, photo = Ghinde2.jpg , photo_caption = Golden Hinde, south aspect, August 2006. , country =

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, region_type = Province , region =

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, parent =

Pacific Cordillera The North American Cordillera, sometimes also called the Western Cordillera of North America, the Western Cordillera or the Pacific Cordillera, is the North American portion of the American Cordillera, the mountain chain system (cordillera) alon ...

, range_coordinates = , area_km2 = 133879 , highest = Golden Hinde,

Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are of land. The island is the largest by ...

, elevation_m = 2196.818 , coordinates = , map = , map_caption = The Insular Mountains are a range of mountains in the

Pacific Coast Ranges The Pacific Coast Ranges (officially gazetted as the Pacific Mountain System in the United States) are the series of mountain ranges that stretch along the West Coast of North America from Alaska south to Northern and Central Mexico. Although the ...

on the

Coast of British Columbia , settlement_type = Region of British Columbia , image_skyline = , nickname = "The Coast" , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Canada , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = British ...

, comprising the

Vancouver Island Ranges The Vancouver Island Ranges, formerly called the Vancouver Island Mountains, are a series of mountain ranges extending along the length of Vancouver Island which has an area of . The Vancouver Island Ranges comprise the central and largest part ...

and

Queen Charlotte Mountains The Queen Charlotte Mountains are a mountain range comprising all mountains and small mountain ranges of Haida Gwaii, British Columbia, Canada. It is the northernmost subrange of the Insular Mountains. They are subdivided into the Queen Charlotte ...

. The Insular Mountains are rugged, particularly on Vancouver Island where peaks in Strathcona Provincial Park rise to elevations of more than . The highest of these mountains is Golden Hinde on

, which rises to . Although the Coast Mountain Range is usually referred to as the westernmost range of the

(since it is the westernmost range on the main landmass at that point), the Insular Mountains are the true westernmost range.

Geological history

These Insular Mountains are not yet fully emerged above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardise ...

, and

and the

Haida Gwaii Haida Gwaii (; hai, X̱aaydag̱a Gwaay.yaay / , literally "Islands of the Haida people") is an archipelago located between off the northern Pacific coast of Canada. The islands are separated from the mainland to the east by the shallow Heca ...

are just the higher elevations of the range, which was in fact fully exposed during the last glacial period (maximum ice extent about 18,000 years ago) when the continental shelf in this area was a broad

coastal plain A coastal plain is flat, low-lying land adjacent to a sea coast. A fall line commonly marks the border between a coastal plain and a piedmont area. Some of the largest coastal plains are in Alaska and the southeastern United States. The Gulf Co ...

. The Insular Mountains formed when a chain of active

volcanic island Geologically, a high island or volcanic island is an island of volcanic origin. The term can be used to distinguish such islands from low islands, which are formed from sedimentation or the uplifting of coral reefs (which have often formed ...

s (the Insular Islands) collided against the North American continent during the mid

Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. At around 79 million years, it is the longest geological period of ...

period. The type of rocks that form the Insular Mountains are

turbidite A turbidite is the geologic deposit of a turbidity current, which is a type of amalgamation of fluidal and sediment gravity flow responsible for distributing vast amounts of clastic sediment into the deep ocean. Sequencing Turbidites wer ...

s and

pillow lava Pillow lavas are lavas that contain characteristic pillow-shaped structures that are attributed to the extrusion of the lava underwater, or ''subaqueous extrusion''. Pillow lavas in volcanic rock are characterized by thick sequences of discont ...

Granitic A granitoid is a generic term for a diverse category of coarse-grained igneous rocks that consist predominantly of quartz, plagioclase, and alkali feldspar. Granitoids range from plagioclase-rich tonalites to alkali-rich syenites and from quartz- ...

plutons seldom occur in the Insular Mountains, unlike the Coast Mountains. The Insular Mountain range covers some 133,879 km² (51,691 sq mi). It experiences frequent

seismic activity An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, fr ...

, with the Pacific Plate and the Juan de Fuca Plate being subducted into the Earth's mantle. Large

earthquake An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, fr ...

s have led to collapsing mountains, landslides and

fissure A fissure is a long, narrow crack opening along the surface of Earth. The term is derived from the Latin word , which means 'cleft' or 'crack'. Fissures emerge in Earth's crust, on ice sheets and glaciers, and on volcanoes. Ground fissure ...

s. During the last glacial period, ice enclosed nearly all of these mountains.

Glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...

s that ran down to the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contin ...

sharpened the

valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams ove ...

faces and

eroded Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is disti ...

their bottoms. These valleys were transformed into

fjord In physical geography, a fjord or fiord () is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Alaska, Antarctica, British Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Förden and East Jutland Fjorde, Germany, ...

s when the ice melted and the

rose. Ice Age remnants may still be noted, such as the Comox Glacier in the

Sub-ranges

Haida Gwaii

, on

: # Cameron Range: On the western side of

Graham Island Graham Island () is the largest island in the Haida Gwaii archipelago (previously known as the Queen Charlotte Islands), lying off the mainland coast of British Columbia, Canada. It is separated by the narrow Skidegate Channel from the other pr ...

Crease Range The Crease Range is a small, low mountain range in northernwestern British Columbia, Canada, located on north-central Graham Island of Haida Gwaii, between Lan and Adam Lakes. It has an area of 79 km2 and consists of hills. It is a subrange ...

: On north-central Graham Island # McKay Range: On the south coast of Graham Island # San Christoval Range: On the western side of

Moresby Island Moresby Island ( hai, Gwaii Haanas) is a large island () that forms part of the Haida Gwaii archipelago (formerly known as Queen Charlotte Islands) in British Columbia, Canada, located at . It is separated by the narrow Skidegate Channel from ...

Vancouver Island

, on

: #

Refugium Range The Refugium Range is a low, small mountain range comprising the mountains/hills of the Brooks Peninsula on northern Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. It has an area of and is a subrange of the Vancouver Island Ranges which in turn for ...

: On the Brooks Peninsula # Sophia Range: On Nootka Island, on the peninsula between Esperanza Inlet and Nuchatlitz Inlet # Genevieve Range:

Nootka Island Nootka Island (french: île Nootka) is an island adjacent to Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. It is in area. It is separated from Vancouver Island by Nootka Sound and its side-inlets, and is located within Electoral Area A of the ...

# Karmutzen Range: Between Nimpkish Lake, Tlakwa Creek and Karmuzten Creek # Hankin Range: Between Nimpkish Lake and Bonanza Lake #

Franklin Range The Franklin Range is a small mountain range on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, located just southwest of Robson Bight and Johnstone Strait. It has an area of 200 km2 and is a subrange of the Vancouver Island Ranges which in turn ...

: Near

Robson Bight Robson Bight is a small Vancouver Island bay at the west end of Johnstone Strait across from West Cracroft Island in British Columbia, Canada that includes a protected killer whale habitat famous for its whale-rubbing beaches. The bight is adjac ...

on the

Johnstone Strait , image = Pacific Ranges over Johnstone Strait.jpg , image_size = 250px , alt = , caption = Johnstone Strait backdropped by the Vancouver Island Ranges , image_bathymetry = Carte baie Knight ...

between the Tsitika River and Kokish River # Bonanza Range: Between the Nimpkish River and the Tsitika River by Bonanza Lake # Sutton Range: Between Nimpkish River, White River, Oktwanch River, Gold River # Newcastle Range: Johnstone Strait, west of Sayward-Kelsey Bay and east/north of Adams River # Prince of Wales Range: East coast of Vancouver Island 40 km (25 mi) north of Campbell River # Halifax Range: Along Johnstone Strait between Amor de Cosmos Creek and Pye Creek # Beaufort Range: North of Port Alberni and west of

Qualicum Beach :''"Qualicum" re-directs here. For the neighbourhood in Ottawa, see Qualicum, Ottawa'' Qualicum Beach () is a town located on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. In the 2021 census, it had a population of 9,303. It is situated at the fo ...

# Pelham Range: Between the Sarita River and Alberni Inlet # Somerset Range: Between The Pacheena-Sarita River basins and the Klanawa River (between Nitinat Lake and Imperial Eagle Channel) # Seymour Range: Between the valley of Cowichan Lake, San Juan River and Gordon River #

Gowlland Range The Gowlland Range is a low, small mountain range on southern Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, located just east of Saanich Inlet and south of Brentwood Bay. It has an area of and is a subrange of the Vancouver Island Ranges which in ...

: Near Victoria between

Saanich Inlet , image = Saanich Inlet from Gowlland Tod Provincial Park, Vancouver Island, Canada 13.jpg , image_size = 260px , caption = Saanich Inlet from Gowlland Tod Provincial Park , image_bathymetry = , caption_bathymetry = , location = Northwest o ...

and Brentwood Bay. Includes Mount Work Regional Park #

Pierce Range The Pierce Range is a small very steep-sided mountain range on central Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. It has an area of 94 km2 and is a subrange of the Vancouver Island Ranges which in turn form part of the Insular Mountains.

: South of Gold River between the Jacklah River and the Burman River # Haihte Range: Between Tashsis River, the Nomash River, Zeballos Lake and Woss Lake The Elk River Mountains, located in Strathcona Provincial Park, are sometimes classified as a range.Philips

References

{{Reflist Pacific Coast Ranges Mountain ranges of British Columbia South Coast of British Columbia Landforms of Vancouver Island Landforms of Haida Gwaii

Geological history

Sub-ranges

Haida Gwaii

Vancouver Island

See also

References