Carlton Peak is a summit in the
Sawtooth Mountains in southern
Tofte Township,
Cook County
Cook County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, California. More than 40% of all residents of Illinois live within Cook County. As of 20 ...
, in northeastern
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
in the United States. In 1848, Reuben B. Carlton of
Fond du Lac, Minnesota, ascended the peak with Col.
Charles Whittlesey, who was participating in a geological survey expedition. In appreciation, Whittlesey named the mountain in Carlton's honor. Carlton Peak is now a Day Use area of
Temperance River State Park and requires a valid Minnesota State Parks sticker per the sign on the road on the south side of the peak.
Geologic history
Carlton Peak was formed about a billion years ago in the same period of volcanic activity that created the shoreline of Lake Superior, in northern Minnesota. During this period, several blocks of
anorthosite
Anorthosite () is a phaneritic, intrusive igneous rock characterized by its composition: mostly plagioclase feldspar (90–100%), with a minimal mafic component (0–10%). Pyroxene, ilmenite, magnetite, and olivine are the mafic minerals most ...
poked through the magma. The magma eventually became the diabase on the shoreline; the anorthosite became Carlton Peak.
Gallery
File:Superior sunrise.jpg, North Shore sunrise from Carlton Peak - Superior National Forest
Superior National Forest, part of the United States National Forest system, is located in the Arrowhead Region of the state of Minnesota between the Canada–United States border and the north shore of Lake Superior. The area is part of the grea ...
File:Superior National Forest - Copy.jpg, Carlton Peak color - Superior National Forest
References
Climbing areas of the United States
Mountains of Cook County, Minnesota
Mountains of Minnesota
{{CookCountyMN-geo-stub