Sawtell Peak is located in the Caribou-Targhee National Forest roughly 1.3 miles (2.1 km) east of Idaho's border with Montana.

Sawtell Peak is the starting point of the easiest route to climb nearby Mount Jefferson.

[3] The mountain and surrounding area is covered by block lava flows that are approximately 1,000 feet (300 m) thick on top of underlying strata from the Paleozoic era.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) operates a long-range radar site that has been tied into the Joint Surveillance System since the September 11th attacks.

[8] The radar is part of the Western Air Defense Sector, headquartered at Joint Base Lewis-McChord near Tacoma, Washington.

This repeater provides coverage to portions of Yellowstone National Park, and the Intertie provides access to amateur radio operators to communicate as far south as Las Vegas, Nevada and Flagstaff, Arizona.

[3] From the top, visitors can see Yellowstone, the Centennial Valley, the Teton Range in Wyoming and the Pioneer Mountains in Montana.