Matterhorn is a mountain

summit A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topography, topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous. The term (mountain top) is generally used ...

located in

Wallowa County Wallowa County () is the northeastern most county in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2020 census, the population was 7,391, making it Oregon's fifth-least populous county. Its county seat is Enterprise. According to ''Oregon Geographic Name ...

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 ...

, US.

Description

Matterhorn is located 10 miles south-southwest of

Joseph, Oregon Joseph is a city in Wallowa County, Oregon, United States. Originally named Silver Lake and Lake City, the city formally named itself in 1880 for Chief Joseph (1840–1904) of the Nez Perce people. The population was 1,081 at the 2010 census. ...

, in the Wallowa Mountains. It is set within the

Eagle Cap Wilderness Eagle Cap Wilderness is a wilderness area located in the Wallowa Mountains of northeastern Oregon (United States), within the Wallowa–Whitman National Forest.

on land managed by Wallowa–Whitman National Forest. The peak is situated 1.8 mile west-northwest of

Craig Mountain Craig Mountain is a mountain summit located in Wallowa County, Oregon, US. Description Craig Mountain is located 10 miles south of Joseph, Oregon, in the Wallowa Mountains. It is set within the Eagle Cap Wilderness on land managed by Wallowa� ...

, 1.5 mile west of Ice Lake and 1.24 mile south of

line parent A peak's line parent is the closest higher peak on the highest ridge leading away from the peak's "key col". A col is the lowest point on the ridge between two summits and is roughly synonymous with pass, gap, saddle and notch. The highest col of ...

Sacajawea Peak Sacajawea Peak is a peak in the Wallowa Mountains, in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is in the Eagle Cap Wilderness and the Wallowa–Whitman National Forest. Description At , Sacajawea Peak is the highest point in the Wallowa Mountains, and th ...

. The peak ranks as the second-highest peak in the Wallowa Mountains, and the seventh-highest summit in Oregon. It was once considered to be the highest in the Wallowas, before Sacajawea Peak was determined to be a few feet higher. Precipitation

runoff Runoff, run-off or RUNOFF may refer to: * RUNOFF, the first computer text-formatting program * Runoff or run-off, another name for bleed, printing that lies beyond the edges to which a printed sheet is trimmed * Runoff or run-off, a stock market ...

from the mountain drains west into Hurricane Creek and east into Adam Creek, both of which are tributaries of the

Wallowa River The Wallowa River is a tributary of the Grande Ronde River, approximately long, in northeastern Oregon in the United States. It drains a valley on the Columbia Plateau in the northeast corner of the state north of Wallowa Mountains. The Wallowa ...

. Topographic relief is significant as the summit rises over above Hurricane Creek in less than one mile. The peak is composed of

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

of the Martin Bridge Formation. This landform's toponym has been officially adopted by the

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 ...

. It is so named because of a likeness to the famous Matterhorn on the Swiss–Italian border, and the name has been in use since at least 1926.Frederic George Young, "Oregon Historical Quarterly" Volume 27, (1926), p. 418

Climate

Based on the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

, Matterhorn is located in a

subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of an ocean, ge ...

zone characterized by long, usually very cold winters, and mild summers. Winter temperatures can drop below −10 °F with wind chill factors below −20 °F. Most precipitation in the area is caused by orographic lift. Thunderstorms are common in the summer.

Gallery

File:Matterhorn from traverse to Sacajawea.jpg, North aspect of Matterhorn seen from traverse to Sacajawea Peak. File:Matterhorn, Wallowas.jpg, Northeast aspect File:Matterhorn across Valley, Wallowa-Whitman National Forest (26195909634).jpg, Southwest aspect File:Ice Lake, Sacajawea Peak.jpg, East aspect of Matterhorn from Ice Lake File:Eagle Cap Wilderness, Wallowa Whitman National Forest (36341410225).jpg, Matterhorn upper left, Ice Lake centered, Sacajawea Peak in upper right corner

References

External links

* Weather forecast
Matterhorn
* Matterhorn (photo)
Flickr
{{Portal bar, Geography, Geology, Mountains, Oregon Mountains of Oregon Mountains of Wallowa County, Oregon North American 2000 m summits Wallowa–Whitman National Forest

Description

Climate

Gallery

See also

References

External links