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West Crater

Photo of this volcano
  • Country
  • Primary Volcano Type
  • Last Known Eruption
  •  
  • 45.88°N
  • 122.08°W

  • 1329 m
    4360 ft

  • 321060
  • Latitude
  • Longitude

  • Summit
    Elevation

  • Volcano
    Number

The Global Volcanism Program has no activity reports for West Crater.

The Global Volcanism Program has no Weekly Reports available for West Crater.

The Global Volcanism Program has no Bulletin Reports available for West Crater.

This compilation of synonyms and subsidiary features may not be comprehensive. Features are organized into four major categories: Cones, Craters, Domes, and Thermal Features. Synonyms of features appear indented below the primary name. In some cases additional feature type, elevation, or location details are provided.

Eruptive History

There is data available for 2 confirmed Holocene eruptive periods.

5750 BCE (?) Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 2 (?)

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode Bare Mountain
5750 BCE (?) - Unknown Evidence from Isotopic: 14C (uncalibrated)

List of 4 Events for Episode 1 at Bare Mountain

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion
   - - - -    - - - - Phreatic activity
   - - - -    - - - - Scoria
5750 BCE
(?)
   - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)

6110 BCE (?) Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 2 (?)

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode West Crater, Hackamore Creek cone
6110 BCE (?) - Unknown Evidence from Isotopic: 14C (uncalibrated)

List of 5 Events for Episode 1 at West Crater, Hackamore Creek cone

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion
   - - - -    - - - - Lava flow
   - - - -    - - - - Cinder Cone
   - - - -    - - - - Tephra
6110 BCE
(?)
   - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)
Deformation History

There is no Deformation History data available for West Crater.

Emission History

There is no Emissions History data available for West Crater.

Photo Gallery

The valley floor in the foreground of this area of extensive logging SE of Mount St. Helens, in the distance, is covered by lava flows from West Crater and the Hackamore Creek scoria cone just NW of West Crater. Carbon fragments from a black tephra deposit produced by the Hackamore Creek scoria cone were dated to about 8,000 years.

Photo by Lee Siebert, 1995 (Smithsonian Institution).
The forest-covered Bare Mountain crater in the foreground is 400 m wide and 275 m deep. It formed about 7,700 years ago during the youngest volcanic eruption in the West Crater volcanic field. West Crater itself is visible 4 km to the south to the extreme right side of the photo. The Bare Mountain phreatic crater formed in older Tertiary volcanic rocks, and unlike other Holocene eruptions in the West Crater area, was not accompanied by lava flows.

Photo by Lee Siebert, 1995 (Smithsonian Institution).
Trout Creek Hill, a small Quaternary shield volcano in the West Crater volcanic field, is seen here from the NW with Mount Hood across the Columbia River in Oregon in the background. Lava flows from Trout Creek Hill traveled 13 km to the SE, reaching the Columbia River.

Photo by Lee Siebert, 1995 (Smithsonian Institution).
The large partially forested lava flow in the foreground originated from West Crater, out of view to the right, about 8,000 years ago. The blocky andesite flow traveled about 4.5 km to the SE, seen here about 2 km from the vent. In addition to this eastern flow, another lava flow traveled to the NW down the Hackamore Creek drainage. West Crater is a lava dome with a 200-m-wide summit crater and is on a topographic divide in southern Gifford Pinchot National Forest.

Photo by Lee Siebert, 2002 (Smithsonian Institution).
West Crater is a Quaternary volcanic field in the southern Cascades of Washington between Mount St. Helens and Mount Hood. West Crater itself, seen here from the NE, is an andesite lava dome with two small lava flows, one of which forms the bare area in the center. The 290-m-high dome formed about 8,000 years ago on the floor of a cirque carved into older Tertiary volcanic rocks. The West Crater volcanic field consists of a series of small shield volcanoes and scoria cones along a NW-SE zone.

Photo by Lee Siebert, 2002 (Smithsonian Institution).
GVP Map Holdings

The maps shown below have been scanned from the GVP map archives and include the volcano on this page. Clicking on the small images will load the full 300 dpi map. Very small-scale maps (such as world maps) are not included. The maps database originated over 30 years ago, but was only recently updated and connected to our main database. We welcome users to tell us if they see incorrect information or other problems with the maps; please use the Contact GVP link at the bottom of the page to send us email.

Smithsonian Sample Collections Database

The following 2 samples associated with this volcano can be found in the Smithsonian's NMNH Department of Mineral Sciences collections, and may be availble for research (contact the Rock and Ore Collections Manager). Catalog number links will open a window with more information.

Catalog Number Sample Description Lava Source Collection Date
NMNH 117652-38 Basalt Bare Mountain --
NMNH 117652-39 Basalt Bare Mountain --
External Sites