Skip to content
Peakyas
EN
Mt. Foraker. Shot from Talkeetna, Alaska (25711013851)

Mountain·United StatesUnited States

Mount Foraker

5,304m

Alaska Range

Summit weather

Paxson Woelber · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Elevation
5,304m
Prominence
2,195m
Isolation
23km
Relief
3,361mabove the lowest point within 5 km
Steepest slope
54°within 1 km of the summit
Snow at the summit
All yearSee month by month ↓
First ascent
1934
Summit
62.9606°N, 151.3994°W

Mountain in Alaska

Mount Foraker is a mountain in the Alaska Range (United States). Its summit stands 5,304 m above sea level. Its prominence — how far it rises above the highest saddle linking it to a taller summit — is 2,195 m, and the nearest higher ground is 23 km away. It was first climbed in 1934.

From the lowest point within 5 km (1,943 m), it rises 3,361 m. The steepest side is the south-east face: 40° on average over the first kilometre. In places the ground near the top reaches 54° — terrain for climbers, not walkers.

Read more on Wikipedia

Scores

Mount Foraker for skiers and climbers

Two scores out of 10, built only from open data — every part is shown. They describe what the mountain offers, not how safe it is.

Hiking & mountaineering

3.7/10

Difficulty to the top

Alpine climb

Glaciers around the top.

Indicative only — never a safety assessment. Conditions change: ask local guides and check the forecast.

  • 0.0/2.50 waymarked routes and 0 path sections nearby
  • 0.0/1.50 huts and shelters
  • 2.0/23,361 m of ascent from the valley
  • 1.4/1.52,195 m of prominence
  • 0.0/1.50 months with summit afternoons above −5 °C
  • 0.3/1via ferratas, climbing and glaciers

Ski score

—

No ski runs within 12 km in OpenStreetMap.

How these scores are made

Ski (where OpenStreetMap has skiing within 12 km): up to 4 points for the length of downhill runs (300 km or more = 4), 1.5 for the number of lifts (40+), 1.5 for the vertical between lift stations (1,500 m) and 3 for the snow season — a month counts when the estimated mean temperature at the height of the ski area is −1 °C or lower and snow falls or lies there (NASA POWER, 2001–2020). Hiking & mountaineering: up to 2.5 for waymarked routes and paths, 1.5 for huts, 2 for the ascent from the valley (2,000 m), 1.5 for prominence (3,000 m), 1.5 for the season (months with summit afternoons above −5 °C) and 1 for via ferratas, climbing and glaciers. OpenStreetMap is built by volunteers: where few things are mapped, a score can be lower than reality.

Plan your visit

Stay, climb and get there

Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.

Snow

When there is snow on Mount Foraker

At the summit, snow all year round. Month by month below, at different heights on the way up.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Summit5,304 msnow all year round
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all month
Halfway up3,624 msnow all year round
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all month
Foot of the mountain1,943 msnow all year round
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all month
  • Snow on the ground all month
  • Snow some of the time
  • No snow
  • This month

Estimate for a normal year: average temperature and precipitation from NASA POWER, carried to each height, in a simple model of snow building up and melting. In a given year snow can come earlier or stay longer. It does not replace the local snow and avalanche bulletin.

Summit weather

Mount Foraker, month by month

Not a forecast: long-term averages (1991–2020), carried up to the summit. The orange line is where an average afternoon reaches 0 °C; above the dashed blue line it freezes even at dawn.

On an average July afternoon the summit reaches about -19 °C; on January nights it falls to about -44 °C. Even in the warmest month the summit stays below freezing all day: ice and snow all year round. Even at its highest, in July, the 0 °C line reaches only about 2,380 m: 2,924 m below the summit. Across the region, March is the driest month (92 mm) and August the wettest (258 mm).

0 m1,000 m2,000 m3,000 m4,000 m5,000 mSUMMIT · 5,304 mJanuary: 0 mFebruary: 0 mMarch: 0 mApril: 690 mMay: 1,570 mJune: 2,040 mJuly: 2,380 mAugust: 2,290 mSeptember: 1,610 mOctober: 570 mNovember: 0 mDecember: 0 mJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
0 °C on an average afternoon 0 °C at dawn the summit
MonthSummit high °CSummit low °C0 °C line (m)Rain & snow (mm)Wet daysSun h/day
January-38-44-560117161.8
February-36-43-310119174.1
March-36-43-27092168.3
April-30-376901201910.1
May-24-291,570148228.9
June-21-242,040182248.2
July-19-222,380224276.5
August-20-232,290258265.9
September-24-281,610248244.7
October-31-36570194202.5
November-36-42-310138181.6
December-37-42-400148181.0

Estimate: the NASA POWER climate of a ~55 km cell (average height 1,612 m), adjusted to the summit by −6.5 °C per 1,000 m. Rain, wet days and sunshine are those of the region. Mountain weather changes fast — always check a local forecast. ★ = mildest months at the top.

Relief

The mountain in profile

Two cuts through the summit, 16 km long, from the 30 m Copernicus elevation model. True scale: no vertical exaggeration.

West – east
5,304 m1,931 m0 km2 km4 km6 km8 km10 km12 km14 km16 kmWE
South – north
5,304 m1,860 m0 km2 km4 km6 km8 km10 km12 km14 km16 kmSN
Steepness by direction
30°N: 38°NNE: 28°NEE: 25°ESE: 40°SES: 26°SSW: 21°SWW: 31°WNW: 29°NW

Average slope of the first kilometre from the summit. The orange petal is the steepest side.

Around the mountain

Huts, lifts and trails around Mount Foraker

Counted around the summit in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. The satellite plate shows 14 × 14 km.

Mount Foraker seen from above (Sentinel-2) N 5 km

Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 14 × 14 km, north up. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.

  • —mountain huts and shelters
  • —cable cars, gondolas, chairlifts and rack railways
  • —ski areas
  • —waymarked hiking routes
  • —via ferratas
  • —climbing crags and routes
  • 6named glaciers

    Kahiltna Glacier, Lacuna Glacier, Straightaway Glacier, Foraker Glacier and 2 more

  • —viewpoints
  • —campsites
  • —hotels, B&Bs and chalets
  • —restaurants and cafés

OpenStreetMap is built by volunteers: a low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. Places © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).

Photos

Seen by climbers and visitors

Mt Foraker Alaska Sunrise
Amine Abassir · CC BY-SA 4.0
Denali and Mount Foraker from Kuskokwim River
Denali National Park and Preserve · Public domain

Recent years

How each month compared at the summit

Afternoon high at the summit (estimate). The first row is the reference, the 1991–2020 average in °C; the years show only the difference.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
1991–2020 average-38-36-36-30-24-21-19-20-24-31-36-37
2020−7.6−1.9−0.7+0.3+1.4−1.0−0.6+0.6+0.4−1.2−0.6+1.3
2021+2.5−3.0−2.8−0.2±0.0−0.2−0.6−0.4−2.2−0.9−6.0−0.8
2022−1.0+1.2+2.7+0.6−0.5+0.9+0.8−0.5−0.1−1.3+1.4−0.7
2023+3.5−2.1+1.5−3.3−0.3−1.1−0.4+0.9−1.8+0.3+2.9−2.1
2024−1.4−0.5+2.0±0.0−0.7+0.4−1.2−1.4−0.3−1.3+1.3+4.1
2025+3.4+4.1+3.6+1.2−0.5−0.7−1.1−0.8+0.4+1.5+1.2−6.6

+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual

About these numbers

Names, elevation, prominenceWikidata (Q1179471) · CC0
Relief, 3D view, profilesCopernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA
ClimateNASA POWER, 1991–2020 · CC BY 4.0
Around the mountain© OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL
ImagesEOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons

Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.

The family

Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers or canyons?

Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, month by month, in seven languages.

beachesCoastyaFind your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit
lakesLakeyasEvery lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Coming soonVisit
mountainsPeakyasEvery summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.You are here
waterfallsCascadyasEvery waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Coming soonVisit
islandsIslandyasEvery island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.Coming soonVisit
riversRiveryasEvery river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Coming soonVisit
canyonsCanyonyasEvery canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Coming soonVisit