Polaris Pass, Polaris Point or also Polaris Peak, is a mountain pass in the

Wallowa Mountains The Wallowa Mountains () are a mountain range located in the Columbia Plateau of northeastern Oregon in the United States. The range runs approximately northwest to southeast in southwestern Wallowa County and eastern Union County between the ...

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

. It is one of the navigable ridges with the highest elevation within the Eagle Cap Wilderness. Polaris Pass is the drainage divide between the watersheds of the North Fork of the

Imnaha River The Imnaha River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed May 3, 2011 tributary of the Snake River in the U.S. state of Oregon. Flowing generally east near the headwaters a ...

to the West Fork 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 ...

. It is located between the southern flanks of Pete's Point and the northern skirt of Sentinel Peak and is traversed by Polaris Trail #1831.

Geology

The geology of Polaris Pass is primarily formed of slate of the

Hurwal Formation The Hurwal Formation is a geologic formation in Oregon. It preserves fossils dating back to the Triassic period. See also * List of fossiliferous stratigraphic units in Oregon * Paleontology in Oregon The location of the state of Oregon Pal ...

, with areas of

Martin Bridge Limestone The Martin Bridge Formation is a geologic formation in Idaho. It preserves fossils dating back to the Triassic period Period may refer to: Common uses * Era, a length or span of time * Full stop (or period), a punctuation mark Arts, entertain ...

also present. These are constituted by dark and grey

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon. More than 90 ...

s that resemble more the strata in the

Columbia River Gorge The Columbia River Gorge is a canyon of the Columbia River in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. Up to deep, the canyon stretches for over as the river winds westward through the Cascade Range, forming the boundary between the st ...

than to the distinctive slopes of

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorphose ...

and

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...

in most of the

Wallowa–Whitman National Forest The Wallowa–Whitman National Forest is a United States National Forest in the U.S. states of Oregon and Idaho. Formed upon the merger of the Wallowa and Whitman national forests in 1954, it is located in the northeastern corner of the state, in ...

. Some of the basalt strata form

pinnacles A pinnacle is an architectural element originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire. It was main ...

out of its eastern slopes.

Access

Polaris Pass is traversed by a trail that can be reached starting at Indian Crossing trailhead through the North Folk Imnaha River trail. It can also be reached via the East Fork Wallowa River trail starting at the Wallowa River trailhead. From trail 1804 in the East to the junction with trail 1802 in the West, the trail over Polaris Pass is approximately . The Junction with the Wallowa Lake trail 1820 in the West of Polaris Pass is located at while the junction in the East with the North Fork Imnaha River trail is at .

References

Mountain passes of Oregon Landforms of Wallowa County, Oregon Eagle Cap Wilderness {{WallowaCountyOR-geo-stub