Monday, April 28, 2008

Mount Baker

Mount Baker (3,285 meters; 10,778 feet) is an ice-clad volcano in the North Cascades of Washington State about 50 kilometers (31 miles) due east of the city of Bellingham. After Mount Rainier, it is the most heavily glaciated of the Cascade volcanoes: the volume of snow and ice on Mount Baker (about 1.8 cubic kilometers; 0.43 cubic miles) is greater than that of all the other Cascades volcanoes (except Rainier) combined. Isolated ridges of lava and hydrothermally altered rock, especially in the area of Sherman Crater, are exposed between glaciers on the upper flanks of the volcano: the lower flanks are steep and heavily vegetated. The volcano rests on a foundation of non-volcanic rocks in a region that is largely non-volcanic in origin.

Mount Baker is approximately 50 kilometers east of Bellingham, Washington. The best view of the mountain is from the Glacier Creek Road off of Highway 542. A 10-kilometer hike, taking off from Dead Horse Road (No.3907) affords closer views of Baker's north side. On the south side of the mountain Forest Service Road 372, taking off from Baker Lake Road, ends near the Schreibers Meadow cinder cone.

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