Cirque Peak (Alberta)

Last updated
Cirque Peak
Cirque Peak AB 1994.jpg
Cirque Peak from Helen Lake, July 1994
Highest point
Elevation 2,993 m (9,820 ft) [1]
Prominence 341 m (1,119 ft) [2]
Parent peak Observation Peak [2]
Listing Mountains of Alberta
Coordinates 51°42′00″N116°25′04″W / 51.70000°N 116.41778°W / 51.70000; -116.41778 [3]
Geography
Canada Alberta relief location map - transverse mercator proj.svg
Red triangle with thick white border.svg
Cirque Peak
Location in Alberta
Country Canada
Province Alberta
Protected area Banff National Park
Parent range Canadian Rockies
Topo map NTS 82N9 Hector Lake [3]
Climbing
First ascent 1899 [2] [4]
Easiest route Easy Scramble [5]

Cirque Peak is a 2,993-metre (9,820-foot) peak located directly west of Dolomite Pass in the Bow River valley of Banff National Park, in the Canadian Rockies of Alberta, Canada.

Contents

The mountain forms a cirque, hence the name. [6]

Scrambling Route

The scrambling route (rated easy) begins just beyond Helen Lake which can be reached by following the Helen Lake/Dolomite Pass trail 6 km from the trail head beside the Icefields Parkway. From the lake, follow the trail into Dolomite Pass and then choose a line up the peak. [5]

Geology

Like other mountains in Banff Park, Cirque Peak is composed of sedimentary rock laid down during the Precambrian to Jurassic periods. [7] Formed in shallow seas, this sedimentary rock was pushed east and over the top of younger rock during the Laramide orogeny. [8]

Climate

Based on the Köppen climate classification, Cirque Peak is located in a subarctic climate with cold, snowy winters, and mild summers. [9] Temperatures can drop below −20 °C with wind chill factors below −30 °C.

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References

  1. Bow Lake and Saskatchewan Crossing (Map). 1:70,000. Gem Trek Publishing. 2000. ISBN   1-895526-10-8. Archived from the original on 2019-06-09. Retrieved 2019-06-08.
  2. 1 2 3 "Cirque Peak". Bivouac.com. Retrieved 2012-07-01.
  3. 1 2 "Cirque Peak". Geographical Names Data Base . Natural Resources Canada . Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  4. "Cirque Peak". cdnrockiesdatabases.ca. Retrieved 2019-06-08.
  5. 1 2 Kane, Alan (1999). "Cirque Peak". Scrambles in the Canadian Rockies . Calgary: Rocky Mountain Books. pp. 222–223. ISBN   0-921102-67-4.
  6. Place-names of Alberta. Ottawa: Geographic Board of Canada. 1928. p. 34. Retrieved 2019-06-08.
  7. Belyea, Helen R. (1960). The Story of the Mountains in Banff National Park (PDF). parkscanadahistory.com (Report). Ottawa: Geological Survey of Canada. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2015-10-02. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
  8. Gadd, Ben (2008), Geology of the Rocky Mountains and Columbias
  9. 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.
Cirque Peak and Helen Lake (bottom left) Cirque Peak and Helen Lake.jpg
Cirque Peak and Helen Lake (bottom left)