The deep canyon below White River Glacier is the product of fire and ice. Volcanic eruptions, bulldozing glaciers, and lahars have created a raw and dynamic landscape on the southeast slope of Mount Hood. How fast is the landscape changing? Glacial moraines, often used to indicate past glacial extents, are heavily eroded or completely absent. Repeat historical photographs offer a view to how the canyon and the glacier has changed over the past 120 years.
Harry F. Reid took two photographs from either side of the White River Glacier in 1901. These photos have the potential to assist with mapping the historical glacier perimeter but finding the location of the eastern photograph, frame 983, had vexed me during two previous visits. The photograph features the glacier terminus as viewed from the east with the top of the mountain obscured by clouds. In the foreground are two tree stumps, likely remnants of the ghost forest that formed by the Old Maid eruption in the late-1700s. The typical visual cues to align foreground with background elements were unavailable. After my second search for the photo location I returned from the field feeling a bit defeated. I later reviewed a map I had made of all the other locations that Reid had photographed during his 1901 trip. I knew frame 983 was across the canyon from frame 984 and I assumed the tree stumps in the image forced the location to be on the ridge above the canyon. Where would Reid set up his tripod? Reid had purposefully set stations on either side of the glacier terminus at Coe, Eliot, and Newton-Clark glaciers. “Ah-ha!”... a small hill in the middle of the canyon looked like a good candidate. A few minutes in Google Earth confirmed my suspicion. I recorded my best estimate and headed out the following weekend in search of the location.
Dropping into the loose sand of White River canyon is intimidating. Near constant rockfall in the canyon echoes followed by plumes of dust. Today seemed particularly dusty as an easy wind pushed hard against the canyon walls. Once immersed into the canyon, the floor becomes a lunar landscape. As I approached the top of the small hill in the middle of the canyon, I began the internal rollercoaster of anticipation. Where were the tree stumps? A quick recon revealed portions of the tree stumps on the slope below. Finally, I could tell I was standing where Reid had 117 years prior and the canyon looked very differently.
Harry F. Reid took two photographs from either side of the White River Glacier in 1901. These photos have the potential to assist with mapping the historical glacier perimeter but finding the location of the eastern photograph, frame 983, had vexed me during two previous visits. The photograph features the glacier terminus as viewed from the east with the top of the mountain obscured by clouds. In the foreground are two tree stumps, likely remnants of the ghost forest that formed by the Old Maid eruption in the late-1700s. The typical visual cues to align foreground with background elements were unavailable. After my second search for the photo location I returned from the field feeling a bit defeated. I later reviewed a map I had made of all the other locations that Reid had photographed during his 1901 trip. I knew frame 983 was across the canyon from frame 984 and I assumed the tree stumps in the image forced the location to be on the ridge above the canyon. Where would Reid set up his tripod? Reid had purposefully set stations on either side of the glacier terminus at Coe, Eliot, and Newton-Clark glaciers. “Ah-ha!”... a small hill in the middle of the canyon looked like a good candidate. A few minutes in Google Earth confirmed my suspicion. I recorded my best estimate and headed out the following weekend in search of the location.
Dropping into the loose sand of White River canyon is intimidating. Near constant rockfall in the canyon echoes followed by plumes of dust. Today seemed particularly dusty as an easy wind pushed hard against the canyon walls. Once immersed into the canyon, the floor becomes a lunar landscape. As I approached the top of the small hill in the middle of the canyon, I began the internal rollercoaster of anticipation. Where were the tree stumps? A quick recon revealed portions of the tree stumps on the slope below. Finally, I could tell I was standing where Reid had 117 years prior and the canyon looked very differently.
The glacier today is obviously much smaller in extent. Additionally large masses of land have been eroded away. Below is annotated image with the 1901 glacier boundary and ridges outlined for direct comparison. The next step is transfer the glacier perimeter to modern maps to quantify the area lost over the past century.