Benign Peak is a elevation mountain summit located in the western
Chugach Mountains
The Chugach Mountains of southern Alaska are the northernmost of the several mountain ranges that make up the Pacific Coast Ranges of the western edge of North America. The range is about long and wide, and extends from the Knik and Turnag ...
, in
Anchorage Municipality in the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...
of
Alaska
Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...
. The mountain is situated in
Chugach State Park
Chugach State Park covers 495,204 acres (2,004 square kilometers) covering a hilly region immediately east of Anchorage, in south-central Alaska.
Established by legislation signed into law on August 6, 1970, by Alaska Governor Keith Harvey Mi ...
, east of
Anchorage
Anchorage, officially the Municipality of Anchorage, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Alaska. With a population of 291,247 at the 2020 census, it contains nearly 40 percent of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolita ...
, and south of
Eklutna Lake. The nearest higher peak is
Mount Rumble, to the southwest, and
The Mitre is set east-southeast, on the opposite side of the
Eklutna Glacier.
[ Although modest in elevation, ]relief
Relief is a sculpture, sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces remain attached to a solid background of the same material. The term ''wikt:relief, relief'' is from the Latin verb , to raise (). To create a sculpture in relief is to give ...
is significant since the eastern aspect of the mountain rises over 5,000 feet above this glacier in approximately one mile. This peak belongs to a group of peaks in the Eklutna River drainage which start with the letter "B", such as Bold Peak, Bashful Peak, Baleful Peak, and Mt. Beelzebub. Benign Peak was so named in 1965 by the Mountaineering Club of Alaska because "nearby Bellicose Peak was a much harder climb, while this one's nature was quite benign since the rock was not too rotten and the weather wasn't too bad."first ascent
In mountaineering and climbing, a first ascent (abbreviated to FA in climbing guidebook, guide books), is the first successful documented climb to the top of a mountain or the top of a particular climbing route. Early 20th-century mountaineers a ...
of this mountain was made in August 1965 by Art Davidson and John Vincent Hoeman by ascending the East Face, and descending the South Gully.
/ref>
Climate
Based on the Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
, Benign Peak is located in a subarctic climate
The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a continental climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of ...
zone with long, cold, snowy winters, and mild summers.Gulf of Alaska
The Gulf of Alaska ( Tlingit: ''Yéil T'ooch’'') is an arm of the Pacific Ocean defined by the curve of the southern coast of Alaska, stretching from the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak Island in the west to the Alexander Archipelago in the ...
are forced upwards by the Chugach Mountains (orographic lift
Orographic lift occurs when an air mass is forced from a low elevation to a higher elevation as it moves over rising terrain. As the air mass gains altitude it quickly cools down adiabatically, which can raise the relative humidity to 100% and cr ...
), causing heavy precipitation in the form of rainfall and snowfall. Winter temperatures can drop below −10 °F with wind chill factors below −20 °F. Precipitation runoff from the peak drains into Cook Inlet
Cook Inlet (; Sugpiaq language, Sugpiaq: ''Cungaaciq'') stretches from the Gulf of Alaska to Anchorage, Alaska, Anchorage in south-central Alaska. Cook Inlet branches into the Knik Arm and Turnagain Arm at its northern end, almost surrounding ...
via the Eklutna River and Peters Creek.
Gallery
Chugach Range (8666125190).jpg, South aspect of Benign Peak to left
See also
*List of mountain peaks of Alaska
This article comprises three sortable tables of major mountain peaks of the U.S. State of Alaska.
The summit of a mountain or hill may be measured in three principal ways:
#The topographic elevation of a summit measures the height of the summi ...
*Geology of Alaska
The geology of Alaska includes Precambrian igneous and metamorphic rocks formed in offshore terranes and added to the western margin of North America from the Paleozoic through modern times. The region was submerged for much of the Paleozoic and ...
References
{{reflist
External links
* Benign Peak
Weather forecast
Mountains of Anchorage, Alaska
Two-thousanders of the United States