The mountain's name was officially adopted in 1969 by the United States Geological Survey, although it was misspelled Baird on their map.[4] The peak's name honors bardsRobert Burns, The Bard of Ayrshire, and William Shakespeare, known as The Bard of Avon, (or in England, simply The Bard).
Based on the Köppen climate classification, Bard Peak is located in a subarctic climate zone with long, cold, snowy winters, and mild summers.[5] Temperatures can drop below −20 °C with wind chill factors below −30 °C. This climate supports the Shakespeare Glacier on the northern slopes of the mountain, the Burns Glacier on the south side, Portage Glacier to the west, and the massive Whittier Glacier (named for John Greenleaf Whittier) on its eastern aspect. May and June are the best months for climbing in terms of favorable weather.
^Peel, M. C.; Finlayson, B. L.; McMahon, T. A. (2007). "Updated world map of the Köppen−Geiger climate classification". Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 11. ISSN1027-5606.