Wender·Vista
Beartooth Pass alpine
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileWyoming
on the Wyoming-Montana line, above ten thousand feet

Beartooth Pass alpine

— — the road that climbs above the trees and keeps going.

— Where it lives

Not only on a wall.

A small tile on the nightstand catching the morning. A larger one above the fire. Yours, wherever you spend the slow hours.
— On the nightstand, a 6-inch on a walnut stand
— Among the books, a 6-inch leaning into the spines
— Beside the kettle, a 12-inch propped
— Down a quiet hall, an 18-inch floating off the wall
— Above the fire, the 24-inch in a walnut surround
— a note from the studio

“US-212 lifts off the Clarks Fork plateau and climbs in switchbacks toward the Beartooth Plateau, opening out above timberline into a country of glacial cirques, snowfields, and small bright lakes. Charles Kuralt once called it the most beautiful drive in America. The road closes most winters by mid-October. The summer it stays open is the season of fireweed, marmots, and weather that turns in an hour.

from the studio
Beartooth Pass alpine
— bring it home

Beartooth Pass alpine, on ceramic.

Each tile is finished by hand in our Knoxville studio. Artwork is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure, and rests beneath a thin glossy finish. The colour lives in the surface, not on top of it.

What kind of piece?
One tile — square or rectangle.
How big?
the popular one — counter, shelf, nightstand
6 × 6 in · 15 cm · 1.6 lb
Surface finish
A clear glossy finish — the artwork reads as if under resin. Ideal for show-pieces and framed wall art.
How it sits
A hidden cleat — sits ¼″ proud of the wall.
$58
Hand-finished and shipped from our studio at the foot of the Smokies. On your wall in about ten days.
— size
6 × 6 in
15 cm
— weighs
1.6 lb
solid in the hand
— surface
ceramic, hand-finished
art rests beneath a thin glossy finish
— from
Knoxville, TN
our family studio, at the foot of the Smokies
— start a Coaster Set

Pick any four 4-inch tiles — National Parks you've been to, a Smokies set, the four seasons of one place. $ for a set of , cork-backed, ready to live on the table.

— about Beartooth Pass alpine

The place, in three passes.

A little of what's known, in case you fall down the rabbit hole — or want to go see it yourself.
— the place

Beartooth Pass crests at 10,947 feet on US-212 between Red Lodge, Montana and the northeast corner of Yellowstone, the highest paved through-route in the Northern Rockies. The road climbs onto the Beartooth Plateau, a high tableland of Archean granite carved by ice into cirques, tarns, and U-shaped valleys. It opens around Memorial Day and closes with the first sustained storms of October. The Beartooth Highway is a designated All-American Road, administered by the Custer Gallatin and Shoshone National Forests.

— the air

Above ten thousand feet the air thins fast. Summer afternoons run thirty degrees cooler than the valley floor at Cooke City, and thunderstorms can build out of clear morning skies by one in the afternoon. The plateau is one of the largest expanses of alpine tundra in the lower forty-eight: cushion plants, alpine forget-me-nots, and willows no taller than a boot. Bighorn sheep and mountain goats hold the rock faces; pikas call from the talus. Weather here is the actual subject of the visit, not a backdrop to it.

— the season

The road's open season runs roughly Memorial Day through mid-October, weather permitting, and any of those months can deliver snow. Wildflowers peak from late June through July: glacier lilies first, then paintbrush and lupine on the lower switchbacks, then alpine forget-me-nots above timberline. By September the willows turn copper and the elk are bugling down in Crandall Creek. The Wyoming Department of Transportation publishes current closures; Shoshone National Forest tracks trailhead access. Reaching the summit late in the season is a matter of luck and timing.

— informed by WYDOT travel info
— where
United States · Park County, Wyoming
— within
Shoshone National Forest
— elevation
3,337 m · 10,947 ft
— position
44.9697° N · 109.4719° W
— the neighborhood

What's nearby.

A handful of named places within an hour's walk or short drive. Some we've already painted; some we will.
40 km W
Cooke City
mountain town
50 km NE
Red Lodge
mountain town
50 km W
Yellowstone Northeast Entrance
national park gate
35 km S
Clarks Fork Canyon
river canyon
N
Beartooth Pass alpine
Cooke City
Red Lodge
Yellowstone Northeast Entrance
Clarks Fork Canyon
— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Beartooth Pass alpine — and about bringing the piece home.
— about the place

The summit on US-212 sits at 10,947 feet, the highest paved through-route in the Northern Rockies and one of the highest in the United States.

The Beartooth Highway opens around Memorial Day weekend and usually closes by mid-October, depending on snow. Even in August, mountain weather can force temporary closures at the summit.

The highway runs about 68 miles between Red Lodge, Montana and Cooke City, Montana, crossing into Wyoming over the Beartooth Plateau and meeting the northeast entrance to Yellowstone.

CBS correspondent Charles Kuralt called the Beartooth Highway the most beautiful drive in America during his On the Road broadcasts. The line stuck and became the road's calling card.

The Beartooth Plateau is built of Archean granite and gneiss roughly 2.7 billion years old, among the oldest exposed rock in North America, carved into cirques by Pleistocene glaciers.

Yes. Custer Gallatin and Shoshone National Forests operate several roadside campgrounds, including Island Lake and Beartooth Lake, both above 9,000 feet. They open as snow allows, usually late June.

— about the piece in your home

It carries well for that recipient. The artwork holds the open-country feeling of the plateau rather than a single overlook. A Medium with a handwritten studio note travels especially well.

The palette runs cool granite, snow, and high-sky blue, sitting comfortably in Mountain-modern, Cabin-revival, and Minimalist Western rooms. It also reads well against warm wood paneling and natural linen.

The high-country palette and stained-glass treatment fit alpine modern's quiet, textural direction. Pair the Large with raw wool, blackened steel, and reclaimed timber for a coherent room.

A single Large reads as the anchor above most sofas. For a wider wall, a 4-tile Mural extends the horizon; a 9-tile Mural turns the wall into a window.

Yes. Order the Dura Satin or Matte finish for backsplashes, shower surrounds, and any vertical install. The colour lives in the ceramic surface and tolerates daily wear.

A soft microfibre cloth with water handles most marks. A little dish soap is fine for kitchen splatter. Skip abrasive pads, scouring powders, and acidic or bleach-based cleaners.

Yes. Reid Wender curates and finishes every piece in our Knoxville studio. The art is not licensed from third parties; the WenderVista atlas is single-eye work.

— if this one stayed with you

A few you might also love.

Hand-picked by the eye that found Sorapis. Same air, same kind of quiet.