Stuart Range

The Stuart Range is a mountain range in central Washington, USA. The range lies on the eastern side of the Cascade Range. To the north is The Enchantments, a well-known backpacking destination. To the south is Ingalls Creek and the Wenatchee Mountains.

Partial list of peaks:
* Mount Stuart - 9,415' (2870m)
* Dragontail Peak - 8,840' (2694m)
* Colchuck Peak - 8,705' (2653m)
* Cannon Mountain - 8,638' (2633m)
* Sherpa Peak - 8,605' (2623m)
* Enchantment Peak - 8,520' (2597m)
* Witches Tower - 8,520' (2597m)
* Argonaut Peak - 8,453' (2576m)
* Little Annapurna - 8,440' (2573m)
* McClellan Peak - 8,364' (2549m)

Geology

The Mount Stuart batholith underlies the Stuart Range and the nearby Wenatchee Mountains. The batholith is about 13 by 16 miles in extent. Two plutonic masses are separated by a thin screen of Chiwaukum Schist and rocks of the Ingalls Complex. The more-eastern pluton is 93 million years old, while the more-western rock mass is between 83 and 86 million years old. Exposed rock tends to be quartz diorite and granodiorite. [cite book | last = Beckey | first = Fred
authorlink = Fred Beckey | coauthors =
title = Cascade Alpine Guide: Climbing and High Routes - 1: Columbia River to Stevens Pass
publisher = The Mountaineers Books | date = 2003
location = Seattle, WA, USA | pages = 236 | url = | doi = | id =
isbn = 9780898865776 ]

The range sits near a convergent plate boundary where one plate overrides another. In Western Washington, the North American plate overrides the Juan de Fuca plate, resulting in both volcanic and seismic activity. This convergence has been ongoing for over 200 million years. Continuing uplift and erosion has exposed the underlying granite batholith, making for one of the more spectacular mountain ranges in Washington.

References