is a mountain range

Mountain range

A mountain range is a single, large mass consisting of a succession of mountains or narrowly spaced mountain ridges, with or without peaks, closely related in position, direction, formation, and age; a component part of a mountain system or of a mountain chain...

 of Hokkaidō

Hokkaido

, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. Unlike much of the rest of Japan, the Kitami Mountains are not very seismically active.

The Kitami Mountains are north of the Ishikari Mountains

Ishikari Mountains

The is a range of volcanic mountains in central Hokkaidō, Japan. The mountain range is made up from the Daisetsuzan Volcanic Group and the Tomuraushi Volcanic Group. The volcanoes are part of the Kurile arc of the Pacific ring of fire.-References:...

 and east of the Teshio Mountains

Teshio Mountains

Teshio Mountains is a mountain range of Hokkaidō, Japan....

. A depression separates the Kitami Mountains from the Yubari Mountains

Yubari Mountains

is a mountain range of Hokkaidō, Japan.Part of this range is protected by the .-Geology:The Yūbari Mountains continue the north-south line begun by the Teshio Mountains. The mountains are the result of the collision between the Kurile Island Arc and the Northeastern Japan Arc. Three formations make...

. The highest point in the Kitami Mountains is Mount Teshio

Mount Teshio

is the tallest mountain in the Kitami Mountains. It is located on the border of Shibetsu and Takinoue, Hokkaidō, Japan. It is the source of the Teshio River.-History:On January 6, 1978, Mount Teshio and the surrounding region was designated the ....

. Mount Teshio sits atop the Wenshiri horst.

Geology

Rocks from the Kitami mountains are mostly sedimentary from the Cretaceous

Cretaceous

The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...

-Paleogene

Paleogene

The Paleogene is a geologic period and system that began 65.5 ± 0.3 and ended 23.03 ± 0.05 million years ago and comprises the first part of the Cenozoic Era...

 periods. Volcanic rock was placed down on top of this from volcanoes that erupted in the Miocene

Miocene

The Miocene is a geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about . The Miocene was named by Sir Charles Lyell. Its name comes from the Greek words and and means "less recent" because it has 18% fewer modern sea invertebrates than the Pliocene. The Miocene follows the Oligocene...

 or later.

The Kitami Mountains formed in the inner arc of the Kurile Arc.