The Coalman Glacier (also Coleman Glacier) is a

glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its Ablation#Glaciology, ablation over many years, often Century, centuries. It acquires dis ...

located on the upper slopes of

Mount Hood Mount Hood is a potentially active stratovolcano in the Cascade Volcanic Arc. It was formed by a subduction zone on the Pacific coast and rests in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located about east-southeast of Portlan ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

. It is the mountain's highest glacier ranging from about , located within the crater rim, southwest of the peak. It was named for Elija Coalman (variously spelled ''Elijah Coleman''), an early

mountain guide A mountain guide is a specially trained and experienced professional mountaineer who is certified by local authorities or mountain guide associations. They are considered to be high-level experts in mountaineering, and are hired to instruct or ...

who climbed

586 times. Coalman Glacier is the second most frequently visited glacier on the mountain because it is part of the popular South Climbing route from

Timberline Lodge Timberline Lodge is a mountain lodge on the south side of Mount Hood in Clackamas County, Oregon, about east of Portland. Constructed from 1936 to 1938 by the Works Progress Administration, it was built and furnished by local artisans during the ...

. It lies entirely within

Mount Hood Wilderness The Mount Hood Wilderness is a protected wilderness area inside the Mount Hood National Forest, in the U.S. state of Oregon. The area, covering , includes the peak of Mount Hood and its upper slopes, and ranges from temperate rain forests at the ...

. The most well known feature of Coalman is the ''Hogsback'': a snow ridge running southwest to northeast from Crater Rock toward the summit ridge. The

Bergschrund A bergschrund (from the German for ''mountain cleft'') or rimaye (from French; ) is a crevasse that forms where moving glacier ice separates from the stagnant ice or firn above. It is often a serious obstacle for mountaineers, who sometimes abb ...

is another widely known feature where the glacier pulls away from the stagnant ice leaving a large

crevasse A crevasse is a deep crack, that forms in a glacier or ice sheet that can be a few inches across to over 40 feet. Crevasses form as a result of the movement and resulting stress associated with the shear stress generated when two semi-rigid pie ...

. In 2007, it had become large enough to cause most climbers to use another route.Previous noticed posted at The glacier is a remnant of the massive glaciers that formed during the last

ice age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gree ...

. It is historically known to change configuration dramatically, at times a gradual, smooth surface to Hot Rocks; at other times the same place has a 40 ft (12 m) ice cliff. The glacier flows southwest, and is bounded on the north and east by the summit, on the northwest by the rocky crater wall known as ''Castle Crags'' (also ''Hawkins Cliffs''), on the west by ''Hot Rocks'', and on southeast by the back side of ''Steel Cliff''.

References

Glaciers of Mount Hood Glaciers of Clackamas County, Oregon Glaciers of Hood River County, Oregon Mount Hood National Forest Glaciers of Oregon {{HoodRiverCountyOR-geo-stub

See also

References