Switchback Peak facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Switchback Peak |
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Switchback Peak, northwest aspect
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| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 8,321 ft (2,536 m) |
| Prominence | 441 ft (134 m) |
| Isolation | 0.96 mi (1.54 km) |
| Parent peak | Martin Peak (8,375 ft) |
| Geography | |
 Switchback Peak
Location in Washington (state)
Switchback Peak
Location in the United States
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| Location | Okanogan County/Chelan County Washington, U.S. |
| Parent range | Methow Mountains North Cascades Cascade Range |
| Topo map | USGS Martin Peak |
| Climbing | |
| Easiest route | class 2 hiking trail |
Switchback Peak is a cool mountain in Washington state. It stands tall at about 8,321 feet (2,536 meters) high! This peak is part of the Methow Mountains, which are a smaller group within the bigger North Cascades mountain range.
Switchback Peak is the eighth-highest mountain in the Methow Mountains. It's also the 95th tallest peak in all of Washington state. You can find it on a long line of mountains called Sawtooth Ridge. The land around Switchback Peak is protected and managed by the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest. Other mountains on Sawtooth Ridge include Oval Peak, Star Peak, and Martin Peak. Martin Peak is the closest taller mountain, about one mile north of Switchback Peak.
Weather Around Switchback Peak
The area around Switchback Peak is a bit drier than places west of the Cascade Mountains. This is because the Cascade Mountains block much of the rain. In summer, it can get warm, and you might even see thunderstorms.
Most of the weather comes from the Pacific Ocean. It moves northeast towards the North Cascades. When these weather systems hit the tall Cascade Mountains, they are forced to rise. As the air goes up, it cools down and drops its moisture as rain or snow. This process is called Orographic lift. Because of this, the North Cascades get a lot of rain and especially heavy snowfall in winter.
Switchback Peak is very high, so it can have snow on its slopes even in late spring and early fall. Winters there are super cold! Water from the west side of the mountain flows into Lake Chelan. Water from the east side flows into smaller streams that join the Methow River.
How Switchback Peak Was Formed
The North Cascades mountains have some of the roughest and most amazing landscapes. You can see sharp peaks, long ridges, and deep valleys carved by glaciers. These cool shapes and big changes in height were created by geological events over millions of years. These events also led to different climates and types of plants in the area.
The Cascade Mountains started forming millions of years ago, during a time called the late Eocene Epoch. This happened when the North American Plate slowly moved over the Pacific Plate. This movement caused a lot of volcanic activity, where molten rock came up from deep inside the Earth.
Also, small pieces of the Earth's crust, called terranes, crashed into North America. These pieces helped build up the North Cascades about 50 million years ago.
Later, during the Pleistocene period, which was over two million years ago, huge sheets of ice called glaciers moved across the land. These glaciers carved out the landscape, leaving behind rock and debris. The "U"-shaped valleys you see today were formed by these glaciers. The combination of the land pushing up (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.
