Northern Rocky Mountains

Last updated
Northern Rocky Mountains
Northern Rockies
Canada British Columbia relief location map.jpg
Red triangle with thick white border.svg
Northern Rockies
British Columbia, Canada
Highest point
Peak Mount Ulysses (Depending on source)
Elevation 3,024 m (9,921 ft) [1]
Coordinates 57°20′47″N124°5′34″W / 57.34639°N 124.09278°W / 57.34639; -124.09278 Coordinates: 57°20′47″N124°5′34″W / 57.34639°N 124.09278°W / 57.34639; -124.09278 [2]
Geography
LocationBritish Columbia, Canada
Parent range Canadian Rockies

The Northern Rocky Mountains, usually referred to as the Northern Rockies, are a subdivision of the Canadian Rockies comprising the northern half of the Canadian segment of the Rocky Mountains. While their northward limit is easily defined as the Liard River, which is the northward terminus of the whole Rockies, the southward limit is debatable, although the area of Mount Ovington and Monkman Pass is mentioned in some sources, as south from there are the Continental Ranges, which are the main spine of the Rockies forming the boundary between British Columbia and Alberta. [3] Some use the term to mean only the area north of the Peace Arm of the Williston Reservoir, and in reference to Northern Rocky Mountains Provincial Park, while others consider the term to extend all the way south, beyond the limit of the Hart Ranges at Mount Ovington, to include the McBride area, the Sir Alexander Group and Mount Robson. [4]

Contents

The area south of the Williston Reservoir,- the Hart Ranges - is much more accessible and better-known, while north of Lake Wililston the Northern Rockies are extremely remote and rarely visited or photographed. The Hart Ranges are traversed by BC Highway 97 (the John Hart Highway) and the Peace River extension of the former BC Rail line (now part of Canadian National Railways), which use the Pine Pass, and also by the Tumbler Ridge spur line to the Sukunka River coalmines. The Alaska Highway traverses the northernmost part of the range via Stone Mountain and Muncho Lake Provincial Parks.

Subranges

Provincial parks

In addition to Northern Rocky Mountains Provincial Park, other parks in the Northern Rockies are:

Related Research Articles

Mount Robson Mountain in British Columbia, Canada

Mount Robson is the most prominent mountain in North America's Rocky Mountain range; it is also the highest point in the Canadian Rockies. The mountain is located entirely within Mount Robson Provincial Park of British Columbia, and is part of the Rainbow Range. Mount Robson is the second highest peak entirely in British Columbia, behind Mount Waddington in the Coast Range. The south face of Mount Robson is clearly visible from the Yellowhead Highway, and is commonly photographed along this route.

Canadian Rockies Mountain range in Canada

The Canadian Rockies or Canadian Rocky Mountains, comprising both the Alberta Rockies and the B.C. Rockies, is the Canadian segment of the North American Rocky Mountains. It is the easternmost part of the Canadian Cordillera, which is the northern segment of the North American Cordillera, the expansive system of interconnected mountain ranges between the Interior Plains and the Pacific Coast that runs northwest–southeast from central Alaska to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Mexico.

Mount Robson Provincial Park Provincial park in British Columbia, Canada

Mount Robson Provincial Park is a provincial park in the Canadian Rockies with an area of 2,249 km². The park is located entirely within British Columbia, bordering Jasper National Park in Alberta. The B.C. legislature created the park in 1913, the same year as the first ascent of Mount Robson by a party led by Conrad Kain. It is the second oldest park in the provincial system. The park is named for Mount Robson, which has the highest point in the Canadian Rockies and is located entirely within the park.

Peace River River in Canada

The Peace River is a 1,923-kilometre-long (1,195 mi) river in Canada that originates in the Rocky Mountains of northern British Columbia and flows to the northeast through northern Alberta. The Peace River joins the Athabasca River in the Peace-Athabasca Delta to form the Slave River, a tributary of the Mackenzie River. The Finlay River, the main headwater of the Peace River, is regarded as the ultimate source of the Mackenzie River. The combined Finlay–Peace–Slave–Mackenzie river system is the 13th longest river system in the world.

Williston Lake

Williston Lake is a reservoir created by the W. A. C. Bennett Dam and is located in the Northern Interior of British Columbia, Canada.

Mackenzie, British Columbia District municipality in British Columbia, Canada

Mackenzie is a district municipality within the Fraser-Fort George Regional District in central British Columbia, Canada. The community is located at the south end of Williston Lake. The townsite, established by Alexandra Forest Industries and Cattermole Timber, was named for Sir Alexander MacKenzie (1764–1820).

Rainbow Range (Rocky Mountains) Subrange of the Park Ranges in Alberta and British Columbia, Canada

The Rainbow Range is a small subrange of the Park Ranges subdivisions of the Northern Continental Ranges of the Rocky Mountains on the border between Alberta and British Columbia in Mount Robson Provincial Park.

Rocky Mountain Trench

The Rocky Mountain Trench, also known as the Valley of a Thousand Peaks or simply the Trench, is a large valley on the western side of the northern part of North America's Rocky Mountains. The Trench is both visually and cartographically a striking physiographic feature extending approximately 1,600 km (1,000 mi) from Flathead Lake, Montana to the Liard River, just south of the British Columbia–Yukon border near Watson Lake, Yukon. The trench bottom is 3–16 km (1.9–9.9 mi) wide and is 600–900 m (2,000–3,000 ft) above sea level. The general orientation of the Trench is an almost straight 150/330° geographic north vector and has become convenient as a visual guide for aviators heading north or south.

Stone Mountain Provincial Park

The Stone Mountain Provincial Park is an area of 256.91 square kilometres of mountain wilderness in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The park is part of the larger Muskwa-Kechika Management Area which includes the Northern Rocky Mountains Provincial Park, immediately south, and Kwadacha Wilderness Provincial Park. it and nearby Muncho Lake Provincial Park are accessed by the Alaska Highway, where it penetrates the Northern Rocky Mountains

Kwadacha Place in British Columbia, Canada

Kwadacha, also known as Fort Ware or simple Ware, is an aboriginal community in northern British Columbia, Canada, located in the Rocky Mountain Trench at the confluence of the Finlay, Kwadacha and Fox Rivers, in the Rocky Mountain Trench upstream from the end of the Finlay Reach of Williston Lake. The population is about 350. It is in the federal electoral riding of Prince George-Peace River.

Muncho Lake Provincial Park

Muncho Lake Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, located on the Alaska Highway as it transits the northernmost Canadian Rockies west of Fort Nelson. The park is part of the larger Muskwa-Kechika Management Area. It is named after Muncho Lake, which is in the park and is both the name of the lake and of the community located there.

Muskwa Ranges Subrange of the Northern Canadian Rockies in British Columbia, Canada

The Muskwa Ranges are a group of mountain ranges in northern British Columbia, Canada. They are part of the Northern Rockies section of the Rocky Mountains and are bounded on their west by the Rocky Mountain Trench and on their east by the Rocky Mountain Foothills. They are delimited on the north by the Liard River and on the south by the Peace Reach of the Lake Williston reservoir, south of which the next major grouping of the Rockies is the Hart Ranges.

Hart Ranges

The Hart Ranges are a major subrange of the Canadian Rockies located in northeastern British Columbia and western Alberta. The mountains constitute the southernmost portion of the Northern Rocky Mountains.

Ranges of the Canadian Rockies

The Canadian Rockies are a segment of the North American Rocky Mountains found in the Canadian provinces of Alberta and British Columbia.

British Columbia Interior Interior region of British Columbia, Canada

The British Columbia Interior, popularly referred to as the BC Interior or simply the Interior, is a geographic region of the Canadian province of British Columbia. While the exact boundaries are variously defined, the British Columbia Interior is generally defined to include the 14 regional districts that do not have coastline along the Pacific Ocean or Salish Sea, and are not part of the Lower Mainland. Other boundaries may exclude parts of or even entire regional districts, or expand the definition to include the regional districts of Fraser Valley, Squamish–Lillooet, and Kitimat–Stikine.

Summit Pass is a high mountain pass in the Northern Canadian Rockies in the province of British Columbia. It is one of two passes the Alaska Highway utilizes to cut westwards across ranges of the Rocky Mountain System; further north is the lower Muncho Pass.

Muncho Pass, also known as Muncho Lake Pass, Drogheda Lake Pass, or Muncho-Toad Pass, is the northernmost mountain pass in the Rocky Mountains to be traversed by a public highway. Located in Muncho Lake Provincial Park, British Columbia, Canada, the pass links the Toad River and Trout River drainages. The Alaska Highway travels across the pass.

Sentinel Range (Canada) Mountain range in BC, Canada

The Sentinel Range is one of the northernmost sub-ranges of the Canadian Rockies, lying between Muncho Lake (SW) and the Liard River (N). The northernmost is the Terminal Range, so named for its position at the terminus of the Rockies, and lies to its west.

Terminal Range Mountain range in British Columbia, Canada

The Terminal Range is the northernmost mountain range of the Canadian Rockies, so-named for its position at the northern terminus of the Rockies. Lying west of Muncho Lake and the Trout River, its northern perimeter is the Liard River. The Sentinel Range lies to its east.

Misinchinka Ranges, is the largest subdivision range of the Hart Ranges, of the Northern Rockies in British Columbia, Canada. The boundaries of the Misinchinka Ranges generally lie between the Rocky Mountain Trench to the west, Clearwater Creek and the Sukunka River to the east, the Peace Arm of Williston Reservoir to the north and Monkman Provincial Park to the south.

References

  1. "Mount Ulysses". Bivouac.com. Retrieved 2021-05-31.
  2. "Mount Ulysses". Geographical Names Data Base . Natural Resources Canada . Retrieved 2021-05-31.
  3. Landforms of British Columbia, S. Holland, BC Govt, Bulletin 50, reprinted 1976.
  4. "Northern Rockies". Bivouac.com. Retrieved 2021-05-31.