Horn Spire is a mountain summit located in the

Boundary Ranges The Boundary Ranges, also known in the singular and as the Alaska Boundary Range, are the largest and most northerly subrange of the Coast Mountains. They begin at the Nass River, near the southern end of the Alaska Panhandle in the Canadian pro ...

of the

Coast Mountains The Coast Mountains () are a major mountain range in the Pacific Coast Ranges of western North America, extending from southwestern Yukon through the Alaska Panhandle and virtually all of the British Columbia Coast, Coast of British Columbia sout ...

, 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 ...

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 peak is situated between the Thiel Glacier and Battle Glacier at the northwest extent of the

Juneau Icefield The Juneau Icefield is an ice field located just north of Juneau, Alaska, Juneau, Alaska, continuing north through the border with British Columbia, extending through an area of in the Coast Mountains, Coast Range ranging north to south and east ...

, north-northwest of

Juneau, Alaska Juneau ( ; ), officially the City and Borough of Juneau, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital of the U.S. state of Alaska, located along the Gastineau Channel and the Southeast Alaska, Alaskan panhandle. Juneau was named the ...

, and east of

Lynn Canal Lynn Canal is an inlet (not an artificial canal) into the mainland of southeast Alaska. Lynn Canal runs about from the inlets of the Chilkat River south to Chatham Strait and Stephens Passage. At over in depth, Lynn Canal is the deepest fjor ...

, on land managed by

Tongass National Forest The Tongass National Forest () in Southeast Alaska is the largest U.S. National Forest at , an expanse larger than 10 U.S. states and 75 U.N. member nations. Most of its area is temperate rain forest and is remote enough to be home to many s ...

. Horn Spire is the highest point of the Icefall Spires, and 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 north face of the mountain rises over 4,700 feet above the Thiel Glacier in less than one mile. The peak's descriptive name was submitted in 1965 by Maynard Miller, director of the Juneau Icefield Research Project, and officially adopted that same year by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names. The

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 the peak was made June 30, 1973, by Dick Benedict, Gerry Buckley, Craig Lingle, and Bruce Tickell.Horn Spire, various attempts; west ridge, second ascent. americanalpineclub.org 2013
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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 ...

, Horn Spire has 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 ...

with cold, snowy winters, and cool summers. Weather systems coming off the

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 Coast 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 to 0 °F with wind chill factors below −10 °F. The months May and June offer the most favorable weather for viewing this rarely climbed peak.

Gallery

File:Gilkey Glacier, hanging glaciers, 1955 (GLACIERS 6135).jpg, Southeast aspect File:Gilkey Glacier, hanging glaciers and aretes, 1955 (GLACIERS 6124).jpg, North aspect File:Gilkey Glacier, horn with hanging glaciers in the foreground, and hanging glaciers with bergschrund in the background, 1955 (GLACIERS 6273).jpg, Horn Spire (left), with Mount Adolph Knopf (right)

References

External links

* Horn Spire
weather
* Horn Spire
Flickr photo
{{Coast Mountains Mountains of Alaska Mountains of Juneau, Alaska Boundary Ranges Two-thousanders of the United States

Climate

Gallery

See also

References

External links