Riddle Peaks facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Riddle Peaks
South aspect, from Buckskin Ridge
Highest point
Elevation	8,212 ft (2,503 m)
Prominence	1,120 ft (340 m)
Isolation	2.25 mi (3.62 km)
Parent peak	Flora Mountain (8,320 ft)
Geography
Riddle Peaks Location in Washington (state) Show map of Washington (state) Riddle Peaks Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Location	Glacier Peak Wilderness Chelan County, Washington, U.S.
Parent range	North Cascades
Topo map	USGS Pinnacle Mountain
Type of rock	Hornblende gabbro
Climbing
First ascent	September 11, 1940
Easiest route	class 2 scrambling Northeast ridge

Riddle Peaks, also called Riddle Peak, is a tall mountain in the North Cascades. It stands at 8,212-foot (2,503-metre) high. You can find it in Chelan County, Washington state.

This mountain is part of the Glacier Peak Wilderness. It's about six miles west of Lake Chelan. It's also 2.5 mi (4.0 km) northeast of Holden. The land around it is managed by the Wenatchee National Forest.

The mountain's water flows into Lake Chelan. This happens through creeks like Railroad Creek and Riddle Creek. The southern side of Riddle Peak rises 5,000 feet from the valley below. This makes it look very impressive.

The first people to climb Riddle Peak were Everett and Ida Zacher Darr. They reached the top on September 11, 1940. Joe Leuthold and Eldon Metzger were also with them. They climbed an easy ridge from Tenmile Pass.

Mountain Weather: Climate Around Riddle Peaks

The area around Riddle Peaks is a bit drier than places to the west. This is because it's east of the Cascade Range. Summers here can be warm. Sometimes, thunderstorms happen.

Most weather systems come from the Pacific Ocean. They travel northeast towards the Cascade Mountains. When these systems reach the North Cascades, the tall peaks force the air upwards. This causes the air to cool and drop its moisture. This moisture falls as rain or snow onto the mountains. This process is called Orographic lift.

Because of this, the North Cascades gets a lot of rain and snow. Winter months have the most snowfall. Riddle Peak is very tall, so it can have snow on it in late spring and early fall. It can also get very cold in winter.

How Mountains Formed: Geology of Riddle Peaks

The North Cascades has very rugged land. It features sharp peaks, long ridges, and deep valleys carved by glaciers. These amazing shapes were created by geological events over millions of years. These events also led to big changes in height. This created different climates and types of plants in the area.

The Cascade Range started forming millions of years ago. This was during the late Eocene Epoch. The North American Plate was moving over the Pacific Plate. This caused many volcanic eruptions. Glacier Peak, a large volcano, began forming about 16.5 miles west-southwest of Martin Peak.

Also, small pieces of the Earth's crust, called terranes, helped form the North Cascades. This happened about 50 million years ago.

During the Pleistocene period, which was over two million years ago, glaciers moved across the land many times. As they moved, they scraped away rock and left behind debris. The river valleys in the area have a "U"-shape. This shape was made by these recent glaciers.

The main forces that created the tall peaks and deep valleys of the North Cascades are:

• Uplift: The land being pushed upwards.
• Faulting: Cracks in the Earth's crust where rocks move.
• Glaciation: The movement of large ice sheets.