Saint Elias Mountains

Saint Elias Mountains

Mt. Saint Elias
Highest point
Peak Mount Logan
Elevation 5,959 m (19,551 ft)
Coordinates 60°34′02″N 140°24′10″W / 60.56722°N 140.40278°W / 60.56722; -140.40278
Dimensions
Length 300 mi (480 km)
Width 90 mi (140 km)
Area 112,509 km2 (43,440 sq mi)
Geography

Saint Elias Mountains, east of the Wrangell Mountains

Countries United States and Canada
States/Provinces Alaska, Yukon and British Columbia
Range coordinates 60°30′N 139°30′W / 60.5°N 139.5°W / 60.5; -139.5Coordinates: 60°30′N 139°30′W / 60.5°N 139.5°W / 60.5; -139.5
Parent range Pacific Coast Ranges
Borders on Wrangell Mountains

The Saint Elias Mountains are a subgroup of the Pacific Coast Ranges, located in southeastern Alaska in the United States, southwestern Yukon and the very far northwestern part of British Columbia in Canada. The range spans Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve in the USA and Kluane National Park and Reserve in Canada and includes all of Glacier Bay National Park in Alaska. In Alaska, the range includes parts of the city/borough of Yakutat and the Hoonah-Angoon and Valdez-Cordova census areas.[1]

This mountain range was named after Mount Saint Elias which had been named in 1741 by the Danish explorer Vitus Bering.[2]

Geology

Although most of the range is non-volcanic, portions at the western end near the Wrangell Mountains are volcanic. This region includes two major stratovolcanoes, Mount Churchill and Mount Bona, the latter being the highest volcano in the United States. West of the Saint Elias Mountains is the still-active Fairweather Fault, which is the northward extension of the Queen Charlotte Fault. The St. Elias range is a result of 10 million years of the North American tectonic plate pushing material up as it overrides the Pacific plate, then the material being worn down by glaciers.[3]

Ranges

The mountains are divided by the Duke Depression, with the shorter, more rounded Kluane Ranges to the east, and the higher Icefield Ranges to the west. Sub-ranges of the Saint Elias include the Alsek Ranges, the Fairweather Range, and the Centennial Range.[4]

Highest mountains

The highest mountains of the range include:

Mountain Height Location Notes
m ft
Mount Logan 5,959 19,551 Yukon Highest mountain in Canada
Mount Saint Elias 5,489 18,008 Alaska-YukonSecond highest in both Canada and the United States
Mount Lucania 5,226 17,147 Yukon #3 in Canada
King Peak 5,173 16,971 Yukon #4 in Canada
Mount Steele 5,073 16,644 Yukon #5 in Canada
Mount Bona 5,005 16,421 Alaska #5 in the United States
Mount Wood 4,842 15,885 Yukon
Mount Vancouver 4,812 15,787 Yukon
Mount Churchill 4,766 15,638 Alaska
Mount Slaggard 4,742 15,557 Yukon
Mount Macaulay 4,690 15,387 Yukon
Mount Fairweather 4,671 15,325 BC-Alaska #1 in BC[5]
Mount Hubbard 4,577 15,015 Yukon
Mount Bear 4,520 14,831 Alaska
Mount Walsh 4,507 14,787 Yukon
Mount Alverstone 4,439 14,565 Alaska-Yukon
University Peak 4,410 14,470 Alaska
McArthur Peak 4,389 14,400 Yukon
Mount Augusta 4,289 14,070 Alaska-Yukon
Mount Kennedy 4,250-4300 ~14,000 Yukon
Mount Cook4,196 13,766 Alaska-Yukon

Notes

  1. ↑ "Saint Elias Mountains". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 2007-12-03.
  2. ↑ "Saint. Elias Mountains". BC Geographical Names. Retrieved 2013-12-27.
  3. ↑ "Glacial Erosion Changes Mountain Responses to Plate Tectonics". Newswise. November 14, 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-17.
  4. ↑ "Saint Elias Mountains". Bivouac.com. Retrieved 2013-03-15.
  5. ↑ Mount Fairweather is only partly in British Columbia. The highest peak entirely within British Columbia is Mount Waddington in the Coast Range, 4019 m (13186 ft).

References

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