Mount Bachelor | |
---|---|
Highest point | |
Elevation | 9,068 ft (2,764 m) NAVD 88[1] |
Coordinates | 43°58′46″N 121°41′19″W / 43.979415733°N 121.688507775°W[1] |
Geography | |
Location | Deschutes County, Oregon, U.S.[2] |
Parent range | Cascade Range |
Topo map | USGS Mount Bachelor |
Geology | |
Rock age | less than 15,000 years |
Mountain type | Stratovolcano (on top of a shield volcano) |
Volcanic arc | Cascade Volcanic Arc |
Last eruption | 5800 BC [3] |
Climbing | |
Easiest route | Ski lifts |
Mount Bachelor, formerly named Bachelor Butte, is a dormant stratovolcano atop a shield volcano in the Cascade Volcanic Arc and the Cascade Range of central Oregon, United States. Named Mount Bachelor because it stands apart from the nearby Three Sisters,[4] it lies in the eastern segment of the central portion of the High Cascades, the eastern segment of the Cascade Range. The volcano lies at the northern end of the 15-mile (24 km) long Mount Bachelor Volcanic Chain, which underwent four major eruptive episodes during the Pleistocene and the Holocene. The United States Geological Survey considers Mount Bachelor a moderate threat, but Bachelor poses little threat of becoming an active volcano in the near future. It remains unclear whether the volcano is extinct or just inactive.
The Mount Bachelor ski area has operated on the mountain since 1958, and the volcano's summit hosts the Mount Bachelor Observatory. A center of winter recreation, the area offers snowshoeing, snow skiing, snow tubing, and dog sledding, among other activities. The summit can be reached by a climbing trail that travels over lava from the volcano.