Targhee Pass is a mountain pass located on the Continental Divide

Continental Divide

The Continental Divide of the Americas, or merely the Continental Gulf of Division or Great Divide, is the name given to the principal, and largely mountainous, hydrological divide of the Americas that separates the watersheds that drain into the Pacific Ocean from those river systems that drain...

 in the Henrys Lake Mountains, along the border between southeastern Idaho

Idaho

Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....

 and southwestern 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,...

, at an elevation

Elevation

The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....

 of 7072 feet (2156 m) above sea level.

U.S. Highway 20

U.S. Route 20

U.S. Route 20 is an east–west United States highway. As the "0" in its route number implies, US 20 is a coast-to-coast route. Spanning , it is the longest road in the United States, and the route sparsely parallels Interstate 90...

 crosses the pass, approximately 15 mi (24 km) west of West Yellowstone

West Yellowstone, Montana

West Yellowstone is a town in Gallatin County, Montana, adjacent to Yellowstone National Park. The population was 1,177 at the 2000 census. The town is served by Yellowstone Airport...

, 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,...

, on the western boundary of Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park, established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872, is a national park located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, although it also extends into Montana and Idaho...

. The pass provides the most direct access to Yellowstone Park from southern Idaho.

The pass is located in the Caribou-Targhee National Forest

Caribou-Targhee National Forest

Caribou-Targhee National Forest is located in the states of Idaho and Wyoming, with a small section in Utah in the United States. The forest is broken into several separate sections and extends over . To the east the forest borders Yellowstone National Park, Grand Teton National Park and...

. Henrys Lake

Henrys Lake

Henrys Lake is a small, shallow natural alpine lake, approximately in area, at 4 miles in length and 2 miles in width. It is located at 6472 feet above sea level in the mountains of southeastern Idaho in the United States...

, the headwaters of the Henrys Fork, a tributary

Tributary

A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...

 of the Snake River

Snake River

The Snake is a major river of the greater Pacific Northwest in the United States. At long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean...

 is located just west of the pass. Hebgen Lake

Hebgen Lake

Hebgen Lake is a lake located in Southwest Montana and is created by Hebgen Dam. It is well known for a magnitude 7.5 earthquake which occurred nearby on August 17, 1959, forming Quake Lake which is located immediately downstream.-Recreation:...

, a reservoir on the Madison River

Madison River

The Madison River is a headwater tributary of the Missouri River, approximately 183 miles long, in Wyoming and Montana. Its confluence with the Jefferson and Gallatin rivers near Three Forks, Montana form the Missouri River....

, a tributary of the Missouri River

Missouri River

The Missouri River flows through the central United States, and is a tributary of the Mississippi River. It is the longest river in North America and drains the third largest area, though only the thirteenth largest by discharge. The Missouri's watershed encompasses most of the American Great...

, is located just north of the pass.