Labyrinth Mountain is a prominent mountain summit located north-northeast of

Stevens Pass Stevens Pass (elevation ) is a mountain pass through the Cascade Mountains located at the border of King County and Chelan County in Washington, United States. U.S. Route 2 travels over the pass, reaching a maximum elevation of . The Pacific ...

in Chelan County of

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

state. This peak is situated west of

Lake Wenatchee Lake Wenatchee is a glacier- and snowmelt-fed lake situated in the Wenatchee National Forest on the eastern slopes of the Cascade Range, Cascades Mountain Range in the state of Washington (U.S. state), Washington. Lake Wenatchee covers and reache ...

, in the Henry M. Jackson Wilderness, on land managed by the

Okanogan–Wenatchee National Forest The Okanogan–Wenatchee National Forest is a U.S. National Forest located in Okanogan County, Washington, Okanogan County in north-central Washington (state), Washington, United States. The forest is bordered on the north by British Columbia, ...

. Its nearest higher neighbor is Rock Mountain, to the southeast. Labyrinth Mountain was named by

Albert Hale Sylvester Albert Hale Sylvester (May 25, 1871 – September 14, 1944) was a pioneer surveyor, explorer, and forest supervisor in the Cascade Range of the U.S. state of Washington. He was a topographer for the United States Geological Survey (USGS) in the ...

for the appearance of its complex

topographic map In modern mapping, a topographic map or topographic sheet is a type of map characterized by large- scale detail and quantitative representation of relief features, usually using contour lines (connecting points of equal elevation), but histori ...

contour lines, similar to a

Labyrinth In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth () is an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by the h ...

. In association with

Greek mythology Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of ancient Greek folklore, today absorbed alongside Roman mythology into the broader designation of classical mythology. These stories conc ...

, he also named

Minotaur In Greek mythology, the Minotaur (, ''Mīnṓtauros''), also known as Asterion, is a mythical creature portrayed during classical antiquity with the head and tail of a bull and the body of a man or, as described by Roman poet Ovid, a being "par ...

and

Theseus Theseus (, ; ) was a divine hero in Greek mythology, famous for slaying the Minotaur. The myths surrounding Theseus, his journeys, exploits, and friends, have provided material for storytelling throughout the ages. Theseus is sometimes desc ...

Lakes on this mountain's southeast aspect.Details on places named by Sylvester from Precipitation runoff from the peak drains into tributaries of the

Little Wenatchee River The Little Wenatchee River is the southern and smaller of the two rivers that flow into the west end of Lake Wenatchee. The northern and larger one is the White River. A large number of place names in the Little Wenatchee River basin, including ...

Climate

Lying east of the

Cascade Cascade, or Cascading may refer to: Science and technology Science * Air shower (physics), a cascade (particle shower) of subatomic particles and ionized nuclei ** Particle shower, a cascade of secondary particles produced as the result of a high ...

crest, the area around Labyrinth Mountain is a bit drier than areas to the west. Summers can bring warm temperatures and occasional thunderstorms.

Weather front A weather front is a boundary separating air masses for which several characteristics differ, such as air density, wind, temperature, and humidity. Disturbed and unstable weather due to these differences often arises along the boundary. For ins ...

s originating in the Pacific Ocean travel east toward the

Cascade Mountains The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as many of those in the ...

. As fronts approach, they are forced upward by the peaks of the Cascade Range, causing them to drop their moisture in the form of rain or snow onto the Cascades (

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 ...

). As a result, the western slopes of the Cascades experience high precipitation, especially during the winter months in the form of snowfall. During winter months, weather is usually cloudy, but, due to high pressure systems over the Pacific Ocean that intensify during summer months, there is often little or no cloud cover during the summer. The months July through September offer the most favorable weather for viewing or climbing this peak.

Geology

The North Cascades features some of the most rugged topography in the

Cascade Range The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington (state), Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as m ...

with craggy peaks, ridges, and deep

glacial valley U-shaped valleys, also called trough valleys or glacial troughs, are formed by the process of glaciation. They are characteristic of mountain glaciation in particular. They have a characteristic U shape in cross-section, with steep, straight s ...

s. Geological events occurring many years ago created the diverse topography and drastic elevation changes over the Cascade Range leading to various climate differences. The history of the formation of the Cascade Mountains dates back millions of years ago to the late

Eocene The Eocene ( ) is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (Ma). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes ...

Epoch. With the North American Plate overriding the Pacific Plate, episodes of volcanic igneous activity persisted.

Glacier Peak Glacier Peak or Dakobed (known in the Sauk-Suiattle dialect of the Lushootseed language as "Tda-ko-buh-ba" or "Takobia") is the most isolated of the five major stratovolcanoes (composite volcanoes) of the Cascade Volcanoes, Cascade Volcanic Arc ...

, a

stratovolcano A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a typically conical volcano built up by many alternating layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with ...

that is north of Labyrinth Mountain, began forming in the mid-Pleistocene. In addition, small fragments of the

oceanic Oceanic may refer to: *Of or relating to the ocean *Of or relating to Oceania **Oceanic climate **Oceanic languages **Oceanic person or people, also called "Pacific Islander(s)" Places * Oceanic, British Columbia, a settlement on Smith Island, ...

and

continental lithosphere A lithosphere () is the rigid, outermost rocky shell of a terrestrial planet or natural satellite. On Earth, it is composed of the crust and the lithospheric mantle, the topmost portion of the upper mantle that behaves elastically on time sc ...

called

terrane In geology, a terrane (; in full, a tectonostratigraphic terrane) is a crust fragment formed on a tectonic plate (or broken off from it) and accreted or " sutured" to crust lying on another plate. The crustal block or fragment preserves its d ...

s created the

North Cascades The North Cascades are a section of the Cascade Range of western North America. They span the border between the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of British Columbia and the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and ...

about 50 million years ago. During the

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( ; referred to colloquially as the ''ice age, Ice Age'') is the geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fin ...

period dating back over two million years ago, glaciation advancing and retreating repeatedly scoured and shaped the landscape. Glaciation was most prevalent approximately , and most valleys were ice-free by .Beckey, Fred W. Cascade Alpine Guide, Climbing and High Routes. Seattle, WA: Mountaineers Books, 2008. Uplift and faulting in combination with glaciation have been the dominant processes which have created the tall peaks and deep valleys of the North Cascades area.

Gallery

File:Lake Minotaur with Labyrinth Mountain.jpg, Labyrinth Mountain's south aspect in winter File:Labyrinth Mountain and Minotaur Lake.jpg, Labyrinth Mountain and Minotaur Lake File:Labyrinth Mountain 0120.JPG, Labyrinth's Northeast Peak (6,287-ft)

References

{{Reflist

External links

* Weather forecast
Labyrinth Mountain
* Climbing Labyrinth Mountain
Mountaineers.org
Mountains of Chelan County, Washington North Cascades of Washington (state) One-thousanders of the United States Labyrinths

Climate

Geology

Gallery

See also

References

External links