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Hike · Black Butte trailhead

Black Butte

Distance
4.0 mi
Vertical
1,601 ft
Summit
6,424 ft
Difficulty
Strenuous

Black Butte is an extinct stratovolcano in the Deschutes National Forest, rising about 3,000 feet above the Metolius Valley as one of the older volcanoes still visible in the High Cascades. Its remarkably symmetrical cone — basaltic andesite cooled and frozen into a near-perfect…

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About Black Butte (Oregon)

Black Butte is an extinct stratovolcano in the U.S. state of Oregon. Located in Jefferson County, it is part of Deschutes National Forest. Black Butte forms part of the Cascade volcanic arc. The butte lies just south of the Metolius Springs, which merge to form the headwaters of the Metolius River. The Metolius River's basin sustains a wide array of plant life, large and small mammals, and more than 80 bird species.

Summary from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA.

Black Butte's almost-perfect cone seen across the Metolius Valley forest — the symmetry preserved by the rain shadow that kept glaciers off the volcano.
Raven Winters · CC BY 4.0
Black Butte (left) paired with snow-capped Mount Jefferson 21 miles to the northwest, the major High Cascades peak visible from the butte's summit.
Johnny.m76 · CC BY 3.0
The 1923 cupola fire lookout perched on the summit, with the jagged silhouette of Three Fingered Jack on the western horizon.
Kingofthedead · CC BY-SA 4.0
Looking west from near the summit toward Three Fingered Jack — the second mile of trail thins from forest into a view that reaches the Cascade crest.
Kingofthedead · CC BY-SA 4.0

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