Chinook Peak is a summit located on the eastern border of

Mount Rainier National Park Mount Rainier National Park is an American national park located in southeast Pierce County and northeast Lewis County in Washington state. The park was established on March 2, 1899, as the fourth national park in the United States, preservi ...

. It is also on the shared border of Pierce County and Yakima County in

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

state. Chinook Peak is situated north of

Chinook Pass Chinook Pass (elevation 5430 ft./1656 m.) is a pass through the Cascade Range in the state of Washington. The pass is located on the crest of the Cascade Range, along a ridge between Yakima Peak to the northwest of the pass, and Naches Pea ...

on the crest of the

Cascade Range The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, ...

. Its nearest higher peak is Crystal Mountain, to the north. Crystal Peak lies to the northwest, and

Cupalo Rock Cupalo Rock is a 6,593-foot (2,010 m) summit located in Yakima County in Washington state. Cupalo Rock is situated two miles north-northeast of Chinook Pass, one mile east-northeast of Chinook Peak, and barely east of the crest of the Cascade Rang ...

is to the east-northeast.

Precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravitational pull from clouds. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, sleet, snow, ice pellets, graupel and hail. ...

runoff Runoff, run-off or RUNOFF may refer to: * RUNOFF, the first computer text-formatting program * Runoff or run-off, another name for bleed, printing that lies beyond the edges to which a printed sheet is trimmed * Runoff or run-off, a stock market ...

from Chinook Peak drains into tributaries of the White River and

Yakima River The Yakima River is a tributary of the Columbia River in south central and eastern Washington state, named for the indigenous Yakama people. Lewis and Clark mention in their journals that the Chin-nâm pam (or the Lower Snake River Chamnapam Nat ...

Climate

Chinook Peak is located in the marine west coast climate zone of western

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

.Beckey, Fred W. Cascade Alpine Guide, Climbing and High Routes. Seattle, WA: Mountaineers Books, 2008. Most weather fronts originate in the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

, and travel northeast toward the Cascade Mountains. As fronts approach, they are forced upward by the peaks of the Cascade Range ( Orographic lift), causing them to drop their moisture in the form of rain or snowfall onto the Cascades. 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. Because of maritime influence, snow tends to be wet and heavy, resulting in high

avalanche An avalanche is a rapid flow of snow down a slope, such as a hill or mountain. Avalanches can be set off spontaneously, by such factors as increased precipitation or snowpack weakening, or by external means such as humans, animals, and earth ...

danger.

References

Gallery

File:Chinook Peak Sheep Lake.jpg, Southeast aspect reflected in Sheep Lake File:Chinook Peak Sept 2014.jpg, from a tarn along the Pacific Crest Trail near Naches Peak File:Chinook Peak, east aspect.jpg, Chinook Peak, east aspect File:Chinook Peak at Chinook Pass.jpg, from Chinook Pass File:Crystal Pass, MRNP.jpg, Peak 6708 (left) and Chinook Peak from north

External links

* National Park Service web site
Mount Rainier National Park
{{Geographic Location 2 , Center = Chinook Peak , North = Crystal Mountain , Northeast =

Three Way Peak Three Way Peak is a summit located on the eastern border of Mount Rainier National Park Mount Rainier National Park is an American national park located in southeast Pierce County and northeast Lewis County in Washington state. The park w ...

, ENE =

Fifes Peaks Fifes Peaks is a compact group of summits and spires from an eroded volcanic cone located in Yakima County in Washington state. Fifes Peaks is situated in the Cascade Range on the east side of the crest, within the Norse Peak Wilderness. The ...

, East =

, ESE = American Ridge , Southeast =

Tahtlum Peak Tahtlum Peak is a 6,567-foot-elevation (2,002 meter) mountain summit in Yakima County, Washington, Yakima County of Washington (U.S. state), Washington state. Description Tahtlum Peak is located east-southeast of Chinook Pass and north of Dewey ...

, South =

Naches Peak Naches Peak is a 6,452-foot (1,967 m) mountain summit located on the shared border of Mount Rainier National Park and William O. Douglas Wilderness. It is also on the shared border of Pierce County and Yakima County in Washington state. Naches P ...

, Southwest =

Deadwood Peak Deadwood Peak is a 6,280-foot-elevation (1,914 meter) mountain summit located on the eastern border of Mount Rainier National Park. It is also situated on the shared border of Pierce County, Washington, Pierce County and Yakima County, Washington ...

, WSW =

Governors Ridge Governors Ridge is located in Mount Rainier National Park in Pierce County, Washington, Pierce County of Washington (U.S. state), Washington state. It is part of the Cascade Range and is situated west of Cayuse Pass and 1.09 mile east of Taman ...

, West =

Goat Island Mountain Goat Island Mountain is a ridge-like mountain located in Mount Rainier National Park, in Pierce County of Washington state. It is part of the Cascade Range, and lies east-northeast of the summit of Mount Rainier. This mountain is quite v ...

, WNW =

Dege Peak Dege Peak is a 7,006-foot (2,135 m) summit located in Pierce County, Washington, Pierce County of Washington (U.S. state), Washington state. It is part of the Sourdough Mountains in Mount Rainier National Park. It was named in 1932 for James ...

, Northwest = Marcus Peak Cascade Range Mountains of Pierce County, Washington Mountains of Washington (state) Mountains of Yakima County, Washington Chinook Jargon place names Mount Rainier National Park North American 2000 m summits

Climate

See also

References

Gallery

External links