Olallie Butte is a steep-sided

shield volcano A shield volcano is a type of volcano named for its low profile, resembling a warrior's shield lying on the ground. It is formed by the eruption of highly fluid (low viscosity) lava, which travels farther and forms thinner flows than the more vi ...

in the

Cascade Range The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, ...

of the northern part of the U.S. state of

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 largest volcano and highest point in the distance between

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 Portl ...

and Mount Jefferson. Located just outside the

Olallie Scenic Area Olallie Scenic Area is a United States Forest Service designated scenic area located in Oregon's Cascade Range. It is between Mount Hood on the north and Mount Jefferson to the south and contains Olallie Lake along with several smaller lakes. ...

, it is surrounded by more than 200 lakes and ponds fed by runoff, precipitation, and underground seepage, which are popular spots for fishing, boating, and swimming. The butte forms a prominent feature in the Mount Jefferson region and is usually covered with snow during the winter and spring seasons. Part of a stretch of shield volcanoes in Oregon with an unusually low elevation, meaning they have undergone less erosion over time than surrounding volcanic centers, Olallie has been excavated by glacial erosion on its northeastern flank. Its central

volcanic plug A volcanic plug, also called a volcanic neck or lava neck, is a volcanic object created when magma hardens within a vent on an active volcano. When present, a plug can cause an extreme build-up of high gas pressure if rising volatile-charged ma ...

has also been exposed. Comparisons of its morphology with Mount Jefferson suggest an age for the butte between 70,000 and 100,000 years; there is no evidence that it has erupted within the past 25,000 years. Olallie Butte has a steep, conical shape that serves as a transitional morphology between steep,

mafic A mafic mineral or rock is a silicate mineral or igneous rock rich in magnesium and iron. Most mafic minerals are dark in color, and common rock-forming mafic minerals include olivine, pyroxene, amphibole, and biotite. Common mafic rocks in ...

(rich in magnesium and iron) volcanoes like

Mount McLoughlin Mount McLoughlin is a dormant steep-sided stratovolcano, or composite volcano, in the Cascade Range of southern Oregon and within the United States Sky Lakes Wilderness. It is one of the volcanic peaks in the Cascade Volcanic Arc, within the ...

and

Mount Thielsen Mount Thielsen, or Big Cowhorn (Klamath: hisc’akwaleeʔas), is an extinct shield volcano in the Oregon High Cascades, near Mount Bailey. Because eruptive activity ceased 250,000 years ago, glaciers have heavily eroded the volcano's struc ...

and flatter, mafic shields. It is made of

basaltic andesite Basaltic andesite is a volcanic rock that is intermediate in composition between basalt and andesite. It is composed predominantly of augite and plagioclase. Basaltic andesite can be found in volcanoes around the world, including in Central Am ...

. A Forest Service

fire lookout tower A fire lookout tower, fire tower or lookout tower, provides housing and protection for a person known as a " fire lookout" whose duty it is to search for wildfires in the wilderness. It is a small building, usually on the summit of a mountain o ...

was built on the summit in 1915 but abandoned in 1967; the summit also had a

cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, most often dome-like, tall structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome. The word derives, via Italian, f ...

cabin from 1920 until its roof collapsed in 1982. Olallie gets its name from the Chinook Jargon word ''klallali'', which means berries. Today, the butte lies within the

Warm Springs Indian Reservation The Warm Springs Indian Reservation consists of in north-central Oregon, in the United States, and is governed by the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs. Tribes Three tribes form the confederation: the Wasco, Tenino (Warm Springs) and P ...

. The

Pacific Crest Trail The Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), officially designated as the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail, is a long-distance hiking and equestrian trail closely aligned with the highest portion of the Cascade and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges, which lie ...

passes over the western side of the butte, and there are other trails that reach the mountain's summit. Although the main trail to the summit is not well maintained, it still remains open to hikers.

Geography

Olallie Butte is located within Jefferson, Marion, and Wasco counties, all within the northwestern to north-central part of the U.S. state of

. The volcano lies just outside the irregularly shaped Olallie Roadless Area, which lies within the

Mount Hood National Forest The Mount Hood National Forest is a U.S. National Forest in the U.S. state of Oregon, located east of the city of Portland and the northern Willamette River valley. The Forest extends south from the Columbia River Gorge across more than of f ...

to the west of the major crest of the

and directly north of the Mount Jefferson Wilderness. This region encompasses of an upland area with small volcanoes, bordered to the southwest by the canyon wall of the North Fork of the Breitenbush River. It can be accessed from trails running from the Clackamas and Breitenbush River drainages, which reach the eastern and southern parts of the Olallie Area, as well as logging roads that enter the Olallie roadless area at its northern portion. Williams (1916) reported that Olallie Butte had a number of small, unnamed lakes, particularly concentrated at its southern base, which were mostly shallow. According to Johnson et al. (1985), dozens of these lakes were carved by the movement of glaciers over Olallie Butte. Olallie Lake is the largest of more than 200 bodies of water near Olallie Butte's base and contained in the Olallie Lake Scenic Area in Mount Hood National Forest's southern segment. Fed by runoff, precipitation, and subsurface seepage, Olallie Lake otherwise has no clear source of inflow or outflow, nor do many other lakes in the Olallie Butte area. To maintain Olallie Lake's water level, a low dam was built on the Mill Creek outlet, which flows east to Long Lake. Shitike Creek heads between Olallie Butte and Mount Jefferson, coursing east to the Warm Springs community before it joins the Deschutes River. Usually covered with snow in the winter and spring seasons, Olallie Butte is a prominent feature in the Mount Jefferson region. According to the U.S. National Geodetic Survey, Olallie Butte has an elevation of ; the

Geographic Names Information System The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is a database of name and locative information about more than two million physical and cultural features throughout the United States and its territories, Antarctica, and the associated states of ...

lists its elevation as , while Hildreth (2007) lists it at . It has a proximal

relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term '' relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...

and distal relief of and , respectively. Olallie Butte has a total volume of . The cinder cone lies north of Mount Jefferson and to the northeast of Olallie Lake. Olallie Butte can be reached from

Oregon Route 22 Oregon Route 22 is an Oregon state highway that runs between the Oregon Coast community of Hebo, to an interchange with U.S. Route 20 near Santiam Pass in the Cascade Mountains. OR 22 traverses several highways of the Oregon state highway ...

by following Breitenbush Road to the Olallie Lake Guard Station, then continuing on the main road along the transmission line. A trail to the summit of the mountain and a station runs for about from a trail marker located past a clearing on the main road; trucks cannot continue past this point.

Ecology

Forest stands near Olallie Butte reflect their elevation in the Cascade Range and predominantly include

lodgepole pine ''Pinus contorta'', with the common names lodgepole pine and shore pine, and also known as twisted pine, and contorta pine, is a common tree in western North America. It is common near the ocean shore and in dry montane forests to the subalpin ...

mountain hemlock ''Tsuga mertensiana'', known as mountain hemlock, is a species of hemlock native to the west coast of North America, found between Southcentral Alaska and south-central California. Description ''Tsuga mertensiana'' is a large evergreen conifer ...

, noble fir,

Pacific silver fir ''Abies amabilis'', commonly known as the Pacific silver fir, is a fir native to the Pacific Northwest of North America, occurring in the Pacific Coast Ranges and the Cascade Range. It is also commonly referred to as the white fir, red fir, love ...

western hemlock ''Tsuga heterophylla'', the western hemlock or western hemlock-spruce, is a species of hemlock native to the west coast of North America, with its northwestern limit on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, and its southeastern limit in northern Sonoma ...

, and

western white pine Western white pine (''Pinus monticola''), also called silver pine and California mountain pine, is a species of pine in the family Pinaceae. It occurs in mountain ranges of northwestern North America. It is the state tree of Idaho. Description ...

. Less common trees in the forested region include Alaska yellow cedar,

alpine fir Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National P ...

Douglas fir The Douglas fir (''Pseudotsuga menziesii'') is an evergreen conifer species in the pine family, Pinaceae. It is native to western North America and is also known as Douglas-fir, Douglas spruce, Oregon pine, and Columbian pine. There are three v ...

western red cedar ''Thuja plicata'' is an evergreen coniferous tree in the cypress family Cupressaceae, native to western North America. Its common name is western redcedar (western red cedar in the UK), and it is also called Pacific redcedar, giant arborvitae ...

, and

whitebark pine ''Pinus albicaulis'', known by the common names whitebark pine, white bark pine, white pine, pitch pine, scrub pine, and creeping pine, is a conifer tree native to the mountains of the western United States and Canada, specifically subalpine ...

; there are also a number of meadows, including Olallie Meadow, which covers an area of north of the Butte. Outbreaks of

mountain pine beetle The mountain pine beetle (''Dendroctonus ponderosae'') is a species of bark beetle native to the forests of western North America from Mexico to central British Columbia. It has a hard black exoskeleton, and measures approximately , about the siz ...

infestations have threatened the lodgepole pine trees throughout the area. Timber harvests are uncommon because forest managers want to keep trees for recreational purposes. Olallie Lake has

osprey The osprey (''Pandion haliaetus''), , also called sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor reaching more than in length and across the wings. It is brown o ...

nests on its shores. The

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 ...

stocks the lake each year with

rainbow trout The rainbow trout (''Oncorhynchus mykiss'') is a species of trout native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead (sometimes called "steelhead trout") is an anadromous (sea-run) form of the coast ...

as well as

brook trout The brook trout (''Salvelinus fontinalis'') is a species of freshwater fish in the char genus ''Salvelinus'' of the salmon family Salmonidae. It is native to Eastern North America in the United States and Canada, but has been introduced elsewhere ...

, and kokanee salmon can also be found in the water. The lake is surrounded by huckleberry plants, which are typically ripe by the end of August. Possessing an average depth of , Olallie Lake is shallow with rock-bottomed

littoral zone The littoral zone or nearshore is the part of a sea, lake, or river that is close to the shore. In coastal ecology, the littoral zone includes the intertidal zone extending from the high water mark (which is rarely inundated), to coastal ...

s and low mineral concentrations of ions, possibly because snow and rain supply most of its water. Low

chlorophyll Chlorophyll (also chlorophyl) is any of several related green pigments found in cyanobacteria and in the chloroplasts of algae and plants. Its name is derived from the Greek words , ("pale green") and , ("leaf"). Chlorophyll allow plants to ...

and

phosphorus Phosphorus is a chemical element with the symbol P and atomic number 15. Elemental phosphorus exists in two major forms, white phosphorus and red phosphorus, but because it is highly reactive, phosphorus is never found as a free element on Ea ...

concentrations mean that its water is quite transparent, and its bottom is visible even at its deepest point, at . Olallie Lake is ultraoligotrophic, with very low

phytoplankton Phytoplankton () are the autotrophic (self-feeding) components of the plankton community and a key part of ocean and freshwater ecosystems. The name comes from the Greek words (), meaning 'plant', and (), meaning 'wanderer' or 'drifter'. ...

populations and no macrophyte growth at the lake bottom. The lake also sustains cool temperatures throughout the year, including the summer season. In 1975, the

Bonneville Power Administration The Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) is an American federal agency operating in the Pacific Northwest. BPA was created by an act of Congress in 1937 to market electric power from the Bonneville Dam located on the Columbia River and to cons ...

drafted an Environmental Impact Statement for a proposed route through the area, noting that it would disturb the locale's cold, shallow rocky soil, which take long periods of time to form.

Geology

Part of the High Cascades segment of the larger Cascade Range, Olallie Butte is part of a stretch of shield volcanoes in Oregon with an unusually low elevation, meaning they have undergone less

erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is d ...

over time than surrounding volcanic centers. Olallie Butte forms part of the Jefferson Reach, an axis of shield volcanoes,

scoria Scoria is a pyroclastic, highly vesicular, dark-colored volcanic rock that was ejected from a volcano as a molten blob and cooled in the air to form discrete grains or clasts.Neuendorf, K.K.E., J.P. Mehl, Jr., and J.A. Jackson, eds. (2005) '' ...

cones, and

lava dome In volcanology, a lava dome is a circular mound-shaped protrusion resulting from the slow extrusion of viscous lava from a volcano. Dome-building eruptions are common, particularly in convergent plate boundary settings. Around 6% of eruptions ...

s in width that contains at least 175 Quaternary volcanoes. The Jefferson Reach's northern portion has an unusually low number of young volcanic centers (early Pleistocene or younger). The subsection including Olallie Butte consists mostly of Pleistocene or younger volcanoes, which are often glaciated. Of these volcanic vents, Olallie Butte and Sisi Butte are the two largest

(rich in

magnesium Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg and atomic number 12. It is a shiny gray metal having a low density, low melting point and high chemical reactivity. Like the other alkaline earth metals (group 2 of the periodic ...

and

iron Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in ...

)

es. Olallie Butte marks part of a region of basaltic andesite eruptions, also prominent at

Three Fingered Jack Three Fingered Jack is a summit of a shield volcano of the Cascade Range in the U.S. state of Oregon. Formed during the Pleistocene epoch, the mountain consists mainly of basaltic andesite lava and was heavily glaciated in the past. While othe ...

, that extends north and south from Mount Jefferson. Olallie Butte is considered a shield volcano, though it has a conical shape that serves as a transitional morphology between steep, mafic volcanoes like

and

and flatter, mafic shields. Made of

, it has a mafic composition. Nearby volcanic vents include the Sisi Butte, South Pinhead, and West Pinhead shield volcanoes and the Fort Butte, North Pinhead, and Potato Butte cinder cones. Cinder cones in the area have gray-red cinders that have been oxidized, scoria, agglomerate, and small lava flows consisting of

porphyritic Porphyritic is an adjective used in geology to describe igneous rocks with a distinct difference in the size of mineral crystals, with the larger crystals known as phenocrysts. Both extrusive and intrusive rocks can be porphyritic, meaning a ...

basaltic andesite and black and yellow-brown to dark yellow-orange,

palagonite Palagonite is an alteration product from the interaction of water with volcanic glass of chemical composition similar to basalt. Palagonite can also result from the interaction between water and basalt melt. The water flashes to steam on contact ...

basaltic andesite. The black and orange color of some of the eruptive material from these cones suggests that there was interaction of the lava with wet ground or

snow Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughou ...

, causing rapid chilling of the ejecta that prevented oxidation from taking place. At Double Peaks and an unnamed hill southwest of View Lake, there are gray-pink to light brown-gray

hornblende Hornblende is a complex inosilicate series of minerals. It is not a recognized mineral in its own right, but the name is used as a general or field term, to refer to a dark amphibole. Hornblende minerals are common in igneous and metamorphic rock ...

dacite lava domes. The volcanic cones at Olallie Butte and Mount Jefferson were erupted over deposits from the Minto lava group, which have been deeply eroded to create non-conforming surfaces. As a result, Olallie Butte has a relatively steeper slope, but there are lithologic similarities between the Olallie lavas and Minto lavas. Whereas Minto volcanoes follow a narrow, nearly linear arrangement south of Olallie Butte, north of Olallie the local volcanoes exhibit a scattered distribution across the plateau of the High Cascades. There are also transitional volcanoes not easily classified into either the Minto or Olallie group; their acidic composition suggests that they differentiated during the Minto eruptive phase, but progressive differentiation has been observed in the region, making definite conclusions about their categorization difficult. Unlike Sisi Butte, Olallie Butte has undergone relatively little erosion. Glacial erosion exposed the central volcanic plug and excavated troughs on Olallie's northeastern side, suggesting that the volcano is at least 25,000 years old. Part of the steepness of lower slopes at Olallie can be explained by glacial erosion by an ice sheet somewhere between in thickness, which previously covered the Olallie area. Glacial

till image:Geschiebemergel.JPG, Closeup of glacial till. Note that the larger grains (pebbles and gravel) in the till are completely surrounded by the matrix of finer material (silt and sand), and this characteristic, known as ''matrix support'', is d ...

, consisting of angular blocks of basaltic andesite and

andesite Andesite () is a volcanic rock of intermediate composition. In a general sense, it is the intermediate type between silica-poor basalt and silica-rich rhyolite. It is fine-grained (aphanitic) to porphyritic in texture, and is composed predo ...

, forms a veneer throughout the Olallie area, covering about 50 percent of the land, so systematic geochemical samples are generally not considered informative for volcanic rocks near the Butte. The volcanic rock that can be studied is of

Cenozoic The Cenozoic ( ; ) is Earth's current geological era, representing the last 66million years of Earth's history. It is characterised by the dominance of mammals, birds and flowering plants, a cooling and drying climate, and the current configu ...

age, consisting mostly of basaltic andesite and andesite lava flows and associated

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. Most of these have a porphyritic texture, containing

phenocryst 300px, feldspathic phenocrysts. This granite, from the Switzerland">Swiss side of the Mont Blanc massif, has large white plagioclase phenocrysts, triclinic minerals that give trapezoid shapes when cut through). 1 euro coins, 1 euro coin (diameter ...

s; basaltic andesite deposit phenocrysts are made of minerals like light to dark-gray

hypersthene Hypersthene is a common rock-forming inosilicate mineral belonging to the group of orthorhombic pyroxenes. Its chemical formula is . It is found in igneous and some metamorphic rocks as well as in stony and iron meteorites. Many references have f ...

clinopyroxene The pyroxenes (commonly abbreviated to ''Px'') are a group of important rock-forming inosilicate minerals found in many igneous and metamorphic rocks. Pyroxenes have the general formula , where X represents calcium (Ca), sodium (Na), iron (Fe I ...

, or

olivine The mineral olivine () is a magnesium iron silicate with the chemical formula . It is a type of nesosilicate or orthosilicate. The primary component of the Earth's upper mantle, it is a common mineral in Earth's subsurface, but weathers qui ...

, and the andesitic deposits have minerals such as platy

pyroxene The pyroxenes (commonly abbreviated to ''Px'') are a group of important rock-forming inosilicate minerals found in many igneous and metamorphic rocks. Pyroxenes have the general formula , where X represents calcium (Ca), sodium (Na), iron (Fe I ...

or olivine.

Labradorite Labradorite (( Ca, Na)( Al, Si)4 O8) is a calcium-enriched feldspar mineral first identified in Labrador, Canada, which can display an iridescent effect (schiller). Labradorite is an intermediate to calcic member of the plagioclase series. It ...

phenocrysts are common among both the basaltic andesite and regular andesite deposits, while

magnetite Magnetite is a mineral and one of the main iron ores, with the chemical formula Fe2+Fe3+2O4. It is one of the oxides of iron, and is ferrimagnetic; it is attracted to a magnet and can be magnetized to become a permanent magnet itself. With ...

is more rare. There has been very little geological alteration of these rocks other than a few instances of alteration of olivine to iddingsite. All the rocks in the area show a normal

magnetic polarity A magnet is a material or object that produces a magnetic field. This magnetic field is invisible but is responsible for the most notable property of a magnet: a force that pulls on other ferromagnetic materials, such as iron, steel, nickel, ...

, indicating ages less than one million years and corroborating that they are of

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...

age. The domes at Double Peaks and southwest of View Lake have phenocrysts with

andesine Andesine is a silicate mineral, a member of the plagioclase feldspar solid solution series. Its chemical formula is ( Ca, Na)( Al, Si)4 O8, where Ca/(Ca + Na) (% anorthite) is between 30–50%. The formula may be written as Na0.7-0.5Ca0.3-0.5Al ...

and dark red-brown basaltic hornblende, the latter of which contained altered magnetite, iron oxide hematite, and other unspecified minerals. Walker (1982) determined that the Olallie area was not a potential source for commercial deposits of minerals besides low-value rock that might be harvested for construction. However, there were other, better deposits of similar rock materials at more accessible locales nearby. Moreover, no studies have identified fuel repositories in the Olallie area, though Clackamas, Jefferson, Marion, and Wasco counties have been noted for having

hot spring A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by circ ...

s and therefore might serve as a future source of

geothermal energy Geothermal energy is the thermal energy in the Earth's crust which originates from the formation of the planet and from radioactive decay of materials in currently uncertain but possibly roughly equal proportions. The high temperature and pr ...

. None have been identified within the Olallie region, but they may be present and hidden by more recent rock layers or the cooling of rising thermal water.

Eruptive history

Olallie Butte is at least 25,000 years old, making it of Pleistocene age. It was likely built up by eruptions prior to the last glacial period. Comparisons of its morphology with Mount Jefferson suggest an age between 70,000 and 100,000 years. Thayer (1939) grouped eruptive activity at Olallie Butte with deposits at Mount Jefferson, Mount Hood, and

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 ...

(

Mount Mazama Mount Mazama (''Giiwas'' in the Native American language Klamath) is a complex volcano in the state of Oregon, United States, in a segment of the Cascade Volcanic Arc and Cascade Range. Most of the mountain collapsed following a major erupt ...

) into the Olallie Lava group, which display highly variable thicknesses ranging from extremely thin to up to . Olallie Butte has not erupted within the past 10,000 years during the Holocene epoch. The biggest threat in the local region is from lava flows. There are also a number of dacite lava domes, which could collapse and generate small but dangerous

pyroclastic flow A pyroclastic flow (also known as a pyroclastic density current or a pyroclastic cloud) is a fast-moving current of hot gas and volcanic matter (collectively known as tephra) that flows along the ground away from a volcano at average speeds of b ...

s or mudflows known as

lahar A lahar (, from jv, ꦮ꧀ꦭꦲꦂ) is a violent type of mudflow or debris flow composed of a slurry of pyroclastic material, rocky debris and water. The material flows down from a volcano, typically along a river valley. Lahars are extr ...

Human history

Olallie Butte was named in 1915 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 govern ...

. In 1921, they listed it within Marion and Wasco County, but later revised this to also list Olallie Butte as a feature within Jefferson County, Oregon. The Olallie Lake Resort, built in 1932, sits at a remote location in the Olallie Scenic Area. Open from June to October, it has a general store, rowboats, 10 cabins with wood-burning stoves, and no phone or internet service. There is also no electricity, gas, or ATM service. The name Olallie derives from the Chinook Jargon ''klallali'', which means berries; the term was historically used to refer to

huckleberry Huckleberry is a name used in North America for several plants in the family Ericaceae, in two closely related genera: '' Vaccinium'' and '' Gaylussacia''. The huckleberry is the state fruit of Idaho. Nomenclature The name 'huckleberry' is a ...

. Olallie Butte is part of the

, and the Olallie Lake Scenic Area borders the reservation. Olallie Butte has at its summit a

United States Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 United States National Forest, national forests and 20 United States Nationa ...

fire lookout tower, which was built in 1915 with a cab and tent cabin. It stands at a height of . The mountain summit also had a

cabin beginning in 1920, though it was abandoned in 1967 and the roof collapsed in 1982. The structure's remains can still be seen on top of Olallie Butte. Olallie Butte is also close to a power transmission line corridor. In the 1930s, the

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government unemployment, 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 ...

built a two-story cabin, now known as the Olallie Lake Guard Station Cabin, at the south end of the Mount Hood National Forest for local forest rangers. With a rustic architectural style, it exemplifies buildings from the Depression period. In 1991, the building was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

. It now operates as a cabin for visitors, with a kitchen, living room, bunk bedroom, and loft for up to eight guests. Its lighting and refrigerator are fueled with propane, and it also has a stove, oven, water tank, and vault toilet. Located at an elevation of about , it can be reached by motorized vehicles, though snow may impede access to the cabin.

Recreation

Olallie Lake is a popular destination for fishing; swimming and motorized boats are not allowed there, though swimming is allowed at the nearby Head Lake. Boat rentals, as well as

life jacket A personal flotation device (PFD; also referred to as a life jacket, life preserver, life belt, Mae West, life vest, life saver, cork jacket, buoyancy aid or flotation suit) is a flotation device in the form of a vest or suite that is worn by a ...

s, are available through the Olallie Lake Resort. Part of the

runs through the area. Pacific Crest Trail #2000 (Clackamas) extends for into the Olallie Lake Scenic Area, with a segment that traverses the western side of Olallie Butte towards Olallie Lake before entering the Mount Jefferson Wilderness. There are a number of other trails for hikers of all ability levels. One trail extends to the summit of the Butte and offers a panoramic view of north-central Oregon. There is also a trail running around Olallie Lake, also known as Olallie Lake Trail 731. The western side of the butte can be climbed via a non-maintained trail that gains in elevation from Forest Road 4220, north of Olallie Lake. This trail passes through tribal land, running for about in length to the summit, where it offers excellent views of Mount Jefferson. The round trip runs for about ; there is no shade or water on the hike. The United States Forest Service manages seven campgrounds in the Olallie area, including three on Olallie Lake. They have pit toilets and lack running water; no reservation is required to camp at any of these grounds. Throughout the Olallie Scenic Area campgrounds, there are 97 sites, each with

campfire A campfire is a fire at a campsite that provides light and warmth, and heat for cooking. It can also serve as a beacon, and an insect and predator deterrent. Established campgrounds often provide a stone or steel fire ring for safety. Campf ...

rings and

picnic A picnic is a meal taken outdoors ( ''al fresco'') as part of an excursion, especially in scenic surroundings, such as a park, lakeside, or other place affording an interesting view, or else in conjunction with a public event such as preceding ...

tables. The campgrounds have quiet hours from 10 pm to 6 am. The Olallie Lake Guard Station Cabin, operated by the United States Forest Service, can also be reserved from June through September for a fee of $750 per night.

Footnotes

* Hildreth (2007) defines proximal relief as the "difference between summit elevation and that of highest exposure of older rocks overlain by the edifice" and draping relief as the "difference between summit elevation and that of lowest distal lavas of the edifice (not including distal pyroclastic or debris flows)."

References

Sources

* . * * . * . * * * . * . * . * {{Good article Buttes of Oregon Cascade Range Cascade Volcanoes Landforms of Jefferson County, Oregon Landforms of Marion County, Oregon Landforms of Wasco County, Oregon Mount Hood National Forest Mountains of Oregon Shield volcanoes of the United States Subduction volcanoes Volcanoes of Oregon