Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area was established by an act of Congress on October 15, 1966, following the construction of the Yellowtail Dam

Yellowtail Dam

Yellowtail Dam is a dam across the Bighorn River in southwestern Montana in the United States. The mid-1960s era concrete arch dam serves to regulate the flow of the Bighorn for irrigation purposes and to generate hydroelectric power. The dam and its reservoir, Bighorn Lake, are owned by the U.S...

 by the Bureau of Reclamation. This dam, named after the famous Crow chairman Robert Yellowtail

Robert Yellowtail

Robert "Robbie" Yellowtail was a leader of the Crow Nation. Described as a "20th Century Warrior", Yellowtail was the first Indian to hold the post of Agency Superintendent.-References:...

, harnessed the waters of the Bighorn River

Bighorn River

The Bighorn River is a tributary of the Yellowstone, approximately long, in the western United States in the states of Wyoming and Montana. The river was named in 1805 by fur trader François Larocque for the Bighorn Sheep he saw along its banks as he explored the Yellowstone River.The upper...

 and turned this variable stream into a lake. Archeological and historical resources complement the natural scene. About one third of the area is within the Crow Indian Reservation

Crow Nation

The Crow, also called the Absaroka or Apsáalooke, are a Siouan people of Native Americans who historically lived in the Yellowstone River valley, which extends from present-day Wyoming, through Montana and into North Dakota. They now live on a reservation south of Billings, Montana and in several...

.

Bighorn Lake

Bighorn Lake

Bighorn Lake is a reservoir in the United States located in Southern Montana and Northern Wyoming in the Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area. The lake is 40 mi  south of Billings, Montana. Bighorn Lake was created by the construction of Yellowtail Dam near Fort Smith, Montana in 1965...

 extends 71 miles (114.3 km) through Wyoming

Wyoming

Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...

 and Montana

Montana

Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...

, 55 miles (88.5 km) of which are held within spectacular Bighorn Canyon. The Recreation Area straddles the northern Wyoming and southern Montana borders. There are two visitor centers and other developed facilities; one in Fort Smith, Montana

Fort Smith, Montana

Fort Smith is a census-designated place in Big Horn County, Montana, United States. The population was 122 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Fort Smith is located at ....

, and one near Lovell, Wyoming

Lovell, Wyoming

Lovell is a town in Big Horn County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 2,281 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Lovell is located at ....

. The Afterbay Lake below the Yellowtail Dam is a good spot for trout fishing and wildlife viewing for duck

Duck

Duck is the common name for a large number of species in the Anatidae family of birds, which also includes swans and geese. The ducks are divided among several subfamilies in the Anatidae family; they do not represent a monophyletic group but a form taxon, since swans and geese are not considered...

s, geese

Goose

The word goose is the English name for a group of waterfowl, belonging to the family Anatidae. This family also includes swans, most of which are larger than true geese, and ducks, which are smaller....

, and other animals. The Bighorn River below the Afterbay Dam is a world class trout

Trout

Trout is the name for a number of species of freshwater and saltwater fish belonging to the Salmoninae subfamily of the family Salmonidae. Salmon belong to the same family as trout. Most salmon species spend almost all their lives in salt water...

 fishing area. North of Lovell, there is a spot where one can stand on the canyon rim, shout, and hear a "triple echo

Echo (phenomenon)

In audio signal processing and acoustics, an echo is a reflection of sound, arriving at the listener some time after the direct sound. Typical examples are the echo produced by the bottom of a well, by a building, or by the walls of an enclosed room and an empty room. A true echo is a single...

."