Glass Buttes are a group of volcanic mountains made up of two prominent peaks and several smaller hills. They are located in the remote northeast corner of Lake County between Bend and Burns in central Oregon, United States. Raising high above the high desert plain, the buttes are an important landmark in an area once known as the Oregon's Great Sandy Desert. The buttes are named for the numerous large deposits of obsidian found on their slopes. Today, most of the mountains and surrounding land are administered by the Bureau of Land Management. The mountains offer a number of recreational opportunities including rock collecting, hiking, camping, and hunting.
Geography and geology Glass Buttes are located in Oregon's high desert in the northeast corner of Lake County, approximately 70 miles (110 km) southeast of Bend and 50 miles (80 km) west of Burns. The nearest settlement is the small unincorporated community of Hampton, Oregon, located 10 miles (16 km) northwest of the buttes. Glass Buttes include two prominent peaks and a number of adjacent hills. The highest point in the Glass Buttes complex is known as Glass Butte. Its elevation is 6,388 feet (1,947 m) above sea level. The buttes are steep with a number of massive basalt outcroppings scatter along the slopes. There is a secondary peak southeast of the main summit called Little Glass Butte that has an elevation of 6,155 feet (1,876 m). The buttes are a major landmark, rising well above the surrounding high desert plain with a topographic prominence of approximately 2,000 feet (610 m). Glass Buttes were formed approximately 5 to 5.8 million years ago during the late Miocene and Pliocene epochs. The mountains are remnants of ancient silicic volcanoes that have been worn down by erosion. They were formed during three lava flow periods. The foundation flows were basalt. They were followed by rhyolitic lava flows which were in turn covered by a second series of basalt flows from local vents. The primary rock that makes up the mountains is rhyolite which in some areas has been mineralized by geothermal forces. Deposits of cinnabar, alunite, hematite, hyalite, and pyrite are also found in certain areas.
Environment and ecology Glass Buttes are part of Oregon's high desert environment. The area around the buttes is extremely arid with little or no natural surface water most of the year. In fact, Glass Buttes are a major landmark in the middle of what was once known as Oregon's Great Sandy Desert. The ground cover on the mountain slopes is primarily sagebrush, green rabbitbrush, mountain mahogany, Idaho fescue, and bluebunch wheatgrass. However, on the north and west facing slopes and in some canyon areas there are dispersed western juniper trees and some pine groves with an understory dominated by sagebrush and mountain mahogany. There are also willows in some seasonal drainage areas. Glass Buttes and the surrounding area host a variety of wildlife. Larger mammals found in the area include pronghorn, mule deer, elk, coyotes, bobcats, and cougars. Smaller mammals include American badgers, striped skunks, black-tailed jackrabbits, white-tailed jackrabbits, pygmy rabbits, Belding's ground squirrels, golden-mantled ground squirrels, least chipmunks, Ord's kangaroo rats, canyon mice, deer mice, and northern grasshopper mice. Rattlesnakes and several lizard species are also common in the area around Glass Buttes. Birds common to the area around Glass Buttes include sagebrush sparrow, lark sparrow, Brewer's sparrow, mountain bluebird, green-tailed towhee, sage thrasher, Brewer's blackbird, and black-billed magpie. The Glass Buttes area is also prime habitat for greater sage-grouse. Larger birds found in the area include barn owls, great horned owls, prairie falcons, red-tailed hawks, turkey vultures, and golden eagles.
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