Moolock Mountain is a 4,965-foot-elevation (1,513-meter)
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 ...
located in
King County
King County is located in the U.S. state of Washington. The population was 2,269,675 in the 2020 census, making it the most populous county in Washington, and the 13th-most populous in the United States. The county seat is Seattle, also the st ...
of
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.
It is situated at the western edge 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, ...
, on land managed by
Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. Moolock Mountain is more notable for its large, steep rise above local terrain than for its absolute elevation. The nearest higher neighbor is
line parent A peak's line parent is the closest higher peak on the highest ridge leading away from the peak's "key col". A col is the lowest point on the ridge between two summits and is roughly synonymous with pass, gap, saddle and notch. The highest col of ...
Bessemer Mountain
Bessemer Mountain is a mountain summit located in King County of Washington state. It is situated at the western edge of the Cascade Range, on land managed by Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. Bessemer Mountain is more notable for its la ...
, to the northeast, and
Green Mountain
Green Mountain is a common name for "The Peak", the highest point on Ascension Island, which has gained some fame for claims that it is one of very few large-scale artificial forests.
History and vegetation
Many early 19th-century accounts, in ...
is 2.5 miles to the southwest. Precipitation
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 this mountain drains into tributaries of the North and Middle Forks of the
Snoqualmie River. This unofficially named peak rises immediately southeast above Lake Moolock, which is officially named.
Moolock, or moolack, is a
Chinook Jargon word meaning "elk."
[William Bright (2004), ''Native American Placenames of the United States'', University of Oklahoma Press, , p.297]
Climate
Moolock Mountain 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 east 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. Because of
maritime influence, snow tends to be wet and heavy, resulting in
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.
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.
Geology
The history of the formation of the Cascade Mountains dates back millions of years ago to the late
Eocene
The Eocene ( ) Epoch is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (mya). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene' ...
Epoch.
During the
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...
period dating back over two million years ago, glaciation advancing and retreating repeatedly scoured the landscape leaving deposits of rock debris.
[ The last glacial retreat in the area began about 14,000 years ago and was north of the Canada–US border by 10,000 years ago.][ The U-shaped cross section of the river valleys is a result of that recent glaciation. ]Uplift
Uplift may refer to: Science
* Geologic uplift, a geological process
** Tectonic uplift, a geological process
* Stellar uplift, the theoretical prospect of moving a stellar mass
* Uplift mountains
* Llano Uplift
* Nemaha Uplift
Business
* Uplif ...
and faulting in combination with glaciation have been the dominant processes which have created the tall peaks and deep valleys of the Cascade Range.
Gallery
File:A view up the Middle Fork Snoqualmie Ricer valley.jpg, Moolock centered
File:Moolock from Mailbox Peak.jpg, South aspect of Moolock Mountain (centered), seen from Mailbox Peak
Mailbox Peak is a mountain located in King County of Washington state. It is set west of the crest of the Cascade Range, on land managed by Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. Mailbox Peak is situated seven miles east of North Bend, and o ...
.
See also
* Geology of the Pacific Northwest
References
{{reflist
Mountains of King County, Washington
Cascade Range
Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest
Mountains of Washington (state)
North American 1000 m summits
Chinook Jargon place names