Low Pass is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

in Lane County,

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 ...

, United States, on the

Long Tom River The Long Tom River is a tributary of the Willamette River in western Oregon in the United States. It drains an area at the south end of the Willamette Valley between Eugene and Corvallis. It rises in the Central Oregon Coast Range in western ...

, east of Blachly and west of

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...

. The settlement is centered on a small pullout on

Oregon Route 36 Oregon Route 36 is an Oregon state highway that runs between the city of Mapleton in the Oregon Coast Range, and the city of Junction City in the Willamette Valley. OR 36 traverses the Mapleton–Junction City Highway No. 229 of the ...

with a gas station/convenience store and a diner that serves as an unofficial community center for rural residents. The settlement is named for its location on a slight rise approaching the

foothills Foothills or piedmont are geographically defined as gradual increases in elevation at the base of a mountain range, higher hill range or an upland area. They are a transition zone between plains and low relief hills and the adjacent topograp ...

of the Coast Range mountains, in contrast to the nearby

mountain pass A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since many of the world's mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human a ...

High Pass. Much of the land west of Low Pass consists of

old-growth forest An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological featur ...

owned by the

Bureau of Land Management The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands. Headquartered in Washington DC, and with oversight over , it governs one eighth of the country's la ...

. The community has also been known as "Long Tom Station" after the nearby river; the name "Low Pass" was made official by a

United States Board on Geographic Names The United States Board on Geographic Names (BGN) is a federal body operating under the United States Secretary of the Interior. The purpose of the board is to establish and maintain uniform usage of geographic names throughout the federal governm ...

decision of 1985.

References

Unincorporated communities in Lane County, Oregon Unincorporated communities in Oregon {{LaneCountyOR-geo-stub