Mount Cairnes (British Columbia) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Mount Cairnes |
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Mount Cairnes, west aspect
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| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 3,081 m (10,108 ft) |
| Prominence | 141 m (463 ft) |
| Parent peak | Mount Barlow (3143 m) |
| Listing | Mountains of British Columbia |
| Geography | |
 Mount Cairnes
Location in British Columbia
Mount Cairnes
Location in Canada
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| Location | British Columbia, Canada |
| Parent range | Canadian Rockies |
| Topo map | NTS 82N/10 |
| Geology | |
| Age of rock | Cambrian |
| Type of rock | Sedimentary |
Mount Cairnes is a tall mountain peak located in the Freshfield Ranges. These ranges are part of the amazing Canadian Rockies in British Columbia, Canada. The mountain stands about 3,081 meters (or 10,108 feet) high.
You can find Mount Cairnes about 44 kilometers (27 miles) north of a town called Golden. It's in the beautiful Blaeberry Valley. The peak is also about 5.5 kilometers (3.4 miles) east-northeast of Mount Mummery. It's quite close, about 3 kilometers (1.9 miles), to the Continental Divide. The Continental Divide is like an imaginary line across North America. It separates where water flows either to the Pacific Ocean or to the Atlantic (or Arctic) Ocean.
The mountain was named in 1917 after a famous geologist named Delorme Donaldson Cairnes. He was a scientist who studied rocks and the Earth. Mr. Cairnes worked for the Geological Survey of Canada from 1905 to 1917. The name "Mount Cairnes" was officially approved on March 31, 1924. There is also another Mount Cairnes in Yukon. That mountain is also named after him, because he did a lot of his work there.
What's the Weather Like on Mount Cairnes?
Mount Cairnes has a subarctic climate. This type of climate is described by the Köppen climate classification system. In a subarctic climate, winters are very cold and snowy. Summers are usually mild, not too hot.
Temperatures on Mount Cairnes can drop very low. They might go below −20 °C (or −4 °F). With the wind, it can feel even colder, sometimes below −30 °C (or −22 °F). Water from rain and melting snow, called runoff, flows down the mountain. This water eventually drains into the Blaeberry River. The Blaeberry River is a smaller river that flows into the much larger Columbia River.
