Belknap Shield Volcano, taken from McKenzie Pass, Oregon
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Belknap Shield Volcano and Points of Interest
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Belknap Shield Volcano
-- Geographic Setting, Geologic and Eruptive History
Belknap Crater is the focal point of a long-continued and complex episode of
Holocene basalt and basaltic andesite volcanism.
The broad shield is 5 miles in diameter;
it is estimated to be 1,700 feet in maximum thickness and 1.3 cubic miles in volume.
The volcano probably contains a core of cinders which interfingers with peripheral
lavas and whose surface expression is the summit cone. Basaltic andesite
issued from vents at the north and south bases of the cone approximately
1,500 years ago.
-- Excerpt from: Taylor, 1981
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Dee Wright Observatory
The Dee Wright Observatory is a stone memorial to the famed architect Dee Wright.
It is located in the
middle of a massive lava flow and offers panoramic views of the
Cascade Mountain Range, as far north as
Mount Hood. A barrier free access trail takes visitors to an
interpretive court, offering information on the
history of the structure built in the 1930s by the
Civilian Conservation Corp. At the top of the observatory, a
bronze peak finder points to geologic features
amidst sweeping lava fields. The half-mile Lava River
Interpretive Trail takes visitors on a
30-minute walk on a paved surface through lava flows with spectacular
vistas of the surrounding landscape.
-- Information courtesy:
Stacy Smith, USFS, 2000, National Scenic Byways Online Website
From Eugene, Oregon:
Follow U. S. 126 eastward to the junction with
Oregon 242, then on 242 to McKenzie Pass.
From Sisters, Oregon:
Follow 242 westward to
McKenzie Pass. Highways are paved but closed by snow during later fall, winter,
and spring.
-- Driving excerpts from: Taylor, 1990, IN: Wood and Kienle, (eds.), Volcanoes of North
America: United States and Canada: Cambridge University Press
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[Map,17K,InlineGIF]
Bend/Sisters/Santiam Pass/McKenzie Pass Area
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[Map,21K,InlineGIF]
Central Oregon High Cascades
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Belknap Shield Volcano Menu
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