The pass carries Interstate 90 across the Continental Divide and is the highest point on the 3,020-mile (4,860 km) highway.

The pass was discovered by Edwin Harrison McHenry, a civil engineer working for the Northern Pacific Railway, who was tasked with locating a route for the NP from the main line near Logan, Montana through to Butte.

The line over the pass from Logan to Garrison, Montana via Butte became the Rocky Mountain Division, Second and Fourth Subdivisions, built in 1889.

It has been inactive since 1983, as its grades and curvature are poorly suited to freight trains, which utilize the former Northern Pacific's easier route via Helena, crossing the Mullan Pass.

Hosted by Butte's Piss and Moan Running Club, the Wulfman CDT 14k is held on the Saturday closest to the Summer solstice.