Argon Tower

Argon Tower
Argon Tower
	Southeast aspect
Highest point
Elevation	4,750 ft (1,448 m)
Prominence	230 ft (70 m)
Parent peak	The Organ (4,735 ft)
Isolation	0.28 mi (0.45 km)
Coordinates	38°37′59″N109°36′07″W / 38.633081°N 109.602056°W
Geography
	Argon Tower Location in Utah Argon Tower Argon Tower (the United States)
Country	United States
State	Utah
County	Grand
Protected area	Arches National Park
Parent range	Colorado Plateau
Topo map	USGS The Windows Section
Geology
Rock age	Jurassic
Rock type	Entrada Sandstone
Climbing
First ascent	1964 by Layton Kor
Easiest route	class 5.9 climbing

Last updated December 07, 2024

Argon Tower is a 4,750-foot-elevation (1,448-meter) pillar in Grand County, Utah. It is located within Arches National Park and like many of the rock formations in the park, Argon Tower is composed of Entrada Sandstone. The tower is 260 feet tall,^[4] and topographic relief is significant as the summit rises 450 feet (137 meters) vertically above the Park Avenue Trail in 400 feet (122 meters) laterally. Precipitation runoff from Argon Tower drains to the nearby Colorado River via Courthouse Wash. This landform was shown briefly in the opening scene credits of the 1989 American action-adventure film Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade .

Climbing

The first ascent of the summit was made January 17, 1964, by Layton Kor, Bob Bradley, and Charlie Kemp via the class 5.9 North Face.^[5]^[6] Layton Kor named this tower.^[7]

Other rock-climbing routes on Argon Tower:

North Northeast Arête - class 5.11 ^[8]
West Face - class 5.11 - John Pease, Steve Cheyney - (1972)^[9]

Climate

According to the Köppen climate classification system, Argon Tower is located in a cold semi-arid climate zone with cold winters and hot summers.^[10] Spring and fall are the most favorable seasons to experience Arches National Park, when highs average 60 to 80 °F (15 to 25 °C) and lows average 30 to 50 °F (0 to 10 °C). Summer temperatures often exceed 100 °F (40 °C). Winters are cold, with highs averaging 30 to 50 °F (0 to 10 °C), and lows averaging 0 to 20 °F (−20 to −5 °C). As part of a high desert region, it can experience wide daily temperature fluctuations. The park receives an average of less than 10 inches (25 cm) of rain annually.

Gallery

Northeast aspect
Argon Tower to left, Tower of Babel (right)
Argon Tower left of center
Argon Tower centered
Argon Tower centered, south aspect, from Park Avenue Overlook
Argon Tower centered in the distance
Argon Tower (left), Three Gossips (right)
Argon Tower (left), Three Gossips, The Organ (right)
Argon Tower (left), The Organ (right). Layton Kor named Argon Tower, but later in life couldn't recall the reason why he chose that name. Perhaps it was a play on words: Argon ← Organ
Three Gossips (centered) and Argon Tower (left) viewed from the north
Southeast aspect
Jello Tower (lower left) and Argon Tower (upper right)
Argon Tower (left), Tower of Babel (centered), The Candelabrum (right)
Argon to right of center, viewed from north

Related Research Articles

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Sentinel Spire is a 5,500-foot-elevation (1,676-meter) sandstone pillar located in Colorado National Monument, in Mesa County of western Colorado, United States. This 200-foot freestanding tower is situated in Wedding Canyon, one-half mile east of the monument's visitor center, and 9 miles (14 km) west of the community of Grand Junction. It is also immediately south of Window Rock, and north of another climbing destination, Pipe Organ, both of which can be seen from viewpoints along Rim Rock Drive. The first ascent of the summit was made May 3, 1960, by Layton Kor, Harvey Carter, and John Auld via the class 5.10 route, Fast Draw. This was the day before the climbers also made the first ascent of nearby Kissing Couple. The first solo ascent was made by Ron Olevsky in March 1976, and the first free ascent was made by Andy Petefish and John Christenson in 1978. Some climbers refer to Sentinel Spire as Watusi Spear.

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Echo Tower is a 5,784-foot-elevation (1,763-meter) pillar in Grand County, Utah, United States.

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Queen Victoria Rock is a 4,780-foot-elevation (1,457-meter) pillar in Grand County, Utah, United States.

Jello Tower is a 4,510-foot-elevation (1,375-meter) pillar in Grand County, Utah, United States.

The Candelabrum is a 4,700-foot-elevation (1,433-meter) pillar in Grand County, Utah, United States.

Mars Hotel is a 4,635-foot-elevation (1,413-meter) summit in Grand County, Utah, United States.

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References

1 2 3 4 "Argon Tower, Utah". Peakbagger.com.
1 2 3 "Argon Tower - 4,700' UT". listsofjohn.com. Retrieved 2024-09-06.
↑ The American Alpine Journal 1989, The Mountaineers Books, 1997, ISBN 9780930410391, p. 156.
↑ Stewart M. Green, Rock Climbing Utah, Rowman & Littlefield, 2012, ISBN 9780762792849, p. 20.
↑ First Ascent Timeline, deserttowersbook.com, Retrieved 2024-09-06.
↑ Eric Bjørnstad, Desert Rock: Rock Climbs in the National Parks, Chockstone Press, 1996, ISBN 9781575400105.
↑ Katy Cassidy, Canyon Country Climbs, Pruett Publishing Company, 1989, ISBN 9780871087669, p. 35.
↑ North Northeast, Mountain Project, Retrieved 2024-09-06.
↑ West Face, Mountain Project, Retrieved 2024-09-06.
↑ Peel, M. C.; Finlayson, B. L. & McMahon, T. A. (2007). "Updated world map of the Köppen−Geiger climate classification". Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 11 (5): 1633–1644. Bibcode:2007HESS...11.1633P. doi: 10.5194/hess-11-1633-2007 . ISSN 1027-5606. S2CID 9654551.

External links

Argon Tower Rock Climbing: Mountainproject.com
Arches National Park: National Park Service

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[pb-1] 1 2 3 4 "Argon Tower, Utah". Peakbagger.com.

[listsofjohn-2] 1 2 3 "Argon Tower - 4,700' UT". listsofjohn.com. Retrieved 2024-09-06.

[3] The American Alpine Journal 1989, The Mountaineers Books, 1997, ISBN 9780930410391, p. 156.

[4] Stewart M. Green, Rock Climbing Utah, Rowman & Littlefield, 2012, ISBN 9780762792849, p. 20.

[5] First Ascent Timeline, deserttowersbook.com, Retrieved 2024-09-06.

[6] Eric Bjørnstad, Desert Rock: Rock Climbs in the National Parks, Chockstone Press, 1996, ISBN 9781575400105.

[7] Katy Cassidy, Canyon Country Climbs, Pruett Publishing Company, 1989, ISBN 9780871087669, p. 35.

[8] North Northeast, Mountain Project, Retrieved 2024-09-06.

[9] West Face, Mountain Project, Retrieved 2024-09-06.

[Peel-10] Peel, M. C.; Finlayson, B. L. & McMahon, T. A. (2007). "Updated world map of the Köppen−Geiger climate classification". Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 11 (5): 1633–1644. Bibcode:2007HESS...11.1633P. doi: 10.5194/hess-11-1633-2007 . ISSN 1027-5606. S2CID 9654551.

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