The Virgin (Purcell Mountains)

The Virgin
The Virgin
	North aspect
Highest point
Elevation	9,470 ft (2,886 m)
Isolation	3 km (1.9 mi)
Listing	Mountains of British Columbia
Coordinates	50°39′15″N116°38′27″W / 50.65417°N 116.64083°W
Geography
	The Virgin Location in British Columbia The Virgin The Virgin (Canada)
	Interactive map of The Virgin
Location	British Columbia, Canada
District	Kootenay Land District
Parent range	Purcell Mountains ; Columbia Mountains
Topo map	NTS 82K10 Howser Creek
Geology
Rock age	Proterozoic
Mountain type	Fault block
Rock type	Quartzite
Climbing
First ascent	1952

Last updated November 12, 2024

The Virgin is a mountain summit located in British Columbia, Canada.^[3]

Description

The Virgin is a 2,886-meter-elevation (9,470-foot) peak situated 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) southeast of The Bugaboos and three kilometers southwest of Taurus Mountain.^[1] The mountain is part of the Purcell Mountains which are a subrange of the Columbia Mountains. Precipitation runoff from The Virgin drains into the headwaters of Howser Creek which empties at Duncan Lake. Topographic relief is significant as the summit rises 1,525 meters (5,000 feet) above Howser Creek in two kilometers (1.24 mile).

History

The mountain was discovered and named in 1946 by the climbing team which made the first ascent of nearby Taurus Mountain. The climbers, Edward F. Little and Eugen Rosenstock-Huessy, wrote: "The white snow-draped terraces of the peak were a beautiful sight, and this appearance, along with the stellar name of the neighbor which, though hidden, we knew was nearby, prompted us to name it for purposes of our own reference, 'Virgo' or the 'Virgin'."^[4] The mountain's toponym was officially adopted October 29, 1962, by the Geographical Names Board of Canada.^[2]

The first ascent of the summit was made August 2, 1952, by Peter Robinson, Bob Collins, Bill Briggs and John Briggs.^[5]

Climate

Based on the Köppen climate classification, The Virgin is located in a subarctic climate zone with cold, snowy winters, and mild summers.^[6] Temperatures in winter can drop below −20 °C with wind chill factors below −30 °C.

Gallery

The Virgin, centered

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Bugaboos</span> Mountain range in British Columbia, Canada

The Bugaboos are a mountain range in the Purcell Mountains of eastern British Columbia, Canada. The granite spires of the group are a popular mountaineering destination. The Bugaboos are protected within Bugaboo Provincial Park.

Howser Spire, or Howser Spire Massif, is a group of three distinct granite peaks, and the highest mountain of the Canadian Bugaboo Spires. The mountain is located at the southwest corner of the Vowell Glacier, within the Bugaboo mountain range in the Purcell Mountains, a subrange of British Columbia's Columbia Mountains, The highest of the three spires is the North Tower at 3,412 m (11,194 ft), the Central Tower the lowest, and the South Tower is slightly lower than the North at 3,292 m (10,801 ft).

Eyebrow Peak is a prominent 3,362-metre (11,030-foot) glaciated mountain summit located in the Purcell Mountains in southeast British Columbia, Canada. It is the ninth-highest peak in the Purcells. It is situated 28 km (17 mi) south of The Bugaboos, 44 km (27 mi) west of Invermere, 6 km (3.7 mi) north of Mount Monica, and 18 km (11 mi) east of Duncan Lake. Its nearest higher peak is Commander Mountain, 11.4 km (7.1 mi) to the southeast. The first ascent of the mountain was made in 1914 by Edward Warren Harnden, D. Brown, L. Nettleton, and E. Parson via the west slopes. The name Eyebrow Peak came about by Arthur Oliver Wheeler in 1910 when viewing two broad rock scars near the summit, and their arrangement in connection with the surrounding snow created the appearance of enormous eyebrows. However, using the same sightings as Wheeler, Professor Peter Robinson showed that Wheeler actually saw Mount Farnham. Poor weather conditions led to Wheeler's error, and the Eyebrow moniker was then moved to its present location. The mountain's name was officially adopted June 9, 1960, by the Geographical Names Board of Canada.

Jumbo Mountain, sometimes called Mount Jumbo, is a 3,437 meter elevation mountain summit located 42 km (26 mi) west-southwest of Invermere in the Purcell Mountains of southeast British Columbia, Canada. The nearest higher peak is Mount Farnham, 11 km (6.8 mi) to the north-northeast, and Karnak Mountain is set 0.79 km (0.49 mi) to the west. Jumbo and Karnak form a double summit massif which is the second-highest mountain in the Purcells, and fourth-highest in the Columbia Mountains. The first ascent of Jumbo Mountain was made August 4, 1915, by H.O. Frind, A.H. & E.L. MacCarthy, M & W.E. Stone, B. Shultz, and Conrad Kain via the North/Northeast Slopes. March 5, 1919, Conrad made a solo ascent of Jumbo Mtn on snowshoes - credited as the first winter ascent of an 11,000-ft peak in Canada. The peak was named by Edward Warren Harnden after the 1892 Jumbo Mineral Claim on nearby Toby Creek, which in turn was named for Jumbo the elephant. The mountain's toponym was officially adopted March 31, 1924, when approved by the Geographical Names Board of Canada.

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Howser Peak is a 3,094-metre (10,151-foot) summit in The Bugaboos of British Columbia, Canada. It is located south of the Bugaboo Glacier and is the southernmost point of Bugaboo Provincial Park. Precipitation runoff from Howser Peak drains north into Bugaboo Creek which is a tributary of the Columbia River; as well as south to Duncan River via Howser Creek. Howser Peak is more notable for its steep rise above local terrain than for its absolute elevation as topographic relief is significant with the south aspect rising 1,380 meters (4,527 ft) in 2.5 km (1.6 mi).

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References

1 2 Robert Kruszyna, William Lowell Putnam (1977), A Climber's Guide to the Interior Ranges of British Columbia, South, American Alpine Club, p. 103
1 2 3 "The Virgin". Geographical Names Data Base . Natural Resources Canada . Retrieved 2022-11-10.
↑ "The Virgin". BC Geographical Names . Retrieved 2022-11-10.
↑ Edward F. Little, Eugen Rosenstock-Huessy, Ascent of Taurus (1947), Canadian Alpine Journal
↑ Peter Robinson (1953), North America, Canada, British Columbia and Alberta, Ascents in the Northern Purcell Range, 1952, American Alpine Journal
↑ 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.

External links

The Virgin: weather forecast

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[Kruszyna-1] 1 2 Robert Kruszyna, William Lowell Putnam (1977), A Climber's Guide to the Interior Ranges of British Columbia, South, American Alpine Club, p. 103

[cgndb-2] 1 2 3 "The Virgin". Geographical Names Data Base . Natural Resources Canada . Retrieved 2022-11-10.

[bcgnis-3] "The Virgin". BC Geographical Names . Retrieved 2022-11-10.

[CAJ-4] Edward F. Little, Eugen Rosenstock-Huessy, Ascent of Taurus (1947), Canadian Alpine Journal

[5] Peter Robinson (1953), North America, Canada, British Columbia and Alberta, Ascents in the Northern Purcell Range, 1952, American Alpine Journal

[Peel-6] 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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