Chief Joseph Scenic Highway
Wyoming Highway 296
Cody, WY
A high, switchbacking mountain highway named for Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce, with some of the biggest views in Wyoming.
The Chief Joseph Scenic Highway is one of the great drives in Wyoming, a mountain road that switchbacks up to Dead Indian Pass and then rolls through the wild Absaroka country between Cody and the Beartooth Highway. From the summit the land falls away in every direction, ridge after ridge of the Absaroka Range running to the horizon.
The road is named for Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce, whose people passed through this rugged country in 1877 during their long attempt to reach safety. The scenery alone would earn the drive its reputation, but the history gives it real weight, and together they make it a route worth going out of your way for.
What Guests Love
- The dizzying switchback climb to the top of Dead Indian Pass
- A summit overlook with views across the Absaroka wilderness
- The wild, lonely beauty of Sunlight Basin and the Clarks Fork canyon
- A quiet, uncrowded alternative route toward the Beartooths and Yellowstone
Worth Knowing
- The highway is high and closes in winter, generally open only in the warmer months
- It is a steep, curving mountain road, so take the grades slowly and watch for weather
- Services are almost nonexistent along the route, so fuel up and carry water in Cody
- This is grizzly country, so treat any stops and short hikes accordingly
Details
Cody, WY
Learn about Chief Joseph Scenic Highway
Dead Indian Pass
The centerpiece of the drive is the climb to Dead Indian Pass, where the highway bends back on itself in a series of tight switchbacks to top out at nearly 8,000 feet. A summit overlook lets you pull off and take in the view back down the switchbacks and out across the folded ranges, one of the widest vistas in the region.
From the pass the road drops into the high valleys beyond, and the sense of scale is immense. On a clear day the layered peaks of the Absarokas seem to go on without end, and the emptiness of the country is part of what makes the drive so memorable.
The Nez Perce flight of 1877
The highway honors Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce, who in 1877 left their Pacific Northwest homeland rather than be forced onto a reservation and set out on a journey of more than a thousand miles toward the Canadian border, pursued by the Army. Their route carried them through this corner of Wyoming and the newly created Yellowstone.
In the rough country near here the Nez Perce slipped past the soldiers by descending the difficult Clarks Fork canyon, a feat the Army had thought impossible. The Nez Perce are a living people whose descendants carry this history today, and the road's name keeps their courage and hardship in view for everyone who drives it.
Sunlight Basin and the Clarks Fork
Beyond the pass the highway skirts Sunlight Basin, a broad, ranch-dotted valley ringed by mountains, and crosses Sunlight Creek on the highest bridge in Wyoming, with the gorge dropping far below. Nearby the Clarks Fork of the Yellowstone carves a deep canyon, the only stream in the state protected as a Wild and Scenic River.
The whole basin is wild, thinly settled country on the edge of the Absaroka-Beartooth wilderness, rich with elk, deer, bighorn sheep, black and grizzly bears, and the occasional wolf. Side roads and trailheads lead off into the backcountry for those who want to linger.
Driving the highway
The route runs as Wyoming Highway 296, connecting the Cody area to the Beartooth Highway near the Montana line, and makes a spectacular back way toward Yellowstone's northeast corner. Allow more time than the mileage suggests, since the grades, curves, and overlooks invite a slow pace.
The road is open in the warmer months and closes with the snows of winter, so plan a summer or early-fall trip. Fill the tank and stock up in Cody first, watch the weather at the pass, and treat every overlook as a reason to stop, because the views are the whole point.
Closest Boutels
The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.
Things to Do Near Cody
Cody
About 30 miles southeast
The town founded by Buffalo Bill, gateway to Yellowstone's east entrance, home of the sprawling Buffalo Bill Center of the West and a nightly summer rodeo.
Beartooth Highway
At the route's north end
One of the most spectacular drives in America, climbing above 10,000 feet across the Beartooth Plateau toward Yellowstone's northeast entrance.
Clarks Fork Canyon
Along the route
A deep, dramatic gorge where the Clarks Fork of the Yellowstone, Wyoming's only Wild and Scenic River, cuts through the mountains.