Stawamus Chief
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Stawamus Chief | |
|---|---|
 The warm light of a summer evening brings out rich gold and silver hues in the Chief's granite. |
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| Elevation | 702 metres (2303 feet) |
| Location | British Columbia, Canada |
| Range | Garibaldi Ranges |
| Coordinates | |
| Topo map | NTS 92G/11 |
| Type | Granite |
| Age of rock | Formed Late Cretaceous Exposed Holocene |
| First ascent | Prehistoric |
| Easiest route | hike |
The Stawamus Chief (often referred to as simply The Chief) is a granite dome located adjacent to the town of Squamish, British Columbia. It towers over 700 metres above the waters of nearby Howe Sound. It is not, as is often claimed, the "second largest granite monolith in the world",[1]. The indigenous Squamish Nation peoples consider the Chief to be a place of spiritual significance.
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[edit] The Provincial Park
In 1997 the Stawamus Chief Provincial Park was established by the British Columbia Ministry of the Environment. The park is over 5 square kilometres in area and encompasses not only the Chief but also the Stawamus Squaw, a slightly smaller granitic dome located a short distance to the north-east. Also featured in the park are a walk-in campground and a number of maintained hiking trails which lead through the forest of the Chief's "backside" to several summit areas. Stawamus Chief Provincial Park is a popular tourist destination.
[edit] Geology
The Chief was initially formed several million years ago when a huge bubble of molten magma solidified far below the surface of the Earth. Over the course of thousands of years, geological forces brought it closer to the surface. Eventually it emerged--directly in the path of a highly active ice age glacier. For hundreds of years the Chief was continually scoured and ground down by the ice. This glacial scouring produced the rounded edges and polished rock surfaces we see at the Chief today. The glacial ice also helped erode the deep gullies that divide the Chief's several summit areas. Ultimately, the glaciers retreated and the Chief was revealed at last--clean, and barren.
[edit] Topography and Features
The Chief measures approximately three square kilometres. In summary, there are several summits separated by several deep gullies. Steep cliffs separate the summits from the forest floor in many places, especially the western faces.
[edit] Summits
There are three main summit areas:
- First Peak or the South Summit (610 m)
- Second Peak or the Centre Summit (655 m)
- Third Peak or the North Summit (702 m)
Each summit features an expanse of fine glacier-polished granite and the promise of incredible views in all directions. Third Peak is a bit more remote and isolated, and is less popular with the tourists.
An additional summit area lies to the north of all the summits. This area is called the Zodiac Summit. Although it can be considered a sub-summit of Third Peak, it is perhaps the most isolated area of the Chief. No proper trail leads to the Zodiac Summit; only faint tracks here and there among the trees.
[edit] Hiking trails
All of the three main summits are accessible via the Chief's maintained backside hiking trails. These trails are steep and rugged. In fact, in several high places there are short sections of "trail" that are so steep that chains and ladders have been bolted to the rock for aid.
[edit] Characteristics
[edit] Gullies
The three main summits of the Chief are separated by several deep clefts known as the gullies. These chasms are steep and are partially filled with debris, mostly talus and scree. They were apparently excavated primarily by glacier action.
- South Gully: the Chief's biggest and most noticeable gully, it separates First Peak from Second Peak.
- North Gully: a dark and narrow gully near the north end of the Chief, it separates Second Peak from the "Zodiac Summit".
- North-North Gully: even darker and narrower, this gully separates the "Zodiac Summit" from Third Peak.
There is an additional smaller gully near the south end of the Chief called Bullethead Gully which somewhat separates the Bulletheads region from the rest of the Chief. This gully is very bushy and is much less dramatic than the main gullies mentioned above.
[edit] The Apron
The Apron is a vast sweep of lower-angle rock which rises like a wedge from the highway to about halfway up the Grand Wall near the Chief's approximate centre. There it meets with a rising ridge of rock known as the Squamish Buttress, and promptly terminates in the great chasm known as the South Gully.
[edit] Rock Faces
The Chief's summits are surrounded by sheer rock wall cliffs. They are typically high, exposed, and surprisingly varied in character. Several of the Chief's more notable rock faces are as follows:
- Grand Wall: the centrepiece of the Chief, and without question one of the cleanest and finest granite walls anywhere on Earth. This magnificent silver-coloured wall is located just south of the Apron.
- Bulletheads: a region of oddly rounded bulges near the southern end of the Chief.
- Dihedral Wall: this featured expanse of rock is situated between the Grand Wall and the Bulletheads. In the spring and early summer it is a nesting area for peregrine falcons.
- Sheriff's Badge: a white-coloured, star-shaped exfoliation scar north-east of the Apron. Sometimes called "the Witch" by local townsfolk.
- Zodiac Wall: located at the northernmost end of the Chief, this rock face is dark, isolated, and seldom visited.
The Chief's rock faces, especially the Grand Wall, exhibit the unique textural patterns which result from the process of granitic exfoliation. This is the natural means by which large, high-quality granite formations weather, erode, and age. Rather than crumbling and slowly wearing away, large flakes of granite tend to shear off and drop from the face in layers. On impact with the ground below, the shattered flakes become boulders and talus.
Sometimes a flake will partially split away while remaining attached to the rock face. An excellent example of a partially-detached flake on the Chief is the renowned Split Pillar on the Grand Wall. The Chief's rock faces are abundant with unique rock features and characteristics. Examples are overhanging roofs, splitter cracks, rock chimneys, dihedrals, ledges, platforms, and slabs.
[edit] The Black Dyke
This feature divides the Grand Wall from the Dihedral Wall to the south. In ancient times gone by, when the Chief was still buried far underground, it cracked and split along a long seam. Into the resulting empty space several metres wide molten magma was injected under intense pressure. Later, the magma cooled and solidified to become black-hued basaltic rock. The resulting dyke is now clearly visible from the Chief's main parking area.
[edit] Forest
At the base and around the perimeter of the Chief are thick forests. Although not exactly old growth these stands of trees are representative of pacific coastal temperate rain forest common in the area. Typical tree species are Douglas Fir, Western Red Cedar, Sitka Spruce, and Alder.
[edit] Boulders
Also at the base of the Chief's walls are a bewildering variety of medium-to-large size granite boulders. Once themselves part of the Chief, these boulders form groups which have been carefully explored by bouldering enthusiasts. Some of the boulders are so large as to defy the imagination. The largest is the Cacodemon Boulder at the base of the Grand Wall, an individual chunk of rock as big as a small apartment building.
[edit] Rock climbing
Because of the Chief and several other high-quality climbing areas in the vicinity, Squamish has become a world-class rock climbing destination. Squamish is sometimes referred to as "Yosemite North". In terms of structure, composition, and quality of the granitic rock, the Chief reportedly resembles Half Dome in the Yosemite Valley.
Kevin McLane, longtime rock climber and Squamish guidebook author, describes climbing at the Chief thus: "immense vertical walls, long cool slabs, sinuous dykes, and beautiful cracks offer a variety of climbing that is hard to match anywhere." Almost every style of rock climbing at almost every possible skill level can be practiced here, including Traditional climbing, sport climbing, aid climbing, and bouldering. Since the Chief is practically at sea-level, the only climbing styles not normally represented are alpine climbing and ice climbing.
Rock climber Peter Croft began what continues to be a long and illustrious climbing career in Squamish in the late 1970's. He astounded the climbing community by putting up a number of bold new free climbing routes on the Chief which, at the time, pushed the limits of what people thought was possible. More recently, Brad Zdanivsky became the first quadriplegic ever to reach the summit on 31 July 2005.
[edit] Gallery
 Mount Garibaldi as viewed from the height of the North Gully. |
 View of the Chief from the Valleycliffe subdivision in Squamish. The North Gully can be seen as the deep, dark cleft in the centre of the photo. |
 The Chief's Grand Wall area, a vertical sea of some of the world's finest granite. To the right the Black Dyke can be seen bisecting the rock face. |
 Unusual glacier polish features observed near Second Peak. |
 Glacier polish on the Apron's Banana Peel rock climbing route. |
 The Grand Wall, featuring the Split Pillar (just to the left of the tree). |
[edit] References
- Bivouac.com Canadian Mountain Encyclopedia (Stawamus Chief Mountain)
- Natural Resources Canada (The Chief: Pillar of Granite)
- Squamish Nation
- Stawamus Chief Provincial Park
- Stawamus Chief and Shannon Falls Provincial Parks Brochure Map
- Heintzman, Patricia (2004). Squamish Trail and Recreation Map. Taiko Publishing.
- McLane, Kevin (2005). The Climbers Guide to Squamish. Elaho Press, 33,203. ISBN 0-9733035-4-9
- Verma, G (1999). Garibaldi Region Map (Second Edition). ITMB Publishing Ltd..
[edit] External Links
[edit] Footnotes
McLane, Kevin (2005). The Climbers Guide to Squamish. Elaho Press, 33,203. ISBN 0-9733035-4-9}}
