Bighorn River Wind River Canyon near the town of Thermopolis. From there, the river flows through the Bighorn Basin in north central Wyoming, passing through Thermopolis and Hot Springs State Park. At the border with Montana, the river turns northeast, and flows past the north end of the Bighorn Mountains, through the Crow Indian Reservation, where the Yellowtail Dam forms the Bighorn Lake reservoir. The reservoir and the surrounding canyon are part of the Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area. The Little Bighorn River joins the Bighorn near the town of Hardin, Montana. Approximately fifty miles farther downriver, the Bighorn River ends where
Wooden Leg: A Warrior Who Fought Custer and was later appointed a judge at the Tongue River Indian Reservation. Wooden Leg describes in detail how he befriended the old chief Little Wolf towards the end of the latter's life. Little Wolf had been a great war leader but was now ostracised for having killed another Cheyenne while drunk. Wooden Leg's description of the Battle of the Little Bighorn caused controversy when the book was first published, particularly his claim that many of the US soldiers committed suicide. This claim is still discussed by scholars and has been investigated by archeologists, but no firm conclusions have been reached.