Commonwealth Peak is a mountain

summit A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topography, topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous. The term (mountain top) is generally used ...

in the

Spray Mountains The Spray Mountains is a mountain range of the Canadian Rockies located in southwestern Alberta, Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean a ...

, a sub-range of the

Canadian Rockies The Canadian Rockies (french: Rocheuses canadiennes) or Canadian Rocky Mountains, comprising both the Alberta Rockies and the British Columbian Rockies, is the Canadian segment of the North American Rocky Mountains. It is the easternmost part ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. The mountain is situated in

Peter Lougheed Provincial Park Peter Lougheed Provincial Park is a provincial park located in Alberta, Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the A ...

. Its nearest higher peak is

Mount Birdwood Mount Birdwood is a summit in the Spray Mountains range of the Canadian Rockies in Alberta, Canada. The mountain is situated on the east boundary of Banff National Park in the upper Spray Lakes River Valley. __NOTOC__ History Named in 1919, Mo ...

, to the west. Both can be seen from Alberta Highway 742, also known as Smith-Dorrien/Spray Trail in

Kananaskis Country Kananaskis Country is a multi-use area west of Calgary, Alberta, Canada in the foothills and front ranges of the Canadian Rockies. The area is named for the Kananaskis River, which was named by John Palliser in 1858 after a Cree acquaintance. Cove ...

. __NOTOC__

History

Commonwealth Peak was named in 1979 to commemorate the

1978 Commonwealth Games The 1978 Commonwealth Games were held in Edmonton, Alberta from 3 to 12 August 1978, two years after the 1976 Summer Olympics were held in Montreal, Quebec. They were boycotted by Nigeria, in protest at New Zealand's sporting contacts with apar ...

that were held in

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

, Alberta. The mountain's name was officially adopted in 1979 by the

Geographical Names Board of Canada The Geographical Names Board of Canada (GNBC) is a national committee with a secretariat in Natural Resources Canada, part of the Government of Canada, which authorizes the names used and name changes on official federal government maps of Canada ...

. The first ascent of the peak was made in 1970 by Charlie Locke and Lloyd McKay.

Geology

Commonwealth Peak is composed of

sedimentary rock Sedimentary rocks are types of rock that are formed by the accumulation or deposition of mineral or organic particles at Earth's surface, followed by cementation. Sedimentation is the collective name for processes that cause these particles ...

laid down during the

Precambrian The Precambrian (or Pre-Cambrian, sometimes abbreviated pꞒ, or Cryptozoic) is the earliest part of Earth's history, set before the current Phanerozoic Eon. The Precambrian is so named because it preceded the Cambrian, the first period of the ...

Jurassic The Jurassic ( ) is a Geological period, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately Mya. The J ...

periods. Formed in shallow seas, this sedimentary rock was pushed east and over the top of younger rock during the

Laramide orogeny The Laramide orogeny was a time period of mountain building in western North America, which started in the Late Cretaceous, 70 to 80 million years ago, and ended 35 to 55 million years ago. The exact duration and ages of beginning and end of the o ...

Climate

Based on the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

, Commonwealth Peak is located in a

subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of an ocean, ge ...

zone with cold, snowy winters, and mild summers. Temperatures can drop below −20 °C with wind chill factors below −30 °C. In terms of favorable weather, July through September are the best months to climb.

Gallery

File:Commonwealth Peak centered.jpg, Commonwealth Peak centered, Mt. Birdwood to right in clouds File:Birdwood and Commonwealth.jpg, Mt. Birdwood (left), Commonwealth Peak to right File:Commonwealth Peak south.jpg, South aspect, from Burstall Pass Trail

References

External links

* Weather
Commonwealth Peak
* Commonwealth Peak
Flickr photo
{{Geographic Location , Center = Commonwealth Peak , North = Commonwealth Creek , Northeast =

Mount Galatea Mount Galatea is the highest peak of the Kananaskis Range, a subrange of the Canadian Rockies in the province of Alberta. It is located in the upper Spray Lakes Valley of the Kananaskis Country system of provincial parks. The mountain was named ...

, East =

Kananaskis Range The Kananaskis Range is a mountain range west of the Kananaskis River in the Canadian Rockies. Many of the peaks are named after ships and people involved in the Battle of Jutland The Battle of Jutland (german: Skagerrakschlacht, the Battl ...

, Southeast =

Mount Burstall Mount Burstall is a summit in Alberta, Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , mak ...

, South =

Mount Sir Douglas Mount Sir Douglas is located on the border of Alberta and British Columbia on the Continental Divide, at the northern end of Height of the Rockies Provincial Park and east of Invermere. It is Alberta's 18th highest peak, and 28th prominence moun ...

, Southwest = Snow Peak , West =

, Northwest =

Mount Smuts Mount Smuts is a mountain summit located in the Spray Valley, near the northern end of the Spray Mountains range. It is situated on the shared boundary of Peter Lougheed Provincial Park with Banff National Park in the Canadian Rockies of Albert ...