Moby Dick Mountain is a

summit A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous. The term (mountain top) is generally used only for ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, Canada.

Description

Moby Dick Mountain is located west of

Pequod Mountain Pequod Mountain is a summit in British Columbia, Canada. Description Pequod Mountain is located east of Moby Dick Mountain in the Battle Range of the Selkirk Mountains. The remote peak is set approximately south of Glacier National Park. P ...

in the Battle Range of the

Selkirk Mountains The Selkirk Mountains are a mountain range spanning the northern portion of the Idaho Panhandle, eastern Washington, and southeastern British Columbia which are part of a larger grouping of mountains, the Columbia Mountains. They begin at Mic ...

. The remote peak is set approximately south of Glacier National Park. Precipitation runoff from the mountain drains north to Battle Brook which is a tributary of the

Incomappleux River The Incomappleux River is in the West Kootenay region of southeastern British Columbia, Canada. Entering the Beaton Arm of Upper Arrow Lake, the river is a major tributary of the Columbia River. The upper reaches of the Incomappleux valley are home ...

, and south into Houston Creek which is a tributary of the Duncan River. Moby Dick Mountain is notable for its steep rise above local terrain and for its absolute elevation.

Topographic relief Terrain (), alternatively relief or topographical relief, is the dimension and shape of a given surface of land. In physical geography, terrain is the lay of the land. This is usually expressed in terms of the elevation, slope, and orientati ...

is significant as the summit rises 1,450 meters (4,757 ft) in on the north aspect and 1,450 meters (4,921 ft) above Houston Creek in on the south side.

History

The landform is named after

Moby Dick ''Moby-Dick; or, The Whale'' is an 1851 Epic (genre), epic novel by American writer Herman Melville. The book is centered on the sailor Ishmael (Moby-Dick), Ishmael's narrative of the maniacal quest of Captain Ahab, Ahab, captain of the whaler ...

, the whale in

Herman Melville Herman Melville (Name change, born Melvill; August 1, 1819 – September 28, 1891) was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance (literature), American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works ar ...

's novel ''

Moby-Dick ''Moby-Dick; or, The Whale'' is an 1851 Epic (genre), epic novel by American writer Herman Melville. The book is centered on the sailor Ishmael (Moby-Dick), Ishmael's narrative of the maniacal quest of Captain Ahab, Ahab, captain of the whaler ...

'' which was published in 1851. The name was applied by mountaineer Douglas Anger and submitted in 1960 by Sam Silverstein of the Alpine Club of Canada. Anger imagined the mountain's features resembled a large white whale. It follows the Herman Melville-associated naming theme of the area established by the Sam Silverstein-Douglas Anger climbing party who made 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 Moby Dick in 1959 along with Fenwick Riley.Samuel Silverstein (1960), ''Battle Range, Southern Selkirks'', Americanalpineclub.org
/ref> The mountain's toponym was officially adopted on November 1, 1963, by the

Geographical Names Board of Canada The Geographical Names Board of Canada (GNBC) is a national committee with a secretariat in Natural Resources Canada, part of the Government of Canada, which authorizes the names used and name changes on official federal government maps of Canad ...

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 ...

, Moby Dick Mountain 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 cold, snowy winters, and mild summers. Winter temperatures can drop below −20 °C with wind chill factors below −30 °C. This climate supports the Pequod Glacier on the east slope of the peak, the Moby Dick Glacier on the south slope, an unnamed glacier on the north slope, and the Proteus Glacier to the west.

Gallery

Pequod Mountain, Pequod Glacier.jpg, The top of Moby Dick Mountain appears above Pequod Mountain and Pequod Glacier

References

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External links