Mount Niles is a

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 the Waputik Range of Yoho National Park, in 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 ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, Canada. The nearest higher peak is

Mount Daly Mount Daly is located on the border of Alberta and British Columbia. It was named in 1898 by Charles E. Fay after Charles P. Daly, a geographer. Mount Niles is located two km southwest of Daly. Geology Like other mountains in Banff Park, Mou ...

, to the immediate northeast. Takakkaw Falls is situated four km to the west, the

Waputik Icefield The Waputik Icefield is located on the Continental divide in the Canadian Rocky Mountains, in the provinces of British Columbia and Alberta. It is developed on the heights of the Waputik Range in the Central Main Ranges. The icefield is shared by ...

lies to the north, and Sherbrooke Lake lies to the south. 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 Mount Niles drains into the

Yoho River The Yoho River is a silty, swift tributary of the Kicking Horse River in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The river is entirely within Yoho National Park. Course The Yoho River originates at the north end of Yoho National Park and flo ...

and Niles Creek, both tributaries of the Kicking Horse River. Topographic relief is significant as the summit rises approximately 1,500 meters (4,920 feet) above Yoho Valley in four kilometers (2.5 mile).

History

Charles Sproull Thompson (1869–1921) named the peak in 1898, for William H. Niles (1838–1910), president of the Appalachian Mountain Club and Professor of Geology at

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...

who also did some mountaineering in the area. Canadian Mountain Place Names - The Rockies and Columbia Mountains, Glen W. Boles, Roger W. Laurilla, William L. Putnam, Rocky Mountain Books, 2006, page 183. The

first ascent In mountaineering, a first ascent (abbreviated to FA in guide books) is the first successful, documented attainment of the top of a mountain or the first to follow a particular climbing route. First mountain ascents are notable because they en ...

of the mountain was made in 1898 by D. Campbell and Charles E. Fay. The mountain's toponym was officially adopted in 1924 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 ...

Geology

Mount Niles 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 ...

, Mount Niles 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. Winter temperatures can drop below −20 °C with wind chill factors below −30 °C.

Gallery

File:Mount Niles.jpg, Mount Niles' south aspect seen from Sherbrooke Lake File:Mount Niles, Sherbrooke Lake.jpg, Mount Niles (centered in the distance) seen from Sherbrooke Lake File:Mounts Daly and Niles.jpg, Mount Niles right of center with Mount Daly and Daly Glacier to left, and Takakkaw Falls in lower right, as seen from Iceline Trail

References

External links