Mount Wilcox (also known as Wilcox Peak) is a mountain summit located in the

Canadian Rockies The Canadian Rockies () or Canadian Rocky Mountains, comprising both the Alberta Rockies and the British Columbian Rockies, is the Canadian segment of the North American Rocky Mountains. It is the easternmost part of the Canadian Cordillera, w ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. It is located in

Jasper National Park Jasper National Park, in Alberta, Canada, is the largest national park within Alberta's Rocky Mountains, spanning . It was established as Jasper Forest Park in 1907, renamed as a national park in 1930, and declared a UNESCO world heritage site ...

right beside the

Columbia Icefield The Columbia Icefield is the largest ice field in North America's Rocky Mountains. Located within the Canadian Rocky Mountains astride the Continental Divide along the border of British Columbia and Alberta, Canada, the ice field lies partly ...

visitor centre with the

Icefields Parkway Highway 93 is a north–south highway in Alberta, Canada. It is also known as the Banff-Windermere Parkway south of the Trans-Canada Highway ( Highway 1) and the Icefields Parkway north of the Trans-Canada Highway. It travels through Banff Nat ...

traversing the western base of the mountain. Its nearest higher peak is

Nigel Peak Nigel Peak is a mountain summit located on the shared border of Banff National Park and Jasper National Park, in the Canadian Rockies of Alberta, Canada. Nigel has two peaks, the north summit is the highest point. The nearest higher peak is Moun ...

, to the northeast. Mount Wilcox is a moderate scramble from Wilcox Pass. Due to its location, it provides one of the best views of the

Athabasca Glacier The Athabasca Glacier is one of the six principal Glacier terminus, 'toes' of the Columbia Icefield, located in the Canadian Rockies. The glacier currently loses depth at a rate of about per year and has Retreat of glaciers since 1850, receded ...

History

The mountain was named Wilcox Peak by J. Norman Collie in 1899 after Walter D. Wilcox, an early explorer of the Canadian Rockies who also 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 the peak in 1896. The mountain's ''Wilcox Peak'' name was officially adopted in 1924 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 ...

. The Board changed it to Mount Wilcox in 1928, until ultimately reverting to Wilcox Peak in 1956.

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 ...

, Wilcox 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 ...

with cold, snowy winters, and mild summers. Temperatures can drop below -20 °C with wind chill factors below -30 °C. In terms of favorable weather, June through September are the best months to climb. Precipitation runoff from the peak flows into the

Sunwapta River The Sunwapta River is a major tributary of the Athabasca River in Jasper National Park in Alberta, Canada. Course The headwaters of the Sunwapta River are near the Columbia Icefield in the valley west-northwest of Sunwapta Pass, which divides Ja ...

which in turn is a tributary of the

Athabasca River The Athabasca River (French: ''Rivière Athabasca'') in Alberta, Canada, originates at the Columbia Icefield in Jasper National Park and flows more than before emptying into Lake Athabasca. Much of the land along its banks is protected in nationa ...

Gallery

File:Wilcox Peak seen from Tangle Ridge.jpg, Wilcox's north ridge seen from

Tangle Ridge Tangle Ridge is a mountain summit located in Jasper National Park, in the Canadian Rockies of Alberta, Canada. Tangle Ridge is situated south of Beauty Creek and north of Tangle Creek, in the Sunwapta River valley. Topographic relief is signifi ...

File:WilcoxPeakJasper.jpg, Mount Wilcox seen from Athabasca Glacier. File:Mount Wilcox, Alberta.jpg, Mount Wilcox seen from Wilcox Pass File:Mt. Andromeda from Wilcox Pass.jpg, Mt. Andromeda as seen from Wilcox Pass

References

External links

* Parks Canada web site
Jasper National Park
* Mount Wilcox weather
Mountain Forecast
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilcox Park Ranges Mountains of Jasper National Park Two-thousanders of Alberta

History

Climate

Gallery

See also

References

External links