Black Butte (Oregon)

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Black Butte
Elevation 6,436 ft (1,962 m) NAVD 88[1]
Prominence 3,076 ft (938 m) [2]
Location
Location Jefferson County, Oregon, USA
Range Cascade Range
Coordinates 44°23′59.0″N 121°38′07.7″W / 44.39972°N 121.635472°W / 44.39972; -121.635472Coordinates: 44°23′59.0″N 121°38′07.7″W / 44.39972°N 121.635472°W / 44.39972; -121.635472 [1]
Topo map USGS Black Butte
Geology
Type Mafic volcano [3]
Age of rock Pleistocene
Volcanic arc/belt Cascade Volcanic Arc
Last eruption About 1,430,000 years ago [4]
Climbing
Easiest route Hike

Black Butte is a cinder cone butte located in Deschutes National Forest, northwest of the town of Sisters, Oregon. An extinct volcano, it is composed of basaltic andesite. The cone rises 3,076 feet (938 m) over the surrounding plateau. Black Butte is a striking feature just north of US Highway 20, which descends from the east flank of the Cascades. It is nearly symmetrical,[5] with no marks of glaciation. Even though it is older than the High Cascades mountains visible to the west, which are heavily scoured by ice-age glacier activity, Black Butte receives less snow at its lower elevation and location east of the High Cascades. The headwaters of the Metolius River flow from Metolius Springs near the northern base of Black Butte.[5] The spring flows at a consistent rate of 45,000–50,000 US gallons (170–190 m3) per minute.[6]

In the local indigenous tongue, the mountain is called Turututu, but records show settlers calling it Black Butte as early as 1855.[5]

Forest Service road 1110 climbs halfway up the mountain and a hiking trail continues to the summit.[7] At the summit, there are two fire lookout towers, one that was built in 1934 and is presently condemned, and another that was constructed in 1995 to replace the older one. The older is the taller of the two.[8]

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