Roxy Ann Peak, also known as Roxy Ann Butte, is a mountain in the
Western Cascade Range at the eastern edge of
Medford, Oregon
Medford is a city in and the county seat of Jackson County, Oregon, in the United States. As of the 2020 United States Census on April 1, 2020, the city had a total population of 85,824 and a metropolitan area population of 223,259, making the M ...
. Composed of several
geologic layers, the majority of the peak is of
volcanic
A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface.
On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates a ...
origin and dates to the early
Oligocene epoch. It is primarily covered by
oak savanna
An oak savanna is a type of savanna—or lightly forested grassland—where oaks (''Quercus ''spp.) are the dominant trees. The terms "oakery" or "woodlands" are also used commonly, though the former is more prevalent when referencing the Medite ...
and open
grassland
A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses ( Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur na ...
on its lower slopes, and
mixed coniferous forest
Mixed coniferous forest is a vegetation type dominated by a mixture of broadleaf trees and conifers.Sierra Nevada Wildflowers, Karen Wiese, 2nd ed, 2013, p 13–14 It is generally located in mountains, below the upper montane vegetation type.
Sie ...
on its upper slopes and summit, stopping short of the summit. Despite the peak's relatively small
topographic prominence
In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...
of , it rises above Medford and is visible from most of the
Rogue Valley
The Rogue Valley is a valley region in southwestern Oregon in the United States. Located along the middle Rogue River (Oregon), Rogue River and its tributaries in Josephine County, Oregon, Josephine and Jackson County, Oregon, Jackson counties, t ...
. The mountain is Medford's most important
viewshed
A viewshed is the geographical area that is visible from a location. It includes all surrounding points that are in line-of-sight with that location and excludes points that are beyond the horizon or obstructed by terrain and other features (e.g. ...
,
open space reserve
An open space reserve (also called open space preserve, open space reservation, and green space) is an area of protected or conserved land or water on which development is indefinitely set aside.
The purpose of an open space reserve may include ...
, and recreational resource.
The area was originally inhabited beginning 8,000 to 10,000 years ago by
ancestral Native Americans. The
Latgawa
Latgawa are Native American people who lived in the Rogue Valley of interior southwest Oregon. In their own language "Latgawa" means "those living in the uplands," though they were also known as the Walumskni by the neighboring Klamath tribe.
...
Native American tribe was present in the early 1850s when the sudden influx of
non-indigenous settlers resulted in the
Rogue River Wars. After the wars, the Latgawa were forced away from the region onto
reservations. The peak was named in August 1853 by emigrants arriving from Missouri via the Oregon Trail. Roxy Ann Hutchinson Hughes Bowen was the (step)grandmother of the McKee-Bowen family. Her step-daughter Maryum Bowen and Maryum's husband John McKee settled on, and filed a Donation Land Claim for, 320 acres on the SW flank of the butte (today's Hillcrest Orchards and Roxy Ann Vineyards).
In 1883, the city of Medford was established to the southwest of the mountain, and became
incorporated two years later. After acquiring a large amount of land from the
Lions Club
The International Association of Lions Clubs, more commonly known as Lions Clubs International, is an international non-political service organization established originally in 1916 in Chicago, Illinois, by Melvin Jones. It is now headquartere ...
and the
federal government between 1930 and 1933, the city created the Prescott Park in 1937. The park protects much of the upper slopes and summit of the peak and remains largely undeveloped. The peak's southern foothills have some quickly expanding
single-family residential subdivisions
Subdivision may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Subdivision (metre), in music
* ''Subdivision'' (film), 2009
* "Subdivision", an episode of ''Prison Break'' (season 2)
* ''Subdivisions'' (EP), by Sinch, 2005
* "Subdivisions" (song), by Rush ...
.
Geology and soils
Roxy Ann Peak is part of the old and deeply eroded
Western Cascades
The Western Cascades is a region of the U.S. state of Oregon between the Willamette Valley and the High Cascades. Deposits of Western Cascades age are also found in adjacent southwest Washington state. The range contains many extinct shield vol ...
, along with nearby
Pilot Rock,
Grizzly Peak, and
Baldy Baldy refers to a person with hair loss.
Baldy may also refer to:
People
*Baldy (nickname)
*Pen name of Clifford H. Baldowski (1917–1999), American editorial cartoonist
* Daniel Baldy (born 1994), German politician
* Leonard Baldy (1927-1960), ...
. It is composed of several distinct geologic layers. The oldest layer, the 35 to 50-million-year-old Payne Cliffs Formation, forms the base of the peak and consists of sedimentary
sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...
,
shale, and
conglomerates. Most of the rest of the mountain is made up of 30 to 35-million-year-old volcanic
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 ...
,
breccia
Breccia () is a rock composed of large angular broken fragments of minerals or rocks cemented together by a fine-grained matrix.
The word has its origins in the Italian language, in which it means "rubble". A breccia may have a variety of ...
s, and
agglomerates, known as the Roxy Formation. These rocks are some of the oldest in the Cascades. At the summit, younger basalt
dikes
Dyke (UK) or dike (US) may refer to:
General uses
* Dyke (slang), a slang word meaning "lesbian"
* Dike (geology), a subvertical sheet-like intrusion of magma or sediment
* Dike (mythology), ''Dikē'', the Greek goddess of moral justice
* Dikes ...
and
intrusions
K–Ar dated to 30.82 ± 2 million years ago form a relatively erosion-resistant cap, likely contributing to the peak's isolation and familiar conical shape. Much of the lower slopes of Roxy Ann are covered by a layer of dense, sticky
clay
Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4).
Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay par ...
. Due to the clay's low
shear strength
In engineering, shear strength is the strength of a material or component against the type of yield or structural failure when the material or component fails in shear. A shear load is a force that tends to produce a sliding failure on a materi ...
, the soil is prone to
creep,
earthflow
An earthflow (earth flow) is a downslope viscous flow of fine-grained materials that have been saturated with water and moves under the pull of gravity. It is an intermediate type of mass wasting that is between downhill creep and mudflow. The ...
s, and
landslides. Several large
subdivisions
Subdivision may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Subdivision (metre), in music
* ''Subdivision'' (film), 2009
* "Subdivision", an episode of ''Prison Break'' (season 2)
* ''Subdivisions'' (EP), by Sinch, 2005
* "Subdivisions" (song), by Rush ...
lie on top of these deposits, some of which are up to thick. The upper slopes and peak have shallow dark brown gravelly loam of the McMullin soil series, while deeper gravelly loam soils on lower slopes are assigned to the Tablerock series. The surrounding clays are mapped as Heppsie or Carney series.
The peak stands above sea level with a topographic prominence of , and rises above the surrounding
Rogue Valley
The Rogue Valley is a valley region in southwestern Oregon in the United States. Located along the middle Rogue River (Oregon), Rogue River and its tributaries in Josephine County, Oregon, Josephine and Jackson County, Oregon, Jackson counties, t ...
. The unique rounded top, location, and height of the peak create a landmark distinguishable from as far away as
Shady Cove, to the north, and the
Siskiyou Summit
Siskiyou Summit (also Siskiyou Mtn. Summit; also referred to as Siskiyou Pass) is a summit (high point) on Interstate 5 (I-5) in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is distinct from Siskiyou Pass, which is a nearby, historical mountain pass. Siskiyou S ...
, to the south.
History
Early history
Humans have lived in the vicinity of Roxy Ann Peak for the past 8,000 to 10,000 years. The first inhabitants were semi-
nomad
A nomad is a member of a community without fixed habitation who regularly moves to and from the same areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the po ...
ic, most likely living off edible
bulbs and large mammals such as
mastodon
A mastodon ( 'breast' + 'tooth') is any proboscidean belonging to the extinct genus ''Mammut'' (family Mammutidae). Mastodons inhabited North and Central America during the late Miocene or late Pliocene up to their extinction at the end of th ...
s and
giant bison
''Bison latifrons'', also known as the giant bison or long-horned bison, is an extinct species of bison that lived in North America during the Pleistocene epoch ranging from Alaska to Mexico. It was the largest and heaviest bovid ever to live ...
. Within the last millennium, the region became home to the
Latgawa
Latgawa are Native American people who lived in the Rogue Valley of interior southwest Oregon. In their own language "Latgawa" means "those living in the uplands," though they were also known as the Walumskni by the neighboring Klamath tribe.
...
Native American tribe, who called the peak ''Al-wiya''. They probably used the mountain for gathering
acorns and hunting
black-tailed deer
Two forms of black-tailed deer or blacktail deer that occupy coastal woodlands in the Pacific Northwest of North America are subspecies of the mule deer (''Odocoileus hemionus''). They have sometimes been treated as a species, but virtually all r ...
and small birds, animals which are still abundant there.
The first European Americans to visit the area were a group of
fur trappers
The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of a world fur market in the early modern period, furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most ...
led by
Peter Skene Ogden who traveled north through the Rogue Valley on February 14, 1827. The first non-
indigenous
Indigenous may refer to:
*Indigenous peoples
*Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention
*Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band
*Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...
settlers arrived a few decades later. The sudden increase in population created conflicts with the Latgawa, which ultimately led to the
Rogue River Wars of 1855 and 1856. After the wars, the remaining Latgawa were forced hundreds of miles north to the
Siletz Reservation on the central
Oregon Coast
The Oregon Coast is a coastal region of the U.S. state of Oregon. It is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to its west and the Oregon Coast Range to the east, and stretches approximately from the California state border in the south to the Columbia ...
.
Early settlers named the peak Skinner Butte, after
Alonzo A. Skinner, the Rogue Valley
Indian agent
In United States history, an Indian agent was an individual authorized to interact with American Indian tribes on behalf of the government.
Background
The federal regulation of Indian affairs in the United States first included development of t ...
between 1851 and 1853. The current name of the mountain originates from one of its first residents, Roxy Ann Bowen. Two couples—Roxy Ann and her husband John McKee and Stephen and Mary Taylor—
claimed
"Claimed" is the eleventh episode of the The Walking Dead (season 4), fourth season of the Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, post-apocalyptic Horror fiction, horror television series ''The Walking Dead (TV series), The Walking Dead'', wh ...
almost the entire peak in 1853, and by the late 1850s, it came to be known as Roxy Ann Peak.
In October 1883, construction of the
Oregon and California Railroad
The Oregon and California Railroad was formed from the Oregon Central Railroad when it was the first to operate a stretch south of Portland in 1869. This qualified the railroad for land grants in California, whereupon the name of the railroad s ...
was begun through the center of the Rogue Valley, bypassing
Jacksonville
Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...
, the
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...
. The railroad company also constructed a
train depot
A train station, railway station, railroad station or depot is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track and a station building providing su ...
halfway between
Central Point and
Phoenix
Phoenix most often refers to:
* Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore
* Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States
Phoenix may also refer to:
Mythology
Greek mythological figures
* Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...
, and
plat
In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. United States General Land Office surveyors drafted township plats of Public Lands Surveys to show the distance and bea ...
ted 82
city blocks around it. The townsite was named Medford in December. In 1884, residents celebrated the town's first
Independence Day by firing 38 cannon blasts—
one for each U.S. state—from Roxy Ann Peak's summit. Medford grew quickly, and was
incorporated on February 24, 1885.
Beginning in the early 1900s, the mountain's foothills were predominantly used for
pear
Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in the Northern Hemisphere in late summer into October. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus ''Pyrus'' , in the family Rosaceae, bearing the po ...
orchards and
lignite mining. Mining ceased at the onset of World War I, and many of the orchards were abandoned during the
Great Depression, but some still remain.
Prescott Park
![Prescott Park Plaque](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/Prescott_Park_Plaque.jpg)
In 1929, the
Lions Club
The International Association of Lions Clubs, more commonly known as Lions Clubs International, is an international non-political service organization established originally in 1916 in Chicago, Illinois, by Melvin Jones. It is now headquartere ...
purchased two sizable portions of land on the peak, and
deeded to Medford for recreational use the following year. In 1931, the city acquired another via the
Recreation and Public Purposes Act, and more in 1933. The park was dedicated in 1937 to George J. Prescott, a Lions Club leader and Medford police officer who was killed on duty on March 16, 1933.
Starting in 1933, the
Civilian Conservation Corps
The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was a major part of ...
(CCC) made the first improvements to Prescott Park, including constructing of trails and a access road (Roxy Ann Road), creating several picnic areas and overlooks, and digging drainage ditches. The CCC stopped work in 1942, soon after the beginning of World War II. Park maintenance ceased due to municipal budget problems, and
gasoline rationing caused the number of visitors to drop markedly. By 1956, the CCC's improvements had suffered $110,000 in damage. The trend of disrepair continued for several decades.
During the late 1990s, the park experienced a surge in vandalism, littering, and wildfires caused by
off-roading
Off-roading is the activity of driving or riding in a vehicle on unpaved surfaces such as sand, gravel, riverbeds, mud, snow, rocks, and other natural terrain. Types of off-roading range in intensity, from leisure drives with unmodified vehicl ...
, and Roxy Ann Road became nearly impassable because of lack of maintenance. Medford police officers had to devote much of their time to patrolling the mountain, made difficult by the park's remote location. To alleviate these problems, the city
regraded Roxy Ann Road in 1998, and installed two gates near the park entrance two years later. By 2006, vandalism had decreased by 70 percent.
At , Prescott Park is Medford's largest park, covering much of the upper slopes and summit of Roxy Ann. It is two and a half times larger than the city's other parks combined.
21st century
![Roxy Ann Tower](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c6/Roxy_Ann_Tower.jpg)
Prescott Park and Roxy Ann Peak's upper slopes remain relatively undeveloped, being outside of Medford's city limits and
urban growth boundary
An urban growth boundary, or UGB, is a regional boundary, set in an attempt to control urban sprawl by, in its simplest form, mandating that the area inside the boundary be used for urban development and the area outside be preserved in its natural ...
. The summit of the peak is home to a
radio tower
Radio masts and towers are typically tall structures designed to support antennas for telecommunications and broadcasting, including television. There are two main types: guyed and self-supporting structures. They are among the tallest human-made ...
built in 2007; the new tower replaced three of four existing towers. Roxy Ann Peak and nearby Baldy are the only two primary
transmitter station
A transmitter station or transmission facility is an installation used for transmitting radio frequency signals for wireless communication, broadcasting, microwave link, mobile telephone or other purposes.
Choice of location
The location may b ...
sites in the Rogue Valley.
Residential development of the mountain's southern foothills has been on the rise for several years, primarily in the form of
single-family residences. Construction costs have continued to rise as well, in part because of a bill passed in 2003. Oregon House Bill 3375 required that new construction on slopes of 20 percent or greater with unstable soil undergo increased regulation and an extended approval process. The bill doubled the cost of new
foundations
Foundation may refer to:
* Foundation (nonprofit), a type of charitable organization
** Foundation (United States law), a type of charitable organization in the U.S.
** Private foundation, a charitable organization that, while serving a good cause ...
to around $20,000 to $30,000, and the cost of
retrofitting
Retrofitting is the addition of new technology or features to older systems. Retrofits can happen for a number of reasons, for example with big capital expenditures like naval vessels, military equipment or manufacturing plants, businesses or go ...
an existing structure approached $100,000.
Roxy Ann Peak's southern foothills are also home to the RoxyAnn Winery, a
Rogue Valley AVA
The Rogue Valley AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in southern Oregon. The federal government approved this appellation in 1991. It is entirely contained within the larger Southern Oregon AVA and includes the drainage basin of the Rog ...
winery founded in 2002. On the opposite side of the mountain is the first
bioreactor landfill in
Southern Oregon
Southern Oregon is a region of the U.S. state of Oregon south of Lane County and generally west of the Cascade Range, excluding the southern Oregon Coast. Counties include Douglas, Jackson
Jackson may refer to:
People and fictional charac ...
, the Dry Creek Landfill, which began a program in 2006 to generate power from collected
methane
Methane ( , ) is a chemical compound with the chemical formula (one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms). It is a group-14 hydride, the simplest alkane, and the main constituent of natural gas. The relative abundance of methane on Ea ...
.
On September 21, 2009, a wildfire broke out on Roxy Ann Peak's western slopes and consumed approximately . It left 25,000 residents without electricity, forced the evacuation of over 100 homes, and cost over $1.3 million to fight, but no structures were damaged.
Flora and fauna
![Roxy Ann Peak Madrone](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/Roxy_Ann_Peak_Madrone.JPG)
Roxy Ann Peak's high
biodiversity
Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...
is due to its wide range of elevations and its location between the
Cascade,
Klamath Klamath may refer to:
Ethnic groups
*Klamath people, a Native American people of California and Oregon
**Klamath Tribes, a federally recognized group of tribes in Oregon
*Klamath language, spoken by the Klamath people
Places in the United States
* ...
, and
Eastern Cascade ecoregions. The lower slopes of the peak support
chaparral,
oak savanna
An oak savanna is a type of savanna—or lightly forested grassland—where oaks (''Quercus ''spp.) are the dominant trees. The terms "oakery" or "woodlands" are also used commonly, though the former is more prevalent when referencing the Medite ...
, and open
grassland
A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses ( Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur na ...
. Scattered
California black oak,
Oregon white oak
''Quercus garryana'' is an oak tree species of the Pacific Northwest, with a range stretching from southern California to southwestern British Columbia. It is commonly known as the Oregon white oak or Oregon oak or, in Canada, the Garry oak. It ...
, and
Pacific madrone
''Arbutus menziesii'' or Pacific madrone (commonly madrone or madrona in the United States and arbutus in Canada), is a species of broadleaf evergreen tree in the family Ericaceae, native to the western coastal areas of North America, from Br ...
trees grow in these areas, as do
sclerophyll
Sclerophyll is a type of vegetation that is adapted to long periods of dryness and heat. The plants feature hard leaves, short internodes (the distance between leaves along the stem) and leaf orientation which is parallel or oblique to direct ...
ous shrubs such as
birchleaf mountain mahogany,
sticky whiteleaf manzanita,
buckbrush,
antelope bitterbrush, and
Pacific poison oak. Common grasses include
blue wildrye and
prairie Junegrass. Wildflowers including
Southern Oregon buttercup,
common yarrow, and
Tolmie star-tulip also grow in these regions. At higher elevations, the vegetation transitions to mixed
coniferous forest
Conifers are a group of cone-bearing seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single extant class, Pinopsida. All exta ...
, dominated by
Douglas fir,
ponderosa pine
''Pinus ponderosa'', commonly known as the ponderosa pine, bull pine, blackjack pine, western yellow-pine, or filipinus pine is a very large pine tree species of variable habitat native to mountainous regions of western North America. It is the ...
,
incense cedar
''Calocedrus'', the incense cedar (alternatively spelled incense-cedar), is a genus of coniferous trees in the cypress family Cupressaceae first described as a genus in 1873. It is native to eastern Asia and western North America.
The generic n ...
,
western juniper
''Juniperus occidentalis'', known as the western juniper, is a shrub or tree native to the Western United States, growing in mountains at altitudes of and rarely down to . It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List because it is a wides ...
, and Pacific madrone trees. Shrubs such as
common snowberry,
bearbrush,
greenleaf manzanita, sticky whiteleaf manzanita,
deerbrush, and Pacific poison oak make up the
understory
In forestry and ecology, understory (American English), or understorey (Commonwealth English), also known as underbrush or undergrowth, includes plant life growing beneath the forest canopy without penetrating it to any great extent, but abo ...
of the forest, along with
herbaceous plant
Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent wood, woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennial plant, perennials, and nearly all Annual plant, annuals and Biennial plant, biennials.
Definition ...
s such as
creeping snowberry and
Idaho fescue
''Festuca idahoensis'' is a species of grass known by the common names Idaho fescue and blue bunchgrass. It is native to western North America, where it is widespread and common. It can be found in many ecosystems, from shady forests to open plai ...
.
The peak is home to many species of birds, including
blue-gray gnatcatchers,
lazuli buntings,
oak titmice,
acorn woodpecker
The acorn woodpecker (''Melanerpes formicivorus'') is a medium-sized woodpecker, long, with an average weight of .
Taxonomy
The acorn woodpecker was formally described in 1827 by the English naturalist William John Swainson under the binomi ...
s, and
California quail
The California quail (''Callipepla californica''), also known as the California valley quail or Valley quail, is a small ground-dwelling bird in the New World quail family. These birds have a curving crest or '' plume'', made of six feathers, tha ...
on the lower slopes, and
mountain quail,
mountain chickadee
The mountain chickadee (''Poecile gambeli'') is a small songbird, a passerine bird in the tit family Paridae.
Taxonomy
The specific name honors naturalist William Gambel. The mountain chickadee was formerly placed in the genus ''Parus'' with ...
s, and
red-breasted nuthatch
The red-breasted nuthatch (''Sitta canadensis'') is a small songbird. The adult has blue-grey upperparts with cinnamon underparts, a white throat and face with a black stripe through the eyes, a straight grey bill and a black crown. Its call, wh ...
es on the upper slopes.
Wild turkey
The wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') is an upland ground bird native to North America, one of two extant species of turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic turkey, which was originally d ...
s and
raptors such as
Cooper's hawk
Cooper's hawk (''Accipiter cooperii'') is a medium-sized hawk native to the North American continent and found from southern Canada to Mexico. This species is a member of the genus ''Accipiter'', sometimes referred to as true hawks, which are f ...
s,
golden eagle
The golden eagle (''Aquila chrysaetos'') is a bird of prey living in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the most widely distributed species of eagle. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. They are one of the best-known birds of ...
s,
bald eagles, and
prairie falcon
The prairie falcon (''Falco mexicanus'') is a medium-large sized falcon of western North America. It is about the size of a peregrine falcon or a crow, with an average length of 40 cm (16 in), wingspan of approximately 1 meter (40&n ...
s are also common. A few species
migrate to the peak in the winter, including
ruby-crowned kinglet
The ruby-crowned kinglet (''Corthylio calendula'') is a very small passerine bird found throughout North America. It is a member of the kinglet family. The bird has olive-green plumage with two white wing bars and a white eye-ring. Males have a ...
s,
yellow-rumped warblers, and
golden-crowned sparrows. Mammals that inhabit the mountain include black-tailed deer,
cougars,
bobcats,
skunks,
raccoon
The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight of ...
s,
coyotes,
bears,
weasel
Weasels are mammals of the genus ''Mustela'' of the family Mustelidae. The genus ''Mustela'' includes the least weasels, polecats, stoats, ferrets and European mink. Members of this genus are small, active predators, with long and slender b ...
s, and
squirrels. A large herd of
Roosevelt elk
The Roosevelt elk (''Cervus canadensis roosevelti)'', also known commonly as the Olympic elk and Roosevelt's wapiti, is the largest of the four surviving subspecies of elk (''Cervus canadensis'') in North America by body mass (although by antl ...
frequent the peak's western foothills. The herd swelled to over 100 individuals in the mid-2000s, causing traffic problems and severe damage to local pear orchards, but shrank to about 40 members by 2009 after an
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) is a government agency of the U.S. state of Oregon responsible for programs protecting Oregon fish and wildlife resources and their habitats.
The agency operates hatcheries, issues hunting an ...
relocation effort. Other common animals on the peak include
western rattlesnakes and
western blacklegged ticks.
Recreation
![View East from Roxy Ann Peak](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d2/View_East_from_Roxy_Ann_Peak.jpg)
Roxy Ann Peak and Prescott Park serve as Medford's most important
viewshed
A viewshed is the geographical area that is visible from a location. It includes all surrounding points that are in line-of-sight with that location and excludes points that are beyond the horizon or obstructed by terrain and other features (e.g. ...
,
open space reserve
An open space reserve (also called open space preserve, open space reservation, and green space) is an area of protected or conserved land or water on which development is indefinitely set aside.
The purpose of an open space reserve may include ...
, and recreational resource. Popular recreational activities on the peak include picnicking and
hiking
Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...
,
mountain biking, and
horseback riding
Equestrianism (from Latin , , , 'horseman', 'horse'), commonly known as horse riding (Commonwealth English) or horseback riding (American English), includes the disciplines of riding, driving, and vaulting. This broad description includes the ...
on the of designated trails in Prescott Park, which range in difficulty from moderate to steep. In August 2013, the city of Medford and the
International Mountain Bicycling Association
The International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) is a non-profit educational association whose mission is to create, enhance and preserve trail opportunities for mountain bikers worldwide.
IMBA was formed in 1988, when five California-based ...
released a conceptual plan detailing future improvements to the park's trail system. The plan would add of new multi-use trails throughout the park, improve existing trails and trail signage, and add a new
trailhead
A trailhead is the point at which a trail begins, where the trail is often intended for hiking, biking, horseback riding, or off-road vehicles. Modern trailheads often contain rest rooms, maps, sign posts and distribution centers for information ...
on the mountain's western slope, at an estimated cost of between $360,000 and $720,000. If approved, construction on the first phase could begin by 2015.
A
challenge course
A ropes course is a challenging outdoor personal development and team building activity which usually consists of high and/or low elements. #Low course, Low elements take place on the ground or above the ground. #High course, High elements are u ...
opened in Prescott Park in April 2012, operated by the
Tigard-based company Synergo. The course has 15 elements—eight
low and seven
high—each formed by various combinations of ropes, wires, platforms, ladders, and swings. They range from above the ground.
The peak and park can be accessed via Roxy Ann Road on the southern side of the mountain. There are two gates on the road; the first is near the base of the peak and is opened and closed on a set schedule, and the second is about one mile beyond it at the park boundary, and is closed to all unauthorized motor vehicles. One mile past the second gate, the road splits into a loop around the summit. Tower Road begins on the north side of the loop and ascends to the summit of the peak. The peak offers expansive views of the surrounding landscape, including the Rogue Valley,
Mount Ashland
Mount Ashland is the highest peak in the Siskiyou Mountains of southern Oregon. It was named for the city of Ashland, located north of the mountain. The Siskiyou Mountains are a subrange of the Klamath Mountains in northwestern California and ...
,
Mount McLoughlin, Pilot Rock, the
Crater Lake
Crater Lake ( Klamath: ''Giiwas'') is a volcanic crater lake in south-central Oregon in the western United States. It is the main feature of Crater Lake National Park and is famous for its deep blue color and water clarity. The lake partly fill ...
rim, and even
Mount Thielsen, to the north, and
Mount Shasta
Mount Shasta ( Shasta: ''Waka-nunee-Tuki-wuki''; Karuk: ''Úytaahkoo'') is a potentially active volcano at the southern end of the Cascade Range in Siskiyou County, California. At an elevation of , it is the second-highest peak in the Cascades ...
, to the south.
See also
*Upper and Lower Table Rock
Notes and references
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{{portal bar, Mountains, Oregon, Volcanoes
Mountains of Jackson County, Oregon
Volcanoes of Oregon
Medford, Oregon
Civilian Conservation Corps in Oregon