Montana is a state that has a long history of mining activity; even today many mining operations remain active. I remember taking several trips to visit Garnet ghost town as a child and this cache location provides additional knowledge about the area. Touring the buildings in the ghost town was always fun, but the information I gained seemed to be more about the buildings and less about the people and the settlements. When I spotted this sign I was grateful to learn a little more. Hopefully you can learn a little as well.
During the 1860's a trade center for the gold camps of Beartown, Garnet and Coloma was located across the river from this cache site. The trade center was named Bearmouth and it lasted much longer than the gold camps due to it's location on Mullan Road and the Northern Pacific Railway. The informational sign located at the cache site provides further information on the area and the significance of Bearmouth.
Nowadays this spot is just a rest area on Interstate 90 and the informational sign also provides information on it's history. The password required to log this cache is the first alternate name listed for Mullan Road.
Happy caching!!