Mount Hood : Ask Biography

Mountain information

Name

Mount Hood

Elevation

11249 ft (3428.7 m)

Prominence

7706 ft (2348.8 m)

Listing

Ultra
U.S. state high point

Location

Clackamas / Hood River counties, Oregon, USA

Range

Cascade Range

Region

US-OR

Source

ngs

Type

Stratovolcano

Age

More than 500,000 years

Volcanic_Arc/Belt

Cascade Volcanic Arc

Last eruption

1866

First ascent

1857-07-11 by Henry Pittock, W. Lymen Chittenden, Wilbur Cornell, and the Rev. T.A. Wood

Easiest route

Rock and glacier climb

Home | Mountain | Mount Hood

Mount Hood, called Wy'east by the Multnomah tribe, is a stratovolcano in the Cascade Volcanic Arc of northern Oregon. It was formed by a subduction zone and rests in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located about 50 miles (80 km) east-southeast of Portland, on the border between Clackamas and Hood River counties.

The height assigned to Mount Hood's snow-covered peak has varied over its history. Modern sources point to three different heights: 11249 ft (3428.7 m) based on the 1991 U.S. National Geodetic Survey, 11240 ft (3426 m) based on a 1993 scientific expedition, and 11239 ft (3425.6 m) of slightly older origin. The peak is home to twelve glaciers. It is the highest point in Oregon and the fourth-highest in the Cascade Range.

Mount Hood is considered the Oregon volcano most likely to erupt,

though based on its history, an explosive eruption is unlikely. Still, the odds of an eruption in the next 30 years are estimated at between 3 and 7 percent,

so the USGS characterizes it as "potentially active", but the mountain is informally considered dormant.