Mackenzie Mountains

Northern section of the Rocky Mountains extending for 800 km/500 mi along a large part of the border between the Yukon Territory and Northwest Territories. The highest point in the Mackenzies, and in Northwest Territories, is at Mount Sir James MacBrien (2,762 m/9,062 ft), in the central Backbone Ranges.

The Mackenzie Mountains are comprised of several northwest-southeast trending subranges, and lie between the British Columbia border (in the south) and the Peel River valley (in the north); in the west, the mountains adjoin the Yukon Plateau. The Canyon Ranges are situated to the east of the central Backbones, while the Franklin Mountains (around 500 km/300 mi long) are an eastern outlier. With precipitation blocked by the Selwyn Mountains to the west, the Mackenzies are relatively dry, and have a low timberline. They form a watershed between tributaries of the Mackenzie and Yukon rivers, and are the source for the Pelly River, a headstream of the Yukon. The peaks of the Selwyns are often considered part of the Mackenzies. Lead and zinc were found here in the 1960s.