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Boulder Glacier

 
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Boulder Glacier
 
 
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Boulder Glacier is located on the southeast slope of Mount Baker
Mount Baker

Mount Baker, or Koma Kulshan, is an active volcano ice andesite stratovolcano in the Cascade Volcanoes and the North Cascades of Washington State in the United States....
, a stratovolcano
Stratovolcano

A stratovolcano, sometimes called a composite volcano, is a tall, Volcanic cone volcano with many layers of hardened lava, tephra, and volcanic ash....
 near the Pacific coast of North America in the Cascade Range
Cascade Range

The Cascade Range is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California....
 of Washington
Washington

Washington is a U.S. state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Washington was carved out of the western part of Washington Territory which had been ceded by Britain in 1846 by the Oregon Treaty as settlement of the Oregon Boundary Dispute....
. Boulder Glacier is the sixth largest on Mount Baker with an area of 1.3 mi˛ (3.4 km˛) (Post et al. 1971). It flows from the summit crater between Grant Peak (10,781 feet / 3,286 m) and Sherman Peak (10,140 feet / 3,091 m) to about 5,000 feet (1,524 m). It is noteworthy for retreating
Glacier retreat

Glacier retreat or glacial retreat is discussed in several articles, depending on the time frame of interest, and whether the climatological process or individual glaciers are being considered....
 1,480 feet (450 m) between 1987 and 2005 leaving newly exposed rock and soil behind.

Between 1850 and 1950, the glacier retreated 8,700 feet (2,650 m).






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Boulder Glacier is located on the southeast slope of Mount Baker
Mount Baker

Mount Baker, or Koma Kulshan, is an active volcano ice andesite stratovolcano in the Cascade Volcanoes and the North Cascades of Washington State in the United States....
, a stratovolcano
Stratovolcano

A stratovolcano, sometimes called a composite volcano, is a tall, Volcanic cone volcano with many layers of hardened lava, tephra, and volcanic ash....
 near the Pacific coast of North America in the Cascade Range
Cascade Range

The Cascade Range is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California....
 of Washington
Washington

Washington is a U.S. state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Washington was carved out of the western part of Washington Territory which had been ceded by Britain in 1846 by the Oregon Treaty as settlement of the Oregon Boundary Dispute....
. Boulder Glacier is the sixth largest on Mount Baker with an area of 1.3 mi˛ (3.4 km˛) (Post et al. 1971). It flows from the summit crater between Grant Peak (10,781 feet / 3,286 m) and Sherman Peak (10,140 feet / 3,091 m) to about 5,000 feet (1,524 m). It is noteworthy for retreating
Glacier retreat

Glacier retreat or glacial retreat is discussed in several articles, depending on the time frame of interest, and whether the climatological process or individual glaciers are being considered....
 1,480 feet (450 m) between 1987 and 2005 leaving newly exposed rock and soil behind.

Between 1850 and 1950, the glacier retreated 8,700 feet (2,650 m). William Long of the United States Forest Service
United States Forest Service

The USDA Forest Service is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 155 United States National Forest and 20 United States National Grassland....
 observed the glacier beginning to advance due to cooler/wetter weather in 1953. This was followed by a 2,438 feet (743 m) advance by 1979. The 1979 terminus position is where the small stream enters Boulder Creek from the southwest. Observations in 2005 suggest that the lowest thousand feet or several hundred meters of the glacier is stagnant and will likely disappear. In the pictures, this section of the glacier is gray with rock debris and has few crevasses. On the west side of Boulder Creek is a small waterfall revealed by the recent recession of the glacier.

Boulder Glacier 3614
Boulder Glacier may be approached via the Boulder Ridge Trail number 605. The trail passes through a climax community
Climax community

In ecology, a climax community, or climatic climax community, is a biological Community of plants and animals which, through the process of ecological succession ? the development of vegetation in an area over time ? has reached a steady state....
 of pacific silver fir
Pacific Silver Fir

Pacific Silver Fir is a fir native to the Pacific Northwest of North America, occurring in the Pacific Coast Ranges and the Cascade Range from the extreme southeast of Alaska, through western British Columbia, Washington and Oregon, to the extreme northwest of California....
 and related species of disparate ages with many standing snag
Snag

In forest ecology, a snag refers to a standing, partly or completely dead tree, often missing a top or most of the smaller branches, while in Limnology it refers to trees, branches and other pieces of naturally occurring wood found in a sunken form in rivers and streams....
s. In the fall, a large variety of mushroom species emerge. Near 4,300 feet (1,311 m) elevation, the trail ascends a lateral glacial moraine
Moraine

A moraine is any glacially formed accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris which can occur in currently glaciated and formerly glaciated regions, such as those areas acted upon by a past ice age....
. At 4,600 feet (1,402 m), the route ascends about 20 feet (6 m) of Class 2
Yosemite Decimal System

The Yosemite Decimal System, or YDS, is a three-part system for rating the difficulty of walks, hikes, and climbs, used for mountaineering primarily in the United States and Canada....
 rock and 120 feet (37 m) of steep subalpine forest to reach the ridge crest. Soon thereafter, the trail disappears.

Boulder Ridge consists of scenic heather-covered benches and a number of lateral moraines left by vanished glaciers. Glacial retreat has left the upper portion of the ridge barren and unstable and rockfall from the terminus
Glacier terminus

A glacier terminus, or snout, is the end of a glacier at any given point in time. Although glaciers seem motionless to the observer, in reality glaciers are in endless Glacier#Glacial motion and the glacier terminus is always either advancing or retreating....
 of that portion of the glacier is a hazard to the unwary visitor.

Boulder Glacier is one of the more popular climbing routes on Mount Baker. First climbed on August 24 1891, it is most often ascended in combination with the cleaver between Boulder and Park Glacier to the north to bypass densely crevasse
Crevasse

A crevasse is a fracture in a glacier caused by a large tensile stress at or near the glacier's surface. Accelerations in glacier speed cause extension and can initiate a crevasse....
d sections of the glacier. At about 10,000 feet (3,048 m) elevation, the route passes to the southwest of steep rock and ice to reach the summit ridge east of Grant Peak.

Gallery


See also

  • Mount Baker
    Mount Baker

    Mount Baker, or Koma Kulshan, is an active volcano ice andesite stratovolcano in the Cascade Volcanoes and the North Cascades of Washington State in the United States....
  • Retreat of glaciers since 1850
    Retreat of glaciers since 1850

    The retreat of glaciers since 1850, worldwide and rapid, affects the availability of fresh water for irrigation and domestic use, mountain recreation, animals and plants that depend on glacier-melt, and in the longer term, the level of the oceans....
  • List of glaciers
    List of glaciers

    Due to somewhat sparse information, some glaciers, especially those in the tropics, may no longer exist as listed. This is especially true for glaciers in Africa and New Guinea....


External links

  • North Cascade Glacier Climate Project