Silverthrone Group

Silverthrone Group
Silverthrone Cluster
Silverthrone Group Location in British Columbia
Interactive map of the Silverthrone area
Highest point
Peak	Silverthrone Mountain1
Elevation	2,865 m (9,400 ft)2
Coordinates	51°31′03″N 126°06′47″W / 51.51750°N 126.11306°W / 51.51750; -126.113063
Dimensions
Width	60 km (37 mi)1
Area	2,868 km2 (1,107 mi2)1
Geography
Country	Canada
Province	British Columbia
District	Range 2 Coast Land District3
Parent range	Pacific Ranges4
Topo map(s)	NTS 92M9 Machmell River5 NTS 92M8 Catto Creek5 NTS 92N5 Klinaklini Glacier5 NTS 92N4 Sim River5 NTS 92N12 Trophy Lake5 NTS 92M1 Atwaykellesse River5 NTS 92M16 Sheemahant River5 NTS 92N13 Knot Lakes5

The Silverthrone Group, also called the Silverthrone Cluster, is an extensive group of mountains in the Pacific Ranges of British Columbia, Canada. It includes more than 30 named mountains, the highest of which is Silverthrone Mountain with an elevation of 2,865 metres (9,400 feet). The Silverthrone Group is bounded in the east by the Klinaklini and North Klinaklini rivers, in the south by Knight Inlet, in the west by the Pacific Ocean and in the north by Owikeno Lake, Rivers Inlet and the Sheemahant River. Climbing and explorations of the group began in at least 1900; some of the mountaineers involved in these activities were Don Munday, Phyllis Munday and John Clarke.

This mountain group has been called the Silverthrone Group by the British Columbia Mountaineering Club and the Silverthrone Cluster by the Bivouac Mountain Encyclopedia.¹⁵ Such terms are derived from Silverthrone Mountain, the highest point of the Silverthrone Group whose name has been reported in Canadian Alpine Journal articles as early as 1933.¹³ Silverthrone is descriptive of the icy landscape; it may have been coined by Don Munday who carried out the first ascent of Silverthrone Mountain along with his wife Phyllis Munday in 1936.³⁶

The Silverthrone Group is 60 km (37 mi) wide and covers 2,868 km² (1,107 mi²) of the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains.¹⁴ In some places, the Silverthrone Group is occupied by the Ha-Iltzuk Icefield, which covers 3,600 km² (1,400 mi²) of the southern Coast Mountains.⁵⁷ The eastern boundary of the Silverthrone Group lies west of the Klinaklini and North Klinaklini rivers. To the south, the Silverthrone Group is bounded by Knight Inlet whereas the western boundary is marked by the Pacific Ocean. Bounding the northern end of the Silverthrone Group is Owikeno Lake, Rivers Inlet and the Sheemahant River.⁵ The group is west of Mount Waddington, the highest mountain entirely within British Columbia.⁵⁸

• 1900: Ernest Halliday and Harry Kirby⁹
• 1927: C. N. Pretty and brother⁹
• 1927: J. T. Underhill and a survey party⁹
• 1936: Henry Hall, Don Munday, Phyllis Munday, Hans Fuhrer, Sherrett S. Chase and William H. Hinton⁹
• 1967: Geological Survey of Canada parties⁹
• 1973: John Clarke⁹
• 1977: John Clarke and Jamie Sproule⁹
• 1982: John Baldwin, Steven Ludwig, Brian Sheffield, Helen Sovdat and Graham Underhill⁹
• 1984: John Baldwin and John Clarke⁹
• 1986: Chris Cooper⁹
• 1988: Emily Butler and John Clarke⁹
• 2002: Lisa Baile, Jack Bryceland and Peter Pare⁹

A British Columbia Mountaineering Club climber's guide lists the following mountains as part of the Silverthrone Group:¹⁰