[4] Karnak and Jumbo form a double summit massif which is the second-highest mountain in the Purcells.

[4] The first ascent of Karnak Mountain was made August 14, 1915, by A.H. & E.L. MacCarthy, Dr. and Mrs. Winthrop Stone, and Conrad Kain via the southwest slopes.

[1] The peak was named in 1910 by Stone and MacCarthy after Karnak, the Egyptian Temple Complex.

[1] The mountain's toponym was officially adopted June 9, 1960, by the Geographical Names Board of Canada.

Precipitation runoff from the mountain drains into Jumbo Creek which is a tributary of the Columbia River.