Lundin Peak is a summit located in King County of Washington state. It's part of the Cascade Range and is within the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.[1] Lundin Peak is situated three miles north of Snoqualmie Pass on land managed by Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. Originally called Snoqualmie Little Sister, the peak's name was changed in 1931 to honor district forest ranger John Lundin.[3] Lundin Peak is a high point on a ridge located midway between Snoqualmie Mountain and Red Mountain. Precipitation runoff from the mountain drains into tributaries of the Snoqualmie River.

Lundin Peak
Lundin Peak from Mount Catherine
Highest point
Elevation	6,057 ft (1,846 m)[1]
Prominence	217 ft (66 m)[1]
Parent peak	Snoqualmie Mountain (6,278 ft)[2]
Isolation	0.82 mi (1.32 km)[2]
Coordinates	47°27′46″N 121°24′02″W[1]
Geography
Lundin Peak Location in Washington Show map of Washington (state) Lundin Peak Lundin Peak (the United States) Show map of the United States
Location	King County Washington state, U.S.
Parent range	Cascade Range
Topo map	USGS Snoqualmie Pass
Geology
Type of rock	Granodiorite
Climbing
Easiest route	Scrambling (class 4)

Climate

Lundin Peak is located in the marine west coast climate zone of western North America.[4]

Most weather fronts originate in the Pacific Ocean, and travel northeast toward the Cascade Mountains. 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 snowfall onto the Cascades (Orographic lift). As a result, the west side of the Cascades experiences 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.[5] Because of maritime influence, snow tends to be wet and heavy, resulting in high avalanche danger.[5] The months July through September offer the most favorable weather for viewing or climbing this peak.

Geology

The Alpine Lakes Wilderness features some of the most rugged topography in the Cascade Range with craggy peaks and ridges, deep glacial valleys, and granite walls spotted with over 700 mountain lakes.[6] Geological events occurring many years ago created the diverse topography and drastic elevation changes over the Cascade Range leading to the various climate differences. These climate differences lead to vegetation variety defining the ecoregions in this area. The elevation range of this area is between about 1,000 feet (300 m) in the lower elevations to over 9,000 feet (2,700 m) on Mount Stuart.

The history of the formation of the Cascade Mountains dates back millions of years ago to the late Eocene Epoch.[7] With the North American Plate overriding the Pacific Plate, episodes of volcanic igneous activity persisted.[7] In addition, small fragments of the oceanic and continental lithosphere called terranes created the North Cascades about 50 million years ago.[7]

During the Pleistocene period dating back over two million years ago, glaciation advancing and retreating repeatedly scoured the landscape leaving deposits of rock debris.[7] The last glacial retreat in the Alpine Lakes area began about 14,000 years ago and was north of the Canada–US border by 10,000 years ago.[7] The "U"-shaped cross section of the river valleys are a result of that recent glaciation. Uplift and faulting in combination with glaciation have been the dominant processes which have created the tall peaks and deep valleys of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness area.

See also

• List of peaks of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness

References

External links

• Lundin Peak weather forecast
• Alpine Lakes Wilderness (Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest) U.S. Forest Service