Mount Whyte is a

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

located in

Banff National Park Banff National Park is Canada's oldest national park, established in 1885 as Rocky Mountains Park. Located in Alberta's Rocky Mountains, west of Calgary, Banff encompasses of mountainous terrain, with many glaciers and ice fields, dense conif ...

, near Lake Louise. The mountain can be seen from the

Trans-Canada Highway The Trans-Canada Highway (French: ; abbreviated as the TCH or T-Can) is a transcontinental federal–provincial highway system that travels through all ten provinces of Canada, from the Pacific Ocean on the west coast to the Atlantic Ocean on ...

, and offers views of the

Valley of the Ten Peaks Valley of the Ten Peaks (french: Vallée des Dix Pics) is a valley in Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada, which is crowned by ten notable peaks and also includes Moraine Lake. The valley can be reached by following the Moraine Lake road near ...

, including the

Chateau Lake Louise The Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise is a Fairmont hotel on the eastern shore of Lake Louise, near Banff, Alberta. The original hotel was gradually developed at the turn of the 20th century by the Canadian Pacific Railway and was thus "kin" to its ...

. The mountain is also visible from the hiking trail that skirts the northern shore of Lake Agnes. The mountain was named in 1898 by Sir William Methuen after William Whyte, a representative of the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canad ...

Climbing

Mt. Whyte is usually combined with

Mount Niblock Mount Niblock is a mountain in Banff National Park near Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada. The mountain was named in 1904 after John Niblock, a superintendent with the Canadian Pacific Railway. Niblock was an early promoter of tourism in the Rockies ...

() when done as a

scramble Scramble, Scrambled, or Scrambling may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Games * ''Scramble'' (video game), a 1981 arcade game Music Albums * ''Scramble'' (album), an album by Atlanta-based band the Coathangers * ''Scrambles'' (album) ...

. However, while Mt. Niblock is rated a moderate scramble, Mt. Whyte is much more difficult due to additional

exposure Exposure or Exposures may refer to: People * The Exposures, a pseudonym for German electronic musician Jan Jeline Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Exposure'' (film), a 1932 American film * ''Exposure'', another name for the 1991 movie ...

and loose rock. The scramble should not be attempted in snowy conditions due to considerable fall distance which would likely prove fatal. For rock climbers, the Perren Route (II 5.6) is another option. While mostly a scramble as well, a short section of difficult climbing near the top in addition to route finding challenges and loose rock will not make it an easy ascent.

Geology

Like other mountains in Banff Park, Mount Whyte is composed of

sedimentary rock Sedimentary rocks are types of rock that are formed by the accumulation or deposition of mineral or organic particles at Earth's surface, followed by cementation. Sedimentation is the collective name for processes that cause these particle ...

laid down during the

Precambrian The Precambrian (or Pre-Cambrian, sometimes abbreviated pꞒ, or Cryptozoic) is the earliest part of Earth's history, set before the current Phanerozoic Eon. The Precambrian is so named because it preceded the Cambrian, the first period of th ...

Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately Mya. The J ...

periods. Formed in shallow seas, this sedimentary rock was pushed east and over the top of younger rock during the

Laramide orogeny The Laramide orogeny was a time period of mountain building in western North America, which started in the Late Cretaceous, 70 to 80 million years ago, and ended 35 to 55 million years ago. The exact duration and ages of beginning and end of the o ...

Climate

Based on the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...

, Mount Whyte is located in a subarctic climate zone with cold, snowy winters, and mild summers. Winter temperatures can drop below -20 °C with wind chill factors below -30 °C.

Climbing

Geology

Climate

See also

References

Further reading