Mount Edziza

"Edziza" and "Tenh Dẕetle" redirect here. For other uses, see Edziza (disambiguation) and Tenh Dẕetle (disambiguation).
Mount Edziza
Edziza Peak
Edziza Mountain
The flat-topped summit of a snow-covered mountain with a rocky and snow-covered cliff in the foreground.
The ice-filled summit crater of Mount Edziza
Highest point
Elevation2,786 m (9,140 ft)[1]
Prominence1,750 m (5,740 ft)[2]
Coordinates57°42′55″N 130°38′04″W / 57.71528°N 130.63444°W / 57.71528; -130.63444[3]
Naming
EtymologyUnclear
Native nameTenh Dẕetle (Tahltan)[4]
English translationIce Mountain[4]
Geography
Mount Edziza is located in British Columbia
Mount Edziza
Mount Edziza
Location in British Columbia
Map
Location in Mount Edziza Provincial Park
CountryCanada[1]
ProvinceBritish Columbia[1]
DistrictCassiar Land District[3]
Protected areaMount Edziza Provincial Park[5]
Parent rangeTahltan Highland[6]
Topo mapNTS 104G10 Mount Edziza[3]
Geology
Rock age1.1 Ma to less than 20 ka[7][8]
Rock type(s)Basalt, trachybasalt, tristanite, mugearite, benmoreite, trachyte, rhyolite[1][9]
Volcanic regionNorthern Cordilleran Province[10]
Last eruptionHolocene age[8][11]

Mount Edziza (/ədˈzaɪzə/ əd-zy-zə), known to the local Tahltan people as Tenh Dẕetle (/ˈtɛn ˌθɛt.lʌh/ ten-thet-luh), is a volcanic mountain in Cassiar Land District of northwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is located on the Big Raven Plateau of the Tahltan Highland which extends along the western side of the Stikine Plateau. Mount Edziza has an elevation of 2,786 metres (9,140 feet) and a topographic prominence of 1,750 metres (5,740 feet), making it the highest point of the Mount Edziza volcanic complex and one of Canada's ultra-prominent peaks. However, it had an elevation of at least 3,396 metres (11,142 feet) before its formerly cone-shaped summit was likely destroyed by a violent, climactic eruption in the geologic past; its current flat summit contains an ice-filled, 2-kilometre-in diameter (1.2-mile) crater. The mountain contains several lava domes, cinder cones and lava fields on its flanks, as well as an ice cap that is characterized by several outlet glaciers stretching out to lower altitudes. All sides of Mount Edziza are drained by tributaries of Mess Creek and Kakiddi Creek which are situated within the Stikine River watershed.

Mount Edziza consists of several types of volcanic rocks and at least six geological formations that formed during six distinct stages of volcanic activity. The first stage 1.1 million years ago produced basalt flows and a series of rhyolite and trachyte domes. Basalt flows and smaller amounts of trachyte, tristanite, trachybasalt, benmoreite and mugearite produced during the second stage about 1 million years ago comprise Ice Peak, the glacially eroded remains of a stratovolcano in the form of a pyramid-shaped horn. The third and fourth stages 0.9 million years ago created basalt ridges and the central trachyte stratovolcano of Mount Edziza, respectively. Thick trachyte flows were issued during the fifth stage 0.3 million years ago, most of which have since eroded away. The sixth stage began in the last 20,000 years with the eruption of cinder cones, basalt flows and minor trachyte. Renewed volcanism could block local streams with lava flows, disrupt air traffic with volcanic ash and produce floods or lahars from melting glacial ice.

Indigenous peoples have lived adjacent to Mount Edziza for thousands of years. The Tahltan people historically used volcanic glass from Mount Edziza to make tools and weaponry. Mineral exploration just southeast of Mount Edziza commenced in at least the 1950s where gold, silver and other metals were discovered. This mineral exploration was conducted by several mineral exploration companies into the early 1990s. Mount Edziza and the surrounding area was made into a large provincial park in the early 1970s to showcase the volcanic landscape. The mountain and provincial park can only be accessed by aircraft or by a network of footpaths from surrounding roads.

  1. ^ a b c d "Edziza: General Information". Global Volcanism Program. Smithsonian Institution. Archived from the original on 2021-08-10. Retrieved 2021-09-25.
  2. ^ "British Columbia and Alberta: The Ultra-Prominence Page". Peaklist.org. Archived from the original on 2024-10-07. Retrieved 2024-10-27.
  3. ^ a b c "Mount Edziza". BC Geographical Names. Archived from the original on 2018-05-15. Retrieved 2023-07-05.
  4. ^ a b "Conservancy renamed Ice Mountain, reflects Tahltan heritage". Government of British Columbia. 9 February 2022. Archived from the original on 2022-09-27. Retrieved 2023-04-30.
  5. ^ "Mount Edziza Provincial Park". BC Parks. Archived from the original on 2023-01-23. Retrieved 2023-08-17.
  6. ^ "A 502" (Topographic map). Telegraph Creek, Cassiar Land District, British Columbia (3 ed.). 1:250,000. 104 G (in English and French). Department of Energy, Mines and Resources. 1989. Archived from the original on 2021-05-02. Retrieved 2021-09-25.
  7. ^ Souther 1992, p. 267.
  8. ^ a b Souther, J. G. (1988). "1623A" (Geologic map). Geology, Mount Edziza Volcanic Complex, British Columbia. 1:50,000. Cartography by M. Sigouin, Geological Survey of Canada. Energy, Mines and Resources Canada. doi:10.4095/133498.
  9. ^ Souther 1992, p. 150.
  10. ^ Edwards & Russell 2000, p. 1284.
  11. ^ Souther 1992, pp. 213, 226.