- Mount Shuksan
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Mount Shuksan 
Mount Shuksan from near Artist PointElevation 9,131 ft (2,783 m) NGVD 29[1] Prominence 4,411 ft (1,344 m) [1] Location Location Whatcom County, Washington, USA Range Cascades Coordinates 48°49′54″N 121°36′11″W / 48.831549500°N 121.603169886°WCoordinates: 48°49′54″N 121°36′11″W / 48.831549500°N 121.603169886°W[2] Topo map USGS Mount Shuksan Geology Type Metamorphic schist Age of rock Cretaceous Climbing First ascent September 7, 1906 by Asahel Curtis and party Easiest route rock/ice climb, class 3[1] Mount Shuksan is a glaciated massif[3] in the North Cascades National Park. Shuksan rises in Whatcom County, Washington immediately to the east of Mount Baker, and 11.6 miles (18.7 km) south of the Canadian border. The mountain's name Shuksan is derived from the Lummi word [šéqsən], said to mean "high peak".[4] The highest point on the mountain is a three sided peak known as Summit Pyramid.[5] There are two named subsidiary peaks; Nooksack Tower and The Hourglass.
The mountain is composed of Shuksan greenschist, oceanic basalt that was metamorphosed when the Easton terrane collided with the west coast of North America, approximately 120 million years ago.[6] The mountain is an eroded remnant of a thrust plate formed by the Easton collision.[3]
Shuksan is one of the more often photographed mountains in the Cascade Range.[7] Photographs with its reflection in Picture Lake near Mount Baker Ski Area are particularly common. The Mount Baker Highway, State Route 542, is kept open during the winter to support the ski area, and in the late summer, the road to Artist Point allows visitors to travel a few miles higher.
Sulphide Creek Falls, one of the tallest waterfalls in North America, plunges off the southeastern flank of Mount Shuksan. There are four other tall waterfalls that spill off Mount Shuksan and neighboring Jagged Ridge and Seahpo Peak, mostly sourced from small snowfields and glaciers.
Mount Shuksan has several subsidiary peaks, including Seahpo Peak.
Nearby mountains
Wide view of the mountain
References
- ^ a b c "Mount Shuksan, Washington". Peakbagger.com. http://www.peakbagger.com/peak.aspx?pid=1630.
- ^ "Mt Shuksan". NGS data sheet. U.S. National Geodetic Survey. http://www.ngs.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/ds_mark.prl?PidBox=TQ0529.
- ^ a b Tabor, R. W.; Haugerud, R. A. (1999). Geology of the North Cascades: a mountain mosaic. The Mountaineers. p. 92.
- ^ Bright, William (2004). Native American placenames of the United States. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 441. ISBN 9780806135984. http://books.google.com/books?id=5XfxzCm1qa4C&pg=PA441. Retrieved 10 April 2011.
- ^ "Summit Pyramid". Geographic Names Information System, U.S. Geological Survey. http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=gnispq:3:::NO::P3_FID:1526725.
- ^ "Terranes of the North Cascades". National Park Service. http://www.nature.nps.gov/geology/usgsnps/noca/t4easton.html.
- ^ "Mount Shuksan". Cascade Classics. http://www.cascadeclassics.org/MountShuksan/MountShuksan.htm.
External links
- "Mount Shuksan". Geographic Names Information System, U.S. Geological Survey. http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=gnispq:3:::NO::P3_FID:1525722.
- "Mount Shuksan". Peakware.com. http://www.peakware.com/peaks.html?pk=334.
Categories:- Mountains of Washington (state)
- North Cascades of Washington (state)
- Landforms of Whatcom County, Washington
- North Cascades National Park
- Washington (state) geography stubs
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