| Mount Edith Cavell | |
| Elevation M: | 3363 |
| Elevation Ref: | [1] [2] |
| Prominence M: | 2007 |
| Range: | South Jasper Ranges |
| Location: | Alberta, Canada |
| Map: | Canada Alberta#Canada |
| Map Size: | 250 |
| Label Position: | right |
| Coordinates: | 52.6683°N -118.0567°W |
| First Ascent: | 1915 by A.J. Gilmour and E.W.D. Holway |
| Easiest Route: | Rock/ice climb, UIAA II |
Mount Edith Cavell is a mountain in the Athabasca River and Astoria River valleys of Jasper National Park, and the most prominent peak entirely within Alberta.
The mountain was named in 1916 for Edith Cavell, a British nurse executed by the Germans during World War I for having helped Allied soldiers escape from occupied Belgium to the Netherlands, in violation of German military law.[1] It was previously known as Mount Fitzhugh.[2]
A close-up view of the north face of Mount Edith Cavell is visible after a short hike to Cavell Meadows. The trailhead is by the parking lot at the end of Mount Edith Cavell Road. The trail to the meadows is 3.8km (02.4miles) one way, rising 370m (1,210feet) to 2135m (7,005feet). The Canadian Rockies Trail Guide describes the trail in detail.
The hanging Angel Glacier is visible from Cavell Meadows, which spills over a 300m (1,000feet) cliff on the north face.
Access to the Tonquin Valley trails can be found about one kilometre before the end of the Mount Edith Cavell Road. There is a parking area across from the Mount Edith Cavell Hostel. A short walk down the gravel path leads to the north end of Cavell Lake. There is small bridge across the stream that empties the lake. From here there are good views with the lake in the foreground and the Mount Edith Cavell massif in the background.
It is believed that one of the world's largest glacial erratics, called Big Rock, near Okotoks, Alberta, was once part of Mount Edith Cavell. The erratic was formed approximately ten thousand years ago when a large portion of quartzite stone was stripped away from the mountain along with the receding Athabasca River Valley glacier.[3]
There are several popular climbing routes, including:[1]
The North Face route is included as a classic climb in Steck and Roper's Fifty Classic Climbs of North America.[4]
Mount Edith Cavell was featured on a $1 Canadian stamp issued on December 4, 1930.[8]
Based on the Köppen climate classification, the mountain is in a subarctic climate zone with cold, snowy winters, and mild summers.[9] Temperatures can drop below −20 °C with wind chill factors below −30 °C. Precipitation runoff from the mountain drains into tributaries of the Athabasca River.