Yaak, Montana

Yaak is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Lincoln County, Montana,^[2] United States. It is located along the Yaak River, within the Kootenai National Forest. As of the 2020 census, its population was 338.

Yaak, Montana
Census-designated place
Yaak Show map of Montana Yaak Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 48°49′50″N 115°42′32″W
Country	United States
State	Montana
County	Lincoln
Area [1]
• Total	28.12 sq mi (72.83 km2)
• Land	27.85 sq mi (72.12 km2)
• Water	0.28 sq mi (0.71 km2)
Elevation [2]	3,534 ft (1,077 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	338
• Density	12.14/sq mi (4.69/km2)
Time zone	UTC-7 (Mountain (MST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-6 (MDT)
Area code	406
GNIS feature ID	2583869[2]
FIPS code	30-82130

Yaak has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names.^[3]

Yaak derives its name from the Yaak River.^[4] According to local lore, A’ak is a Kootenai name meaning “Arrow.” The Kootenai River forms the shape of a drawn bow; its tributary the Yaak River is its arrow. Homesteaders arrived shortly after the passage of the Forest Homestead Act of 1906.

History

Settlers wandered into the area from Canada in the 1860s, with the first homestead said to be in 1906.^[5]

Climate

This climatic region is typified by large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and cold (sometimes severely cold) winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Yaak has a humid continental climate, abbreviated "Dfb" on climate maps.^[6]

Climate data for Yaak, Montana, 1991–2020 normals, 1998-2020 extremes: 3085ft (940m)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °F (°C)	50 (10)	56 (13)	72 (22)	82 (28)	89 (32)	100 (38)	100 (38)	104 (40)	93 (34)	79 (26)	61 (16)	47 (8)	104 (40)
Mean maximum °F (°C)	42.7 (5.9)	48.5 (9.2)	59.9 (15.5)	73.3 (22.9)	83.0 (28.3)	88.0 (31.1)	94.6 (34.8)	94.3 (34.6)	86.2 (30.1)	70.2 (21.2)	51.7 (10.9)	39.9 (4.4)	96.3 (35.7)
Mean daily maximum °F (°C)	29.3 (−1.5)	35.8 (2.1)	44.4 (6.9)	54.4 (12.4)	64.9 (18.3)	71.1 (21.7)	80.9 (27.2)	81.1 (27.3)	69.8 (21.0)	52.6 (11.4)	35.7 (2.1)	26.5 (−3.1)	53.9 (12.2)
Daily mean °F (°C)	21.7 (−5.7)	25.0 (−3.9)	33.2 (0.7)	40.7 (4.8)	50.0 (10.0)	56.0 (13.3)	62.1 (16.7)	61.6 (16.4)	52.6 (11.4)	40.2 (4.6)	28.6 (−1.9)	20.7 (−6.3)	41.0 (5.0)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C)	14.0 (−10.0)	14.1 (−9.9)	21.9 (−5.6)	27.0 (−2.8)	35.0 (1.7)	40.9 (4.9)	43.4 (6.3)	42.0 (5.6)	35.4 (1.9)	27.8 (−2.3)	21.5 (−5.8)	14.8 (−9.6)	28.2 (−2.1)
Mean minimum °F (°C)	−15.9 (−26.6)	−7.8 (−22.1)	1.6 (−16.9)	15.7 (−9.1)	22.1 (−5.5)	30.1 (−1.1)	33.1 (0.6)	30.7 (−0.7)	23.9 (−4.5)	10.6 (−11.9)	2.3 (−16.5)	−12.2 (−24.6)	−24.2 (−31.2)
Record low °F (°C)	−41 (−41)	−29 (−34)	−30 (−34)	4 (−16)	18 (−8)	25 (−4)	30 (−1)	27 (−3)	19 (−7)	−11 (−24)	−18 (−28)	−27 (−33)	−41 (−41)
Average precipitation inches (mm)	2.27 (58)	1.73 (44)	2.27 (58)	1.23 (31)	2.18 (55)	2.54 (65)	1.17 (30)	0.93 (24)	1.31 (33)	1.70 (43)	2.75 (70)	2.69 (68)	22.77 (579)
Average snowfall inches (cm)	18.1 (46)	13.9 (35)	6.9 (18)	1.7 (4.3)	0.2 (0.51)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.9 (2.3)	12.0 (30)	20.1 (51)	73.8 (187.11)
Average extreme snow depth inches (cm)	21.1 (54)	24.3 (62)	22.4 (57)	9.0 (23)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.0 (0.0)	0.4 (1.0)	6.5 (17)	14.3 (36)	26.7 (68)
Source 1: NOAA[7]
Source 2: XMACIS2 (records, monthly max/mins & 2003-2020 snow)[8]

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
2020	338		—
U.S. Decennial Census[9]