Skillet Glacier is in
Grand Teton National Park
Grand Teton National Park is a national park of the United States in northwestern Wyoming. At approximately , the park includes the major peaks of the Teton Range as well as most of the northern sections of the valley known as Jackson Hole. G ...
,
Wyoming
Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...
, United States.
The glacier is situated on the eastern cliffs of
Mount Moran
Mount Moran () is a mountain in Grand Teton National Park of western Wyoming, United States, USA. The mountain is named for Thomas Moran, an American western frontier landscape artist. Mount Moran dominates the northern section of the Teton Rang ...
and is easily seen from
Jackson Hole
Jackson Hole (originally called Jackson's Hole by mountain men) is a valley between the Gros Ventre Range, Gros Ventre and Teton Range, Teton mountain ranges in the U.S. state of Wyoming, near the border with Idaho, in Teton County, Wyoming, T ...
. The shape of the glacier led to the naming as the uppermost section of the glacier is long and narrow and then broadens abruptly more than halfway down the mountain into a larger area, giving it the shape of a
skillet
A frying pan, frypan, or skillet is a flat-bottomed pan used for frying, searing, and browning foods. It typically ranges from in diameter with relatively low sides that flare outwards, a long handle, and no lid. Larger pans may have a small ...
or frying pan. The glacier is one of twelve that remain in Grand Teton National Park and one of five glaciers located on Mount Moran.
Mountain climbers consider the Skillet Glacier route to be the fastest and one of the easiest ways to climb Mount Moran, and was the route taken when the peak was first climbed in 1922, though it is rarely used in late summer due to poor footing. On November 21, 1950, A
DC-3
The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by the Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II.
It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper ...
crashed into Mount Moran, adjacent to Skillet Glacier, killing all 21 passengers aboard. The remains of the passengers and the plane are still on the mountain.
See also
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List of glaciers in the United States
Glaciers are located in ten states, with the vast majority in Alaska. The southernmost named glacier is the Lilliput Glacier in Tulare County, California, Tulare County, east of the Central Valley (California), Central Valley of California.
Apa ...
*
Geology of the Grand Teton area
The geology of the Grand Teton area consists of some of the oldest rocks and one of the youngest mountain ranges in North America. The Teton Range, partly located in Grand Teton National Park, started to grow some 9 million years ago. An older fe ...
References
External links
Photo of Skillet Glacier
Glaciers of Grand Teton National Park
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