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Shale Mountain

Coordinates: 43°22′29″N 109°42′28″W / 43.37472°N 109.70778°W / 43.37472; -109.70778
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Shale Mountain
Shale Mountain is located in Wyoming
Shale Mountain
Shale Mountain
Location in Wyoming
Shale Mountain is located in the United States
Shale Mountain
Shale Mountain
Location in the United States
Highest point
Elevation12,405 ft (3,781 m)[1]
Prominence319 ft (97 m)[1]
Coordinates43°22′29″N 109°42′28″W / 43.37472°N 109.70778°W / 43.37472; -109.70778[2]
Geography
LocationSublette and Fremont Counties, Wyoming, U.S.
Parent rangeWind River Range
Topo mapUSGS Downs Mountain
Climbing
Easiest routeHike

Shale Mountain (12,405 ft (3,781 m)) is located in the northern Wind River Range in the U.S. state of Wyoming.[3] Shale Mountain straddles the Continental Divide and is in both Bridger-Teton and Shoshone National Forests. Shale Mountain is 5 mi (8.0 km) north of Downs Mountain.

Hazards

[edit]

Encountering bears is a concern in the Wind River Range.[4] There are other concerns as well, including bugs, wildfires, adverse snow conditions and nighttime cold temperatures.[5]

Importantly, there have been notable incidents, including accidental deaths, due to falls from steep cliffs (a misstep could be fatal in this class 4/5 terrain) and due to falling rocks, over the years, including 1993,[6] 2007 (involving an experienced NOLS leader),[7] 2015[8] and 2018.[9] Other incidents include a seriously injured backpacker being airlifted near SquareTop Mountain[10] in 2005,[11] and a fatal hiker incident (from an apparent accidental fall) in 2006 that involved state search and rescue.[12] The U.S. Forest Service does not offer updated aggregated records on the official number of fatalities in the Wind River Range.

Climate

[edit]
Climate data for Shale Mountain 43.3761 N, 109.7102 W, Elevation: 12,267 ft (3,739 m) (1991–2020 normals)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) 19.1
(−7.2)
18.7
(−7.4)
23.9
(−4.5)
29.8
(−1.2)
38.7
(3.7)
49.0
(9.4)
58.8
(14.9)
57.8
(14.3)
48.9
(9.4)
36.3
(2.4)
24.7
(−4.1)
18.4
(−7.6)
35.3
(1.8)
Daily mean °F (°C) 9.5
(−12.5)
8.2
(−13.2)
12.8
(−10.7)
17.8
(−7.9)
26.6
(−3.0)
36.1
(2.3)
45.0
(7.2)
44.1
(6.7)
35.9
(2.2)
24.9
(−3.9)
15.2
(−9.3)
9.1
(−12.7)
23.8
(−4.6)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) −0.2
(−17.9)
−2.3
(−19.1)
1.7
(−16.8)
5.8
(−14.6)
14.4
(−9.8)
23.2
(−4.9)
31.2
(−0.4)
30.4
(−0.9)
22.9
(−5.1)
13.5
(−10.3)
5.7
(−14.6)
−0.2
(−17.9)
12.2
(−11.0)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 3.23
(82)
3.25
(83)
4.00
(102)
5.20
(132)
4.58
(116)
2.95
(75)
1.89
(48)
1.91
(49)
2.70
(69)
3.25
(83)
3.40
(86)
3.26
(83)
39.62
(1,008)
Source: PRISM Climate Group[13]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "Shale Mountain, Wyoming". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
  2. ^ "Shale Mountain". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
  3. ^ Downs Mountain, WY (Map). TopoQwest (United States Geological Survey Maps). Retrieved August 25, 2013.
  4. ^ Staff (April 24, 2017). "Bear Safety in Wyoming's Wind River Country". WindRiver.org. Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  5. ^ Ballou, Dawn (July 27, 2005). "Wind River Range condition update - Fires, trails, bears, Continental Divide". PineDaleOnline News. Archived from the original on April 21, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  6. ^ Staff (1993). "Falling Rock, Loose Rock, Failure to Test Holds, Wyoming, Wind River Range, Seneca Lake". American Alpine Club. Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  7. ^ MacDonald, Dougald (August 14, 2007). "Trundled Rock Kills NOLS Leader". Climbing. Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  8. ^ Staff (December 9, 2015). "Officials rule Wind River Range climbing deaths accidental". Casper Star-Tribune. Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  9. ^ Dayton, Kelsey (August 24, 2018). "Deadly underestimation". WyoFile News. Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  10. ^ Funk, Jason (2009). "Squaretop Mountain Rock Climbing". Mountain Project. Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  11. ^ Staff (July 22, 2005). "Injured man rescued from Square Top Mtn - Tip-Top Search & Rescue helps 2 injured on the mountain". PineDaleOnline News. Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  12. ^ Staff (September 1, 2006). "Incident Reports - September, 2006 - Wind River Search". WildernessDoc.com. Archived from the original on January 27, 2020. Retrieved May 31, 2022.
  13. ^ "PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University". PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University. Retrieved October 14, 2023. To find the table data on the PRISM website, start by clicking Coordinates (under Location); copy Latitude and Longitude figures from top of table; click Zoom to location; click Precipitation, Minimum temp, Mean temp, Maximum temp; click 30-year normals, 1991-2020; click 800m; click Retrieve Time Series button.