The Table (British Columbia) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids The Table |
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The Table rises above the southwest side of Garibaldi Lake
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| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 2,021 m (6,631 ft) |
| Prominence | 251 m (823 ft) |
| Geography | |
 The Table
Location in British Columbia
The Table
Location in Canada
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| Parent range | Garibaldi Ranges |
| Topo map | NTC 92G/14 Cheakamus River |
| Geology | |
| Age of rock | Holocene |
| Mountain type | Tuya |
| Volcanic arc/belt | Canadian Cascade Arc Garibaldi Volcanic Belt |
| Last eruption | Holocene |
| Climbing | |
| First ascent | 1916 Tom Fyles |
The Table, also known as Table Mountain, is a very unique mountain in British Columbia, Canada. It stands at 2,021 metres (6,631 ft) (about 6,631 feet) tall. This special mountain is located about 4 kilometres (2 mi) south of the beautiful Garibaldi Lake. It rises more than 530 metres (1,740 ft) (about 1,739 feet) above the lake's surface.
The Table is a type of volcano called a tuya. A tuya is a volcano that erupts under a thick ice sheet or glacier. Because of how it formed, The Table has very steep and unstable rock walls on all sides. This makes it almost impossible to climb safely.
How The Table Was Formed
The Table is part of a group of volcanoes called the Garibaldi Lake volcanic field. This area has nine smaller volcanoes that formed a long time ago, during a period called the Holocene (which is our current geological age).
These volcanoes are part of a bigger chain of volcanoes. This chain is known as the Garibaldi Volcanic Belt and the Cascade Volcanic Arc. This long line of volcanoes stretches from southwestern British Columbia all the way down to northern California.
So, how did The Table get its flat top? In 1951, a Canadian geologist named Bill Mathews suggested an idea. He thought that hot, melted rock (magma) pushed its way up into a huge ice sheet. This magma melted a vertical hole in the ice. As the magma cooled, it formed a large, solid block. Gravity then flattened its top surface, giving it the "table" shape we see today.
The fact that the ice sheet didn't wear away The Table much suggests it erupted when the ice was just starting to disappear. You can find similar flat-topped volcanoes in other parts of Canada, like the Wells Gray-Clearwater volcanic field.
The Table in Movies
The Table has even made its way onto the big screen! It was featured in the movie Agent Cody Banks. It also appeared in Stargate: The Ark of Truth. In Stargate, The Table was shown as the secret location where a special item called the Ark was hidden. The movie's opening scenes even show The Table with a village digitally added on top of it. You can also see amazing aerial views of the nearby Mount Garibaldi and Tantalus Range areas in the film.
