Greenleaf Peak is a mountain 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, ...
in the
U.S. state of
Washington, located on the north side of the
Columbia River
The Columbia River (Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, C ...
near
Table Mountain, in the
Columbia River Gorge. The peak lies within the
Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area near
Bonneville Dam. It is in elevation.
Botanist David Douglas climbed to the summit in September 1825, making this the first recorded mountain ascent in what is now Washington state.

Just south of the summit of Greenleaf Peak there is a dramatic
escarpment called Red Bluffs, which connects Greenleaf Peak and Table Mountain. Approximately of the Eagle Creek
formation are exposed at Red Bluffs.
The Red Bluffs escarpment was created by the repeated collapse of Greenleaf Peak and Table Mountain. Massive landslides have fallen from the mountains, creating a area of debris called the Cascade Landslide Complex. The largest and most studied landslide is known as the
Bonneville Slide
The Bridge of the Gods was a natural dam created by the Bonneville Slide, a major landslide that dammed the Columbia River near present-day Cascade Locks, Oregon in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. The river eventually breached the br ...
, which created the
Bridge of the Gods and
Cascade Rapids The topography of the landslide complex is uneven with roughly rolling hills and abrupt slopes. The whole area is inclined south toward and beyond the Columbia River. There may have been a
cinder cone
A cinder cone (or scoria cone) is a steep conical hill of loose pyroclastic fragments, such as volcanic clinkers, volcanic ash, or scoria that has been built around a volcanic vent. The pyroclastic fragments are formed by explosive eruptions o ...
between Greenleaf Peak and Table Mountain which collapsed during the Bonneville Slide.
[
]
The propensity of the area south of Greenleaf Peak and Table Mountain to collapse in landslides is due to the Eagle Creek formation. The rocks of the formation cover approximately of the Columbia River Gorge east of Cape Horn and consist of a mixture of past landslides, volcanic mud flows and ash falls. The formation is topped with basalt. Water can percolate through the basalt and saturate the Eagle Creek formation. In places where the formation is relatively close to the surface and inclined downslope, such as near Greenleaf Peak and Table Mountain, water saturation can cause the formation's material to slide away, carrying the overlying basalt with it.[
Between Greenleaf Peak and Table Mountain, and above the Red Bluffs, lies Greenleaf Basin. The basin averages in elevation and is covered with forested wetlands. Greenleaf Creek flows south through the basin before plunging as a waterfall over the Red Bluffs escarpment.
In the winter of 2007-2008, there was a large landslide on the south slope of Greenleaf Peak, in the state-owned Table Mountain Natural Resources Conservation Area. Some of a timbered rocky cliff slid, burying approximately of forest under rubble. The slide was estimated to be about wide and long.]
References
External links
* {{cite gnis, 1505285, Greenleaf Peak
Mountains of Washington (state)
Cascade Range
Mountains of Skamania County, Washington
Columbia River Gorge
Landslides in the United States