Alaska Range

The Alaska Range is a mountain range that extends for about 650 km (400 mi) across south-central Alaska. Mount McKinley, the highest mountain in North America, is in the Alaska Range.

The range forms a generally east-west arc with its most northerly part in the center, and from there trending southwest towards the Alaska Peninsula[?] and the Aleutians, and trending southeast into the Coast Ranges. The mountains act as a high barrier to the flow of moist air from the Gulf of Alaska[?] northwards, and thus has some of the worst weather in the world. The heavy snowfall also contributes to a number of large glaciers.

The range is part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, and the Denali fault[?] that runs along the southern edge of the range is responsible for a number of earthquakes.

Part of the range is protected within Denali National Park[?]. The George Parks Highway[?] from Anchorage to Fairbanks, and the Richardson Highway[?] from Valdez to Fairbanks pass through low parts of the range.

Major peaks:

• Mount McKinley (6,194 m)
• Mount Foraker[?] (5,304 m)
• Mount Hunter[?] (4,442 m)
• Mount Hayes[?] (4,216 m)
• Mount Silverthrone[?] (4,029 m)
• Mount Deborah[?] (3,761 m)
• Mount Huntington[?] (3,730 m)