Spanning a distance of 40 miles (64 km), the Crazy Mountains are located between the
Musselshell and
Yellowstone rivers. The highest peak is
Crazy Peak at 11,214 feet (3,418 m). Rising over 7,000 feet (2,130 m) above the
Great plains to the east, the Crazies dominate their surroundings and are plainly visible just north of
Interstate 90.
The Big Timber
Stock, a large igneous intrusion, forms the bedrock in the Crazy Mountains.[1] The stock is of
Tertiary age, and consists of
diorite and
gabbro with zones of Quartz Monzodiorite, and which has been intruded by many
dikes and
sills.
Geological features of the Crazy Mountains include:
Due to the eastern location, these mountains are drier and less densely forested than other mountain ranges in Montana. There are at least 40 alpine lakes in the range, 15 of which are named. The Crazy Mountains sit in both
Gallatin National Forest and
Lewis and Clark National Forest. The Crazies support a healthy herd of
mountain goats and the occasional elusive
wolverine.
History
In 1916, the Crazy Mountains were proposed as a location for a national park, but
Congress failed to pass the legislation.
National Park Service officials considered the area again in 1935, but reported that a national park would not be feasible because "half of the land, every alternate section, is owned by the
Northern Pacific Railroad or is in private hands."[2]
Access
The Crazies are almost completely surrounded by private lands making access into the mountains somewhat difficult, especially in the southern section where the highest peaks are located.[3][4]
Name origin
The name Crazy Mountains is said to be a shortened form of the name "Crazy Woman Mountains" given them, in complement to their original
Crow name, after a woman who went insane and lived in them after her family was killed in the westward settlement movement.[5]
The
Crow people called the mountains Awaxaawapìa Pìa, roughly translated as "Ominous Mountains", or even more roughly, "Crazy Mountains". They were famous to the Crow people for having metaphysical powers and being unpredictable—a place used for
vision quests.[6]
Images of the Crazy Mountains
Crazy Peak (left background) rises above a relatively barren region
^* (This is an apocryphal account likely based more on myth than reality. The name is said to have arisen out of a translation error between early white explorers and the Crow natives who valued the Crazy Mountains as a location for vision quests. They attempted to convey this to the explorers, who, likely confused by the notions of vision quest, came to understand the Crazies as a place where one goes crazy.) Melroy, Mark (1986). Islands on the Prairie-The Mountain Ranges of Eastern Montana-Montana Geographic Series #13. Helena, Montana: Montana Magazine. p. 100.
ISBN0-938314-24-6.