Yellowstone River rises near the Continental Divide in northwestern Wyoming. It flows north into Yellowstone National Park, where it forms Yellowstone Lake. The lake covers 137 square miles (355 square kilometers) at an elevation of 7,731 feet (2,356 meters). It is one of the largest high-elevation lakes in North America. North of the lake, the river plunges 109 feet (33 meters) over its upper falls and 308 feet (94 meters) over its lower falls into Yellowstone Canyon. Then it flows northeast across the Great Plains of Montana. The Yellowstone flows a total distance of 671 miles (1,080 kilometers). It joins the Missouri River on the Montana-North Dakota line.
