Turtle Mountain (plateau)

Turtle Mountain
Plateau
View across Turtle Mountain in Turtle Mountain State Forest, North Dakota
Turtle Mountain Location in North Dakota, United States Show map of the United States Turtle Mountain Location in Manitoba, Canada Show map of Canada
Coordinates: 48°58′00″N 100°07′30″W / 48.96667°N 100.12500°W / 48.96667; -100.12500
Location	North Dakota (U.S.) and Manitoba (Canada)
Elevation	600 m (2,000 ft)

Turtle Mountain, or the Turtle Mountains, is an area in central North America, in the north-central portion of the U.S. state of North Dakota and southwestern portion of the Canadian province of Manitoba, approximately 62 miles (100 km) south of the city of Brandon on Manitoba Highway 10 / U.S. Route 281. It is a plateau 2,000 ft (600 m) above sea level, 300 ft to 400 ft (90 m to 120 m) above the surrounding countryside, extending 20 mi (32 km) from north to south and 40 mi (64 km) from east to west. Rising 1,031 feet (314 m), North Dakota's most prominent peak,^[1] Boundary Butte, is located at the western edge of the plateau.

It has timber, numerous lakes, and small deposits of low-grade manganese. One of the largest lakes in the Turtle Mountains is Lake Metigoshe, which straddles the international border, with about one-eighth of the lake in Canada. The region is home to Turtle Mountain Provincial Park, a state park, two historic sites, and various hunting and fishing opportunities.

Turtle Mountain is the traditional territory of the Plains Ojibwe, as well as part of the Métis homeland.^[2] Rapid colonization and settlement in the 19th century, along with the establishment of a firm border between Canada and the United States, displaced many Indigenous peoples to and from the region.^[2] Some identify as the Turtle Mountain Chippewa, who are federally recognized and whose reservation is in the valley on the southeastern edge of the plateau.