Dee Wright Observatory is an observation structure at the summit of

McKenzie Pass McKenzie Pass, elevation , is a mountain pass in the Cascade Range in central Oregon in the United States. It is located at the border of Linn and Deschutes counties, approximately northwest of Bend, between the Three Sisters to the south ...

in the

Cascade Mountains 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, ...

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 Idah ...

. The structure is an open shelter constructed with

lava Lava is molten or partially molten rock ( magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such as Earth) or a moon onto its surface. Lava may be erupted at a volcano or through a fracture in the crust, on land or ...

stone. It is located in the midst of a large lava flow, and offers an exceptional view of numerous Cascade peaks.

Location

Dee Wright Observatory is located in the

Willamette National Forest The Willamette National Forest is a National Forest located in the central portion of the Cascade Range of the U.S. state of Oregon. It comprises . Over 380,000 acres (694 mi2, 1,540 km2) are designated wilderness which include seven ...

15 miles (24 km) west of

Sisters, Oregon Sisters is a city in Deschutes County, Oregon, United States. It is part of the Bend, Oregon Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,038 at the 2010 census. History The community takes its name from the nearby Three Sisters mount ...

on Route 242.Wright Observatory"
Willamette National Forest, United States Forest Service, Eugene, Oregon 26 June 2002. The highway is part of the McKenzie-Santiam Pass Scenic Byway. McKenzie Pass is above sea level, and winter snow and the narrow road surface requires McKenzie Pass to be closed to motor vehicles from November to July each year."McKenzie Travel Corridor, Dee Wright Observatory"
Willamette National Forest, United States Forest Service, Eugene, Oregon, 7 May 2007."McKenzie Pass"
Oregon Department of Transportation, Salem, Oregon, 2008. It is at times accessible to cyclists when the road is closed to vehicles.

Structure

The observatory is an open shelter built with

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 Ameri ...

lava found at the construction site. The viewing windows are cut to specifically highlight the neighboring mountains. These "lava tube" viewing holes allow visitors to easily identify the different Cascade peaks. There is also a 36 inch (90 cm) diameter, bronze

azimuth An azimuth (; from ar, اَلسُّمُوت, as-sumūt, the directions) is an angular measurement in a spherical coordinate system. More specifically, it is the horizontal angle from a cardinal direction, most commonly north. Mathematicall ...

-like "peak finder" on the observatory’s roof to help visitors locate nearby geologic features as well as the surrounding mountain peaks. From the top of the observatory, visitors have a panoramic view of the Cascade Mountain Range including

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 ...

in the far north. Many peaks can easily be seen from Dee Wright Observatory: Mount Jefferson, Cache Mountain, Dugout Butte, Black Butte, Bluegrass Butte,

Black Crater Black Crater is a shield volcano in the Western Cascades in Deschutes County, Oregon. Located near McKenzie Pass, the volcano has a broad conical shape with gentle slopes. The volcano likely formed during the Pleistocene and has not been active ...

, North Sister, Middle Sister, Little Brother (and ridge west), Condon Butte, Scott Mountain, South Belknap Cone, Belknap Crater, Little Belknap, and

Mount Washington Mount Washington is the highest peak in the Northeastern United States at and the most topographically prominent mountain east of the Mississippi River. The mountain is notorious for its erratic weather. On the afternoon of April 12, 1934, ...

. Mount Hood, Bald Peter, Green Ridge, and Horsepasture Mountain can also be seen from the observatory during good weather."Dee Wright Observatory"
United States Geological Survey, Cascades Volcano Observatory, Vancouver, Washington, December 2005. The half-mile long Lava River Interpretive Trail begins at the observatory, and takes visitors on a 30-minute walk through lava beds. The trail is paved and easy to follow. Interpretive panels, located along the trail highlight the

geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ea ...

of the area. The trail also offers open vistas of the surrounding landscape.

History

McKenzie Pass follows the path of an 1860 wagon route. The route emerges from the forest and crosses a lava flow. At the summit, the wagon road had to be cut through the lava beds. As a result, alternate routes over the Cascades were used by most early travelers. Today’s highway follows the wagon route over the lava beds past the observatory site. The observatory was built during the Great Depression by a

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 o ...

crew at Camp Belknap near Clear Lake. It was completed in 1935, and named for the construction crew’s foreman who had died the previous year after serving 24 years as a Forest Service packer and crew foreman at Camp Belknap. In addition to Dee Wright Observatory, the rough-hewn timber shelter built by the Civilian Conservation Corps at Camp Belknap still stands near Clear Lake. Both sites are maintained by the

United States Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency inc ...

. Today, Dee Wright Observatory is visited by thousands of travelers crossing McKenzie Pass each summer.

References

External links

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Willamette National Forest

McKenzie Pass—Santiam Pass Scenic Byway
Cascade Range Landmarks in Oregon Buildings and structures in Lane County, Oregon Civilian Conservation Corps in Oregon Willamette National Forest Tourist attractions in Lane County, Oregon Observatories in Oregon 1935 establishments in Oregon