What river begins in Lewis and Clark County outside of Missoula, Montana?
Missoula, Montana Missoula is a city in the U.S. state of Montana and is the county seat of Missoula County. It is located along the Clark Fork River near its confluences with the Bitterroot and Blackfoot Rivers in western Montana and at the convergence of five mountain ranges, thus is often described as the "hub of five valleys". In 2016 , the United States Census Bureau estimated the city's population at 72,364 and the population of the Missoula Metropolitan Area at 116,130. In the 1990s, Missoula overtook GreatFalls as Montana’s second‑largest city, behind Billings. Missoula is home to the University of Montana, a public research university.
Horseshoe Hills The Horseshoe Hills, el. 6673 ft , are a roughly crescent-shaped range of hills north of Manhattan, Montana in Gallatin County, Montana. They lie in the area between the southern Big Belt Mountains and the northern Bridger Range. The hills are bounded on the north by Sixteen Mile Creek (which begins in the Crazy Mountains), the first major tributary of the Missouri River. As they are in the rain shadow of the Boulder, Elkhorn, and Bull Mountains to the west, the Horseshoe Hills are notably dry, receiving 10 - 12 inches of precipitation annually. This is especially true on the southern and southeastern flanks, which are also in the rain shadow of the hills themselves. In the driest areas, Missouri foxtail cacti, plains prickly pear cacti, and yucca abound, as well as prairie rattlesnakes. Much of the hills are private property, but there is also some State, BLM, and National Forest land.