Mount Harding (Alaska)

Mount Harding is a prominent 5,321 ft (1,620 m) mountain summit located in the Boundary Ranges of the Coast Mountains, in the U.S. state of Alaska. The peak is situated 4.5 mi (7 km) southwest of Skagway, and 3 mi (5 km) south of Face Mountain, on land managed by Tongass National Forest. Although modest in elevation, relief is significant since Mount Harding rises 5,300 feet above Taiya Inlet in less than 2 mi (3 km). The peak was named in 1924 by the Skagway Alpine Club to honor President Warren G. Harding (1865–1923), 29th president of the United States who visited Skagway on July 11, 1923.[4] He was the first and only president to visit Skagway.[5] Harding died three weeks later in San Francisco. The mountain's name was officially adopted in 1986 by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names. Precipitation runoff from the mountain drains east into Taiya Inlet, and west into Ferebee River.

Mt. Harding summit
Mount Harding
Northeast aspect, from Skagway
(Witch Mountain, peak to left)
Highest point
Elevation5,321 ft (1,622 m)[1]
Prominence821 ft (250 m)[1]
Parent peakWitch Mountain (5,380 ft)[2]
Isolation1.07 mi (1.72 km)[3]
Coordinates59°25′06″N 135°26′01″W[1]
Geography
Mount Harding is located in Alaska
Mount Harding
Mount Harding
Location of Mount Harding in Alaska
LocationTongass National Forest
Skagway Borough
Alaska, United States
Parent rangeCoast Mountains
Boundary Ranges
Topo mapUSGS Skagway B-2

Climate

Based on the Köppen climate classification, Mount Harding has a subarctic climate with cold, snowy winters, and cool summers.[6] Weather systems coming off the Gulf of Alaska are forced upwards by the Coast Mountains (orographic lift), causing heavy precipitation in the form of rainfall and snowfall. Temperatures can drop below −20 °C with wind chill factors below −30 °C. This climate supports a glacier south of the summit, and a smaller one on the northwest slope.[2] The months May through July offer the most favorable weather for viewing or climbing Mount Harding.

See also

References
  1. "Mount Harding, Alaska". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved 2020-04-05.
  2. "Mount Harding". Bivouac.com. Retrieved 2020-04-05.
  3. "Harding, Mount - 5,321' Alaska". listsofjohn.com. Retrieved 2020-04-05.
  4. "Mount Harding". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved 2020-04-05.
  5. Frank Norris, The Skagway News, Aug 29, 2017
  6. Peel, M. C.; Finlayson, B. L.; McMahon, T. A. (2007). "Updated world map of the Köppen−Geiger climate classification". Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 11. ISSN 1027-5606.
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