Mount Misch facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Mount Misch |
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Mount Misch (highest point centered) seen from Green Mountain
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| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 7,435 ft (2,266 m) |
| Prominence | 2,435 ft (742 m) |
| Geography | |
 Mount Misch
Location in Washington (state)
Mount Misch
Location in the United States
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| Parent range | Cascade Range |
| Topo map | USGS Downey Mountain |
| Type of rock | mineralized Breccia pipe |
| Climbing | |
| First ascent | August 28, 1955 D. Grimlund, D. Nicholson, and W. Trueblood |
| Easiest route | Mountaineering |
Mount Misch is a tall mountain in Washington state. It stands 7,435 feet high! This remote mountain is located in the beautiful North Cascades area of Skagit County. It is the highest peak in what is known as the Buckindy Range.
Mount Misch is about 19 miles east of Darrington, Washington. It's also 15 miles north of Glacier Peak, which is a large volcano in the Cascade Mountains. The mountain is part of the Glacier Peak Wilderness. This special area is managed by the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest.
A famous mountain climber and writer named Fred Beckey gave Mount Misch its name. He named it after his friend, Peter Misch (1909-1987). Peter Misch was a geology professor at the University of Washington. He was well-known for studying the North Cascades. Water from Mount Misch and a glacier on its east side flows into the Suiattle River and then into the Skagit River.
Weather at Mount Misch
Mount Misch is in a "marine west coast" climate zone. This means it's near the ocean, which affects its weather. Most weather systems come from the Pacific Ocean. They travel northeast towards the Cascade Range.
When these weather systems reach the North Cascades, the tall mountains force the air to rise. As the air goes higher, it cools down and drops its moisture. This causes a lot of rain or snow to fall on the Cascades. This process is called Orographic lift.
Because of this, the western side of the North Cascades gets a lot of precipitation. This is especially true in winter, when there's often heavy snowfall. During winter, the weather is usually cloudy. But in summer, high-pressure systems over the Pacific Ocean often bring clear skies.
How Mount Misch Was Formed
The North Cascades have very rugged land. You can see jagged peaks, long ridges, and deep valleys carved by glaciers. These amazing shapes were created by geological events millions of years ago. These events also caused big changes in elevation, which led to different climates. These climate differences then created various types of plant life in the area.
The Cascade Mountains started forming millions of years ago, during the late Eocene Epoch. This happened because the North American Plate slowly moved over the Pacific Plate. This movement caused many volcanic eruptions. Also, small pieces of the Earth's crust, called terranes, came together to form the North Cascades about 50 million years ago.
Over two million years ago, during the Pleistocene period, glaciers moved across the land many times. As they advanced and retreated, they scraped away the landscape. They left behind piles of rock debris. The river valleys in this area have a "U" shape. This shape was created by these recent glaciers.
The rising of the land and faults, combined with glaciation, have shaped the tall peaks and deep valleys of the North Cascades. Mount Misch and the Buckindy Range have a rusty reddish color. This is because of minerals found in the rocks, especially in something called a Breccia pipe.
