ranger District of the Custer National Forest. The river's name corresponds to Cheyenne /vetanoveo'he/, where /vetanove/ means "tongue" and /o'he'e/ means "river".