Columbia Icefield
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The Columbia Icefield is a large icefield located in the Canadian Rockies, astride the Continental Divide of North America. The icefield lies partly in the northwestern tip of Banff and the southern end of Jasper National Park. It is about 325 km² in area, 100 to 365 metres (328' to 1,197') in depth and receives up to seven metres (23 feet) of snowfall per year. The icefield feeds eight major glaciers, including:
- Athabasca Glacier
- Castleguard Glacier
- Columbia Glacier
- Dome Glacier
- Stutfield Glacier
- Saskatchewan Glacier
Some of the highest mountains in the Canada Rockies are located around the edges:
- Mount Andromeda (3450m), Mount Athabasca (3491m), Mount Bryce (3507m), Castleguard Mountain (3090m), Mount Columbia (3747m), Mount King Edward (3490m), Mount Kitchener (3505m), North Twin Peak (3684m), South Twin Peak (3566m), Snow Dome (3456m) and Stutfield Peak (3450m)
Part of the icefield is visible from the Icefields Parkway.
The icefield was discovered in 1898 by J. Norman Collie and Hermann Woolley after they had completed the first ascent of Mount Athabasca.
The Columbia River, the North Saskatchewan River and the Athabasca River originate in the Columbia Icefield.
External links
- Columbia Icefield on Bivouac (http://bivouac.com/ArxPg.asp?ArxId=1012)
- The Columbia Icefield and the Athabasca Glacier (http://collections.ic.gc.ca/alberta/archaeology/site_profiles_columbia_icefield.html)