The Chief measures approximately three square kilometres. In summary, there are several summits separated by several deep gullies. Steep cliffs separate the summits from the forest floor in many places, especially the western faces.
Summits
There are three main summit areas:
- First Peak or the South Summit (610 m (2,001 ft))
- Second Peak or the Centre Summit (655 m (2,149 ft))
- Third Peak or the North Summit (702 m (2,303 ft))
Each summit features an expanse of fine glacier-polished granite and the promise of incredible views in all directions. Third Peak is a bit more remote and isolated and is less popular with tourists.
An additional summit area lies to the north of all the summits. This area is called the Zodiac Summit. Although it can be considered a sub-summit of Third Peak, it is perhaps the most isolated area of the Chief. No proper trail leads to the Zodiac Summit; there are only faint tracks here and there among the trees.
Hiking trails
All of the three main summits are accessible via the Chief's maintained backside hiking trails. These trails are steep and rugged. In fact, in several high places there are short sections of "trail" that are so steep and/or slippery, that chains and ladders have been bolted to the rock for aid.
Gullies
The three main summits of the Chief are separated by several deep clefts known as the gullies. These chasms are steep and are partially filled with debris, mostly talus and scree. They were apparently excavated primarily by glacier action.
- South Gully: the Chief's biggest and most noticeable gully, it separates First Peak from Second Peak.
- North Gully: a dark and narrow gully near the north end of the Chief, it separates Second Peak from the "Zodiac Summit".
- North-North Gully: even darker and narrower, this gully separates the "Zodiac Summit" from Third Peak.
There is an additional smaller gully near the south end of the Chief called Bullethead Gully which somewhat separates the Bulletheads region from the rest of the Chief. This gully is very bushy and is much less dramatic than the main gullies mentioned above.
The Apron
The Apron is a vast sweep of lower-angle rock which rises like a wedge from the highway to about halfway up the Grand Wall near the Chief's approximate centre. There it meets with a rising ridge of rock known as the Squamish Buttress, and promptly terminates in the great chasm known as the South Gully.
Rock faces
The Chief's summits are surrounded by sheer rock wall cliffs. They are typically high, exposed, and surprisingly varied in character. Several of the Chief's more notable rock faces are as follows:
- Grand Wall: the centrepiece of the Chief, this steep and pale wall rises over highway 99 just south of the Apron.
- Bulletheads: a region of oddly rounded bulges near the southern end of the Chief.
- Dihedral Wall: this featured expanse of rock is situated between the Grand Wall and Tantalus Wall. In the spring and early summer it is a nesting area for peregrine falcons.
- Tantalus Wall: the sheer face separating the contrasting features of the Dihedral Wall and the Bulletheads. Also a nesting area for peregrine falcons.
- Sheriff's Badge: a white-coloured, star-shaped exfoliation scar north-east of the Apron. Sometimes called "the Witch" by local townsfolk.
- Zodiac Wall: located at the northernmost end of the Chief, this rock face is dark, isolated, and seldom visited.
The Chief's rock faces, especially the Grand Wall, exhibit the unique textural patterns which result from the process of granitic exfoliation. This is the natural means by which large, high-quality granite formations weather, erode, and age. Rather than crumbling and slowly wearing away, large flakes of granite tend to shear off and drop from the face in layers. On impact with the ground below, the shattered flakes become boulders and talus.
Sometimes a flake will partially split away while remaining attached to the rock face. An excellent example of a partially detached flake on the Chief is the renowned Split Pillar on the Grand Wall. The Chief's rock faces are characterized by varied rock features including overhanging roofs, splitter cracks, rock chimneys, dihedrals, ledges, platforms, and lower angle slabs.
The Black Dyke
This feature divides the Grand Wall from the Dihedral Wall to the south. This feature is considerably younger than the pale granodiorite rock surrounding it. It formed by the splitting of the solid granodiorite along a vertical fracture, which created a conduit for basalt and andesite magmas, which may have fed volcanoes on the surface above the then-buried granitic rock. These younger magmas cooled quite quickly, which results in a very fine grained, almost glassy texture. The resulting dyke is now clearly visible from the Chief's main parking area.
Forest
At the base and around the perimeter of the Chief are thick forests. Although not exactly old growth these stands of trees are representative of pacific coastal temperate rain forest common in the area. Typical tree species are Douglas Fir, Western Red Cedar, Sitka Spruce, and Alder.
Boulders
Also at the base of the Chief's walls are a bewildering variety of medium-to-large size granite boulders. Once themselves part of the Chief, these boulders form groups which have been carefully explored by bouldering enthusiasts. Some of the boulders are so large as to seem like small cliffs in their own right. The largest is the Cacodemon Boulder at the base of the Grand Wall, an individual chunk of rock as big as a small apartment building.
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