Purcell Mountains

Purcell Mountains
Outline of the Purcell Mountains in Canada and the United States
The Purcell Mountains at Invermere
Highest peak	Mount Farnham ( 3493  m )
location	British Columbia ( Canada ), Montana , Idaho ( USA )
part of	North America Ranges
Coordinates	49 ° 55 ′  N , 116 ° 15 ′  W Coordinates: 49 ° 55 ′  N , 116 ° 15 ′  W
Age of the rock	Proterozoic
surface	24,423 km²

The Purcell Mountains (in the United States also Percell Mountains ) are a mountain range in the southeast of the Canadian province of British Columbia and in the north of the US states Montana and Idaho . It is the easternmost part of the Columbia Mountains .

geography

They extend, with an area of ​​24,423 km², over 350 km from north to south and 165 km in west-east direction and belong to the Columbia Mountains . To the east, the mountains are delimited by the Rocky Mountain Trench while to the north and west the Selkirk Mountains and the Kootenay River form the border.

The greater part of the mountain range is in Canada (British Columbia 81%) and the smaller part in the United States (Montana 15% and Idaho 4%). At an altitude of 3493  m , Mount Farnham in the Farnham-Horsethief Area is the highest mountain in the mountain range.

In the south, the British Columbia Highway 3 , the Crowsnest Highway , crosses the Purcell Mountains. On the northern edge of the British Columbia Highway 1 , part of the Trans-Canada Highway , passes the mountain range. Larger settlements in or on the edge of the Purcell Mountains are Kimberley or Creston

Mountain ranges within the mountain range

The Purcell Mountains are divided into:

• Bugaboos Area
• Farnham-Horsethief Area
• Central Purcell Mountains
• Northern Purcell Mountains
  • Carbonate Range
  • Dogtooth Range
  • Spillimacheen Range
• Southern Canada Purcell Mountains
  • Kianuko Area
  • McGillivray Range
  • Moyie Range
  • Yahk Range
• United States Purcell Mountains
  • Buckhorn Mountains
  • Main Idaho Purcell Mountains
  • Main Montana Purcell Mountains

Protected areas

Parts of the Purcell Mountains are protected as Provincial Parks in British Columbia in Canada . These provincial parks include:

• Bugaboo Provincial Park
• Purcell Wilderness Conservancy Provincial Park and Protected Area
• St. Mary's Alpine Provincial Park
• Kianuko Provincial Park

In the northwest, parts of Glacier National Park lie in the Purcell Mountains.

In the United States, the Kootenai National Forest is a large protected area.

Web links

• Purcell Mountains . In: BC Geographical Names (English)
• Purcell Mountains in the United States Geological Survey's Geographic Names Information System
• Purcell Mountains on Peakbagger.com (English)
• Purcell Mountains in the Canadian Mountain Encyclopedia on bivouac.com (English)