Early Morning Spire

Early Morning Spire
Early Morning Spire
Highest point
Elevation8,200 ft (2,499 m)
Prominence240 ft (73 m)
Parent peakDorado Needle 8,440 ft
Coordinates48°33′04″N 121°08′41″W / 48.55111°N 121.14472°W / 48.55111; -121.14472
Geography
Early Morning Spire
Location in Washington
Early Morning Spire
Early Morning Spire (the United States)
Interactive map of Early Morning Spire
CountryUnited States
StateWashington
CountySkagit
Protected areaNorth Cascades National Park
Parent rangeNorth Cascades
Cascade Range
Topo mapUSGS Eldorado Peak
Geology
Rock ageCretaceous
Rock typeOrthogneiss
Climbing
First ascent1971 by Richard Emerson and Tom Hornbein
Easiest routeClimbing class 4

Early Morning Spire is an 8,200-foot (2,499-metre) mountain summit located in North Cascades National Park, in Skagit County of Washington state. The peak lies 0.29 mi (0.47 km) west-northwest of Dorado Needle, 1.05 mi (1.69 km) north-northwest of Eldorado Peak and 1.08 mi (1.74 km) southeast of Perdition Peak. It can be seen from the North Cascades Highway, west of Marblemount at a road pullout alongside the Skagit River. The first ascent of the peak was made in 1971 by Richard Emerson and Tom Hornbein via the Southwest Face. They made a chilly bivouac near the summit, which is how the peak's name came to be. Precipitation runoff from the mountain drains into Marble Creek, a tributary of the Cascade River.