Geography of Alberta - Mountains

Mountains

Within a hundred kilometres of the mountains there is constantly in view, in clear weather, a line of snowy peaks along the western horizon. This continues for hundreds of kilometres northwestward. The Canadian Rockies are ascended by a gradual approach from the east, but are exceedingly abrupt on their transalpine slope in British Columbia. The peaks of these mountains are majestic, many of them reaching a height of more than three km above the sea. Among the more notable of these are:

1. Mount Columbia - 3,747m (12,294 ft)
2. Twin Peaks massif - 3,684 m (12,087 ft)
3. Mount Alberta - 3,619m (11,874 ft)
4. Mount Forbes - 3,612 m (11,851 ft)
5. Mount Temple - 3,543m (11,624 ft)
6. Mount Brazeau - 3,525 m (11,562 ft)
7. Snow Dome - 3,520 m (11,546 ft)
8. Mount Lyell - 3,504 m (11,493 ft)
9. Mount Kitchener - 3,505 m (11,500 ft)
10. Mount Hungabee - 3,492 m (11,457 ft)

Historically travel through these mountains was difficult, and alpine passes became very important. The most noted of the Alberta passes are:

• The Crowsnest Pass, near the southern boundary line, through which a branch of the Canadian Pacific Railway runs.
• The Kicking Horse Pass, through which the main line of the Canadian Pacific Railway was built; 80 miles (130 km) from the eastern end of this pass is the gate of Banff National Park, with the famous touristic town of Banff as its centre.
• The Yellowhead Pass, running west from the Athabasca River; this pass was discovered by John Palliser (1858), was crossed by Lord Milton and Dr W. B. Cheadle (1861), and by Sandford Fleming (1871–1872) in the Ocean to Ocean expedition;

The Caribou Mountains are not part of the Canadian Rockies, but are located in the northern Alberta, constituting an elevated plateau in the northern plains. They reach an altitude of 1,030 m, almost 700 m higher than the surrounding area.

While not considered mountains, the Cypress Hills, located in southern Alberta, on the Saskatchewan border, constitutes the highest point between the Rocky Mountains and Labrador. They reach a maximum elevation of 1,468 m, 600 m above the surrounding prairie.