The Wedge is a mountain summit in the U.S. state of

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...

Description

The Wedge is located southeast of Anchorage in the

Chugach Mountains The Chugach Mountains of southern Alaska are the northernmost of the several mountain ranges that make up the Pacific Coast Ranges of the western edge of North America. The range is about long and wide, and extends from the Knik and Turnagai ...

and

Chugach State Park Chugach State Park covers 495,204 acres (2,004 square kilometers) immediately east of the Anchorage Bowl in south-central Alaska. Though primarily in the Municipality of Anchorage, a small portion of the park north of the Eklutna Lake area in t ...

. Precipitation runoff from the peak drains west into Campbell Creek and east into headwaters of

Ship Creek Ship Creek ( Dena'ina: ''Dgheyaytnu'') is an Alaskan river that flows from the Chugach Mountains into Cook Inlet. The Port of Anchorage at the mouth of Ship Creek gave its name ("Knik Anchorage") to the city of Anchorage that grew up nearby. The ...

Topographic relief Terrain or relief (also topographical relief) involves the vertical and horizontal dimensions of land surface. The term bathymetry is used to describe underwater relief, while hypsometry studies terrain relative to sea level. The Latin w ...

is significant as the summit rises nearly 2,000 feet (550 m) above South Fork Campbell Creek in and 2,000 feet (550 m) above Ship Lake in . Access to the mountain is via the Powerline Trail. The Wedge is a popular destination during the months of May through September.Shawn Lyons, ''Walk About Guide To Alaska: The Front Range and the Anchorage Bowl'', Publication Consultants, 2018, The mountain's descriptive toponym has been officially adopted by the

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...

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 ...

, The Wedge is located in a subarctic climate zone with long, cold, snowy winters, and mild summers. Weather systems coming off the

Gulf of Alaska The Gulf of Alaska (Tlingit: ''Yéil T'ooch’'') is an arm of the Pacific Ocean defined by the curve of the southern coast of Alaska, stretching from the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak Island in the west to the Alexander Archipelago in the east ...

are forced upwards by the Chugach Mountains (

orographic lift Orographic lift occurs when an air mass is forced from a low elevation to a higher elevation as it moves over rising terrain. As the air mass gains altitude it quickly cools down adiabatically, which can raise the relative humidity to 100% and cr ...

), causing heavy precipitation in the form of rain and snow. Winter temperatures can drop below 10 °F with wind chill factors below 0 °F.

References

External links

* Weather forecast
The Wedge
{{Geographic Location 2 , Center = The Wedge , North =

O'Malley Peak O'Malley Peak is a mountain summit located in the Chugach Mountains, in Anchorage Municipality in the U.S. state of Alaska. O'Malley Peak is situated in Chugach State Park, southeast of downtown Anchorage, west of Mount Williwaw, and northw ...

, Northeast = The Ramp , East = Ship Lake , ESE = Avalanche Mountain , Southeast = Powerline Pass , South = South Fork Campbell Creek , Southwest = Ptarmigan Peak , West = Flattop Mountain , Northwest = Anchorage Mountains of Alaska Mountains of Anchorage, Alaska North American 1000 m summits

Description

Climate

See also

References

External links