Mount Sir Donald

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Mount Sir Donald
Mount Sir Donald from Abbot Ridge.jpg
Mount Sir Donald from Abbott Ridge
Highest point
Elevation 3,284 m (10,774 ft) [1]
Prominence 874 m (2,867 ft) [1]
Parent peak Mount Dawson
Coordinates 51°15′47.2″N117°25′53.0″W / 51.263111°N 117.431389°W / 51.263111; -117.431389 Coordinates: 51°15′47.2″N117°25′53.0″W / 51.263111°N 117.431389°W / 51.263111; -117.431389
Geography
Canada British Columbia relief location map.jpg
Red triangle with thick white border.svg
Mount Sir Donald
Canada relief map 2.svg
Red triangle with thick white border.svg
Mount Sir Donald
Mount Sir Donald (Canada)
District Kootenay Land District
Parent range Selkirk Mountains
Topo map NTS 82N6 Blaeberry
Climbing
First ascent Emil Huber, Carl Sulzer, Harry Cooper, 1890

Mount Sir Donald is a 3,284-metre (10,774-foot) mountain summit located in the Rogers Pass area of Glacier National Park in the Selkirk Mountains of British Columbia, Canada. Its good rock quality and classic Matterhorn shape make it popular for alpine rock climbers, and the Northwest Arete route is included in the popular book Fifty Classic Climbs of North America .

Contents

It was originally named Syndicate Peak in honor of the group who arranged the finances for the completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway, but was later renamed after Donald Smith, 1st Baron Strathcona and Mount Royal, head of the syndicate. [1]

The first ascent was made in 1890 by Emil Huber and Carl Sulzer of Switzerland and porter Harry Cooper. [1] [2] As of the 1910s, an average of three or four ascents per year were being made. [3]

Climate

Based on the Köppen climate classification, the mountain has a subarctic climate with cold, snowy winters, and mild summers. [4] Temperatures can drop below −20 °C with wind chill factors below −30 °C. Precipitation runoff from the mountain drains west into the Illecillewaet River, or east into the Beaver River.

See also

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Mount Cooper is a prominent 3,094-metre (10,151 ft) glaciated mountain summit located in the Selkirk Mountains of southeast British Columbia, Canada. It is situated 36 km (22 mi) northwest of Kaslo, within Goat Range Provincial Park. Mt. Cooper is the highest peak in the Goat Range and Slocan Ranges, which are subsets of the Selkirks. The nearest higher peak is Truce Mountain, 33 km (21 mi) to the east-northeast. The first ascent of Mount Cooper was made August 10, 1962, by William Boulton, Terry Beck, Richard Hahn, Lorna Ream, Jack Steele, Edward Bouttin and Gary Johnson via the Spokane Glacier. This climbing party was from the Spokane Mountaineers organization. The mountain was named in association with Cooper Creek, which in turn was named after an 1880s Kaslo prospector and trapper. The mountain's name was officially adopted June 9, 1960, when approved by the Geographical Names Board of Canada. Prior to 1960 it was called Cooper Mountain.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Mount Sir Donald". Bivouac.com. Retrieved 2008-12-27.
  2. "On The Top Of Mount Sir Donald". The New York Times . 1890-08-08. Retrieved 2008-12-27.
  3. Howard Palmer (1914). Mountaineering and Exploration in the Selkirks. G. P. Putnam's sons. pp.  46.
  4. Peel, M. C.; Finlayson, B. L.; McMahon, T. A. (2007). "Updated world map of the Köppen−Geiger climate classification". Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 11: 1633–1644. ISSN   1027-5606.

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