Nature
Powell Buttes are five isolated buttes in western Crook County, Central Oregon, rising to more than 5,200 feet and linked geologically to the Ochoco Mountains. Made mainly of rhyolite, with tuff and diatomite, they preserve evidence of the Crooked River caldera. The dry interior landscape supports juniper, sagebrush, wildflowers, and diverse wildlife including eagles, deer, coyotes, bobcats, mountain lions, and rattlesnakes. Their name recalls the Joseph Powell family, early pioneers in the region. Protected land was established there in 1989 and reaffirmed in 2005, while agricultural research at an Oregon State University farm operated from 1986 to 2018 before shifting elsewhere.
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Oregon · United States
