Geologic Features 



Two percent of the Class I and II geologic sites were found in 

 the Kootenai River drainage. Many of the resource experts 

 contacted during the Montana Rivers Study were not familiar with 

 this part of the state. 



Several features stand out. The first is the drumlin field 

 near Eureka on Indian Creek. Drumlins are smooth, elongated hills 

 of compacted glacial till shaped under glacial ice. According to 

 geology experts at the University of Montana, the drumlin field is 

 "oriented in a northwest-southeast direction parallel to the 

 regional direction of ice flow during the Pleistocene." The 

 drumlin field is not covered with trees and is easily seen from 

 U.S. Highway 93 north of Eureka. 



Another outstanding feature in the area is the stream terraces 

 of the Yaak River about five miles above its mouth. A stream 

 terrace is a level area adjacent to or above a water body that 

 indicates a former water level. When viewed in cross sections, 

 stream terraces appear as two sets of stairs descending towards 

 each other on opposite sides of a stream with the stream at the 

 bottom. 



Miner, Savage, and Schoolhouse lakes southeast of Troy near 

 Lake Creek are kettle lakes, believed to have been formed when 

 blocks of ice became detached and were buried by glacial till. 

 After the glacier retreated, the ice melted and left depressions 

 that filled with water. 



43 



