The Arrigetch Peaks (
Iñupiaq: ''Argaich'') are a cluster of rugged granite spires in the
Endicott Mountains
The Endicott Mountains are a range of mountains, part of the Brooks Range in northern Alaska. They are located in the middle of the Brooks range and run some east–west. To the east are the Philip Smith Mountains and to the west are the Sc ...
of the central
Brooks Range in northern
Alaska. The name ''Arrigetch'' means 'fingers of the outstretched hand' in the
Inupiat language. The peaks ring the glacial
cirques at the head of the
Kobuk River and 2 tributaries of the
Alatna River: Arrigetch Creek and Aiyagomahala Creek (Creek 4662). They are located at latitude 67 degrees 24' N and longitude 154 degrees 10' W. All of the summits of the peaks are around 6,000 ft, 1825 m elevation. The Arrigetch Peaks area was designated as a
National Natural Landmark in 1968 for its spectacular geography.
The earliest recorded Geological Survey of the area was in 1911 by
Philip S. Smith
Philip S. Smith is an American entrepreneur who has served on the Republican National Committee and the National Republican Senatorial Committee. He founded the fundraising organization CAPTEL.
Career
Smith earned his B.A. at Centre College. H ...
and H.M. Eakin. The renowned conservationist
Robert Marshall explored the area in the 1930s. These trips were described in Marshall's 1933 book ''Arctic Village'', and posthumous ''Alaska Wilderness: Exploring the Central Brooks Range''. An American climbing party led by Brownell Bergen completed the first successful rock climbing expedition to the peaks in 1964.
The peaks have been visited by a number of rock climbing expeditions since then.
References
Further reading
* Marshall, Robert. Alaska Wilderness: Exploring the Central Brooks Range. Berkeley: University of California Press. 1956.
* Marshall, Robert. Arctic Wilderness. Berkeley: University of California Press. 1933.
* Wood, Michael and Colby Coombs. Alaska: A Climbing Guide. Seattle: The Mountaineers. 2001.
* List of rock climbing routes in the Arrigetch Peak
Retrieved on 2008-3-1
Mountains of Alaska
IUCN Category III
Landforms of Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska
Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve
Brooks Range
Mountains of Unorganized Borough, Alaska
National Natural Landmarks in Alaska
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