Mount Sanford – Alaska

Mount Sanford is a shield volcano in the Wrangell Volcanic Field, near the Copper River, in eastern Alaska. After Mount Bona and Mount Blackburn, it is the sixth highest mountain in the United States and the third tallest volcano. The volcano's south face, at the head of the Sanford Glacier, rises 8,000 feet (2,400 meters) in 1 mile (1,600 meters), creating one of North America's highest gradients.

Mount Sanford is primarily made up of andesite and is a very old peak, likely Pleistocene in age, however some of the highest portions of the mountain may be Holocene. The mountain began to expand 900,000 years ago, when it was formed by the coalescence of three smaller shield volcanoes. The top 2,000 feet (610 meters) of the mountain look to be a lava dome filling a bigger summit crater, although being hidden by icefields.

Location: Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska, U.S.
Elevation: 16,237 ft (4,949 m)