Chiwawa Mountain Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Chiwawa Mountain
Chiwawa Mountain from north
Highest point
Elevation	8,459 ft (2,578 m)
Prominence	1,219 ft (372 m)
Parent peak	Fortress Mountain 8760 ft
Geography
Chiwawa Mountain Location in Washington (state) Show map of Washington (state) Chiwawa Mountain Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Parent range	North Cascades Cascade Range
Topo map	USGS Suiattle Pass
Geology
Age of rock	Cretaceous
Type of rock	Biotite gneiss
Climbing
First ascent	1921 party of The Mountaineers led by Lorenz A. Nelson
Easiest route	Scrambling

Chiwawa Mountain is a tall mountain in Washington state, standing at 8,459 feet (about 2,578 meters) high. It's found in a wild, beautiful area called the Glacier Peak Wilderness, which is part of the North Cascades mountain range.

This mountain sits right on the top ridge of the Cascade Range. It marks the border between two counties, Snohomish and Chelan. It also divides two big forests: the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest and the Wenatchee National Forest. Its closest taller neighbor is Fortress Mountain, which is about 1.12 miles (1.8 kilometers) to the west.

Chiwawa Mountain is special because it's a "triple divide peak." This means that rain and melting snow from its slopes flow in three different directions! Some water goes northeast towards Lake Chelan, some flows northwest into the Suiattle River, and some goes south into the Chiwawa River. The mountain's name comes from the Chiwawa River. A pioneer surveyor named Albert Hale Sylvester gave it this name. "Chiwawa" comes from the Columbia-Moses language and means a type of creek.

Mountain Formation
- Ice Age Impact
- Volcanic Activity
Weather and Climate
- Rain and Snow
- Temperatures and Seasons
Images for kids
See also

Mountain Formation

Chiwawa Mountain is part of a large underground rock formation called the Cloudy Pass batholith. This formation was created about 20 million years ago when hot, melted rock pushed its way up into the Earth's crust and then cooled.

Ice Age Impact

During the Pleistocene period, which started over two million years ago, huge sheets of ice called glaciers moved across the land many times. These glaciers carved and shaped the mountains and valleys we see today. You can still see parts of the Lyman Glacier on the northeast side of Chiwawa Mountain.

The glaciers were biggest about 18,000 years ago. Most valleys were free of ice by 12,000 years ago. The combination of the land pushing upwards (called uplift) and cracks in the Earth's crust (called faulting) along with the glaciers, created the tall peaks and deep valleys of the North Cascades.

Volcanic Activity

About 90 million years ago, during the late Cretaceous period, the Earth's plates started moving and colliding in this area. This led to a lot of volcanic activity starting about 35 million years ago. Glacier Peak, a large volcano, began forming in the middle of the Pleistocene period. It's only about 10 miles (16 kilometers) southwest of Chiwawa Mountain. Because Glacier Peak is so close, you can often find volcanic ash in the area around Chiwawa Mountain.

Weather and Climate

Chiwawa Mountain is in a "marine west coast" climate zone. This means it's influenced by the nearby Pacific Ocean. Most weather systems start over the Pacific Ocean and move northeast towards the Cascade Range.

Rain and Snow

When these weather systems hit the tall peaks of the Cascades, they are forced to rise. As the air rises, it cools and drops its moisture as rain or snow. This process is called Orographic lift. Because of this, the western side of the North Cascades gets a lot of precipitation, especially heavy snowfall in the winter.

Temperatures and Seasons

Thanks to the ocean's influence, the areas west of the Cascade mountain range rarely get extremely cold (below 0°F or -18°C) or extremely hot (above 80°F or 27°C). In winter, it's often cloudy. However, during the summer, high-pressure systems over the Pacific Ocean usually bring clear skies. The snow here tends to be wet and heavy, which can increase the danger of avalanches.