Mosasaur Mountains
 Mosasaur Mountain Range
| |
 The core mosasaur mountains. (From left to right: Mt Kanal & Komodo Subpeak, Mt Dernal, Mt Mosasaur, Mt Tomato). | |
| About | |
|---|---|
| Owner |  SiOtter
|
| Contributors | N/A (donors listed on park page) |
| Category | Landscapes |
| Underground? | Partly |
| Public? | Yes |
| Started | April 2017 |
| Completed | Oct 27th 2024 |
| Size north to south | ~1000?m |
| Size west to east | ~600?m |
| Height | 255mm |
| Location | |
| Coordinates | X=-9587 Y=70 Z=1489 |
| Dimension | Overworld |
| Settlement | Great Lakes Province |
| Map Link | |
The Mosasaur Mountains is a large mountain range that is located in the Great Lakes Province and within Dernal National Park.
- Note:If you are looking for information about the National Park and Rock Climbing go to the Dernal National Park page.
Build Information
The Mountains
Below is a table with mountain information, height is measured via base-peak prominence rather than Y level circa 2024.
| Mountain Name | Built | Height | About |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Mosasaur | 2018-2022 | 194m | Mt. Mosasaur is the largest mountain in the range, its snowcapped peak hosts many cirques from former glaciers. |
| Kanal Mountain | 2023-2024 | 140m | Mt. Kanal is the second largest mountain in the range, its a host to a sheep colony and is straddled by the Crasher Glacier and Kanal Glacier on either side of it. |
| Mount Dernal | 2018 | 106m | Mt. Dernal is Dernal National Parks namesake mountain. It's large and cylindrical shape is similar too many monoliths seen in eroded areas. |
| Chilliwack Mountain | 2024 | 93m | Mt. Chilliwack is an eroded peak near the town of Chilliwack, one side of it has the Chilliwack Desert and the other has the West Kanal Forest. |
| Tomato Peak | 2017-2018 | 57m | Tomato Peak is the oldest mountain in the range both build wise and geologically, its highly eroded and has beginner climbs going up it. |
| Sleepless Mountain | 2024 | 51m | Sleepless Mountain is the smallest in the range, it has a large rounded footprint and a hosts an alpine forest on one of its sides. |
Scientific Information
Wildlife
The mountains are home to multiple species. The most prominent species by far though is the Sheep. These animals spawn high up on ridge lines and on ledges, if you see one feel free to say hi and take a photo of it!
Geological History
Once a large glacier covered much of the area known as the Great Lakes Province. The area now known as the Mosasaur Mountains was once one giant mountain named Mosasaur Ingens. This mountain had multiple glaciers which carved out Kanal lake & Valley, Dernal Lake & Valley, Kanal Bowl, Chilliwack valley, and the Chilliwack Desert.
Thousands of years ago the region was covered in the Mosasaur icefeild. This massive glacier shrank around 9500 years ago and left behind two glaciers. The icefeild stripped away at the peaks allowing for easy erosion of the mountains. Even though the mountains have been battered by the elements, they grow at a rate of about 4mm per year due to plate tectonics in the region.
The mountains also have signs of granite and lapis veins, though the nearby Chilliwack Mine has very little to show in terms of Lapis Mining.
The remains of the former icefeild that eroded these peaks is visible with the Kanal Glacier (left) and Crasher Glacier (right).
Climate
The Eastern side of the mountains is a large temperate rainforest that encompasses much of Kanal Town, Dernal, and Maple Ridge. This area gets heavy amounts of rain and some snow in the winter. The Western side of the mountains is a rain shadow desert with less foliage and precipitation. The mountains themselves are quite cold with snowcapped peaks above 170m and two glaciers sitting at the base of Mount Kanal.
The average temperature range and precipitation are shown in the table below
Visitor Centre Weather Station Averages
| Month | Temperature | precipitation |
| Janurary | 0 | 690mm |
| February | 1 | 330mm |
| March | 4 | 110mm |
| April | 8 | 90mm |
| May | 14 | 50mm |
| June | 19 | 10mm |
| July | 23 | 3mm |
| August | 24 | 0mm |
| September | 17 | 9mm |
| October | 10 | 85mm |
| November | 3 | 195mm |
| December | 0 | 1197mm |
Construction
Past Construction
The mountains were a terraforming project started by SiOtter in 2017(?). The first 2 mountains, Tomato and Dernal were completed in 2018. Work stalled on the unnamed third mountain until it was completed in 2020. In 2021 the third mountain now named Mosasaur Peak was extended with "grand ridge". Following Grand Ridges competition in 2022 SiOtter took a few months break until 2023 when he would build Kanal Mountain, Shadow Rock, and the Crasher Glacier. Alongside this was the modification of the old blocky borders of his 2018 terraforming into a jagged coastline.
FAQ
- Q: why are the mountains all cobblestone?
- A: because when Kanal Town was first made I didn't know about IronReefs, and Kanal Town was about a 10 minute walk away from the nexus so moving materials back and fourth before the road was made it was a time consuming process.
- Q: Why are the mountains shaped the way they are?
- A: Because I am a huge fan of cinder cones and the Ogilvie mountains in the Yukon.
- Q: How long have you been building these?
- A: Too long.
- Q: Are the mountains solid?
- A: No they're all hollow shells, it's easier to maintain them and modify them if they're hollow and I don't have the patience to place any more cobble then I need to at this point.
- Q: Has anybody helped you build them?
- A: No, I have had numerous cobble, dirt, and tool donations but I have solo built all the mountains.
- Q: Are these lavacasts?
- A: No. But they do look like them quite a bit.
- Q: Can you make me a mountain?
- A: Yes! Just contact me with /mail SiOtter
- Q: Do you make any different style mountains?
- A: Yes I do.