Round Mountain (volcano) facts for kids

Round Mountain is a special kind of mountain in British Columbia, Canada. It's what's left of an old volcano that has worn away over time. Think of it like a giant, rocky bump that used to be much bigger!

This mountain is part of the Garibaldi Volcanic Belt, which is a chain of volcanoes in the area. You can find Round Mountain about 9 kilometers (about 5.6 miles) east of Brackendale. It's also 10 kilometers (about 6.2 miles) south of the famous Mount Garibaldi.

Round Mountain is the highest point on something called Paul Ridge. It sits right in the southwest part of Garibaldi Provincial Park.

How Round Mountain Formed

Round Mountain was created by a powerful process deep inside the Earth. This process is called subduction. It happens when one of Earth's giant plates, like the Juan de Fuca Plate, slides underneath another plate, like the North American Plate.

What is Subduction?

Imagine the Earth's surface is like a puzzle made of huge pieces called tectonic plates. These plates are always moving, very slowly. When two plates meet, one can sometimes slide beneath the other. This is subduction.

This sliding creates a special area called a subduction zone. For Round Mountain, this zone is known as the Cascadia subduction zone. When plates slide like this, it can cause volcanoes to form on the plate that stays on top.

When Did it Last Erupt?

Round Mountain last erupted a very, very long time ago. This happened during a period called the Pleistocene epoch. The Pleistocene was an ice age period that ended about 11,700 years ago. So, Round Mountain has been quiet for a long, long time!