Mount Scott
Mount Scott (8,926), once dominated by Mt. Mazama, is now the highest
peak within the park. Before Mt. Mazama collapsed, crating the
Crater Lake basin, eruptions burst from its sides, forming numerous
volcanic cones. The largest of these, now partially destroyed, is Mt. Scott.
This mountain is gradually surrendering in its struggle with the elements.
The face toward you shows the deep scar of past encounters.
The large sloping basin in this face is a cirque in the making, a result
of erosion by water and ice.
Water from a blanket of granular snow penetrated the underlying
rock and froze. Expanding as it froze, the water split off rock fragments
which moved gradually downslope - and the cirque was begun.
A glacier probably helped to enlarge the depression by carrying away
the debris.
The building on the peak is a fire lookout tower which you may
reach by way of the 2.5 mile trail starting near the road junction below
here. Hardy whitebark pines can be seen as you climb to the summit,
their gnarled shapes offering dramatic evidence of the severe
weather conditions which they and the mountain endure.
