Benson Glacier

Benson Glacier, high on the northeastern slopes of Glacier Peak in Oregon’s Wallowa Mountains, was the last active glacier in the range before becoming a stagnant ice mass. Named in 1914 for former Oregon governor Frank W. Benson, it remained active into the 1980s despite shrinking to about 0.016 square kilometers. Its importance lies in being the final remnant of the far larger Wallowa Glacier, which during the Last Glacial Maximum stretched about 20 miles and reached an estimated 2,000 feet thick in places. That older ice shaped the region, leaving moraines that helped form Wallowa Lake and carving the valley now followed by the West Fork of the Wallowa River.

Wallowa Lake, Oregon · United States