Bare Mountain (Massachusetts)

:"Alternate spelling: should not be confused with Bear Mountain"'."

Infobox Mountain
Name = Bare Mountain (Massachusetts)
Photo = Bare Mountain - Mount Holyoke Range.jpg
Caption = View from the summit of Bare Mountain
Elevation_ft = 1014
Location = Amherst and South Hadley, Massachusetts.
Range = Holyoke Range / Metacomet Ridge
Prominence =
Parent_peak = 42° 18' 11"N, 72° 31' 48
Coordinates = coord|42|18|11|N|72|31|48|W |type:mountain_region:US |display=title,inline
Topographic

Type = Fault-block; igneous
Volcanic_Arc/Belt=
Age = 200 Ma
Last eruption =
First ascent =
Easiest route = Metacomet-Monadnock Trail
Grid_ref_UK =
Grid_ref_Ireland =
Listing =
Translation =
Language =
Pronunciation = Bare Mountain, convert|1014|ft|m|0|lk=on above sea level, is a prominent peak of the Holyoke Range of traprock mountains located in the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts, and part of the greater Metacomet Ridge that stretches from Long Island Sound to nearly the Vermont border. The peak rises steeply from the river valley convert|1000|ft below; its bald summit offers sweeping views. Bare Mountain is located within the towns of Amherst and South Hadley, Massachusetts and is traversed by the convert|110|mi|adj=on Metacomet-Monadnock Trail.

Description and history

A hiking destination popular among local college students, Bare Mountain offers a 270° vista over the surrounding valleys to the north and south, and a bird's eye view across Mount Norwottuck and the eastern peaks of the Holyoke Range. Also visible from the top are the Round Mountain quarry and the campus of the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. A prime example of a basalt talus slope is located on the east side of the mountain, along the Metacomet-Monadnock Trail.

The Five Colleges Library Depository is located on the north side of the mountain, within a bunker formerly occupied by the United States Air Force Strategic Air Command.

Geology and ecology

Bare Mountain, like much of the Metacomet Ridge, is composed of basalt, also called traprock, a volcanic rock. The mountain formed near the end of the Triassic Period when North America was rifting apart from Africa and Eurasia. Lava welled up from the rift and solidified into sheets of strata hundreds of feet thick. Subsequent faulting and earthquake activity tilted the strata, creating the dramatic cliffs and ridges of Bare Mountain. Hot, dry upper slopes, cool, moist ravines, and mineral-rich ledges of basalt talus produce a combination of microclimate ecosystems on the mountain that support plant and animal species uncommon in greater Massachusetts. (See Metacomet Ridge for more information on the geology and ecosystem of Bare Mountain] .-

ee also

* Bare Mountain is also the name of several other mountains in the United States.
* Should not be confused with "Bear" Mountain, the name of more than 70 peaks in the United States alone, including two in Massachusetts.
*Metacomet Ridge
*Robert Frost Trail (Massachusetts)
*Metacomet-Monadnock Trail
* Adjacent summits:

References

* Farnsworth, Elizabeth J. [http://www.mmmtrail.org/NaturalResourcesAssessmentFinal.pdf "Metacomet-Mattabesett Trail Natural Resource Assessment."] 2004. PDF file. Cited Nov. 20, 2007.
* " [http://www.amherst.edu/library/friends/chronology.html Amherst College Library Chronology] ". Cited from web Dec. 2, 2007.
*"The Metacomet-Monadnock Trail Guide". 9th Edition. The Appalachian Mountain Club. Amherst, Massachusetts, 1999.
* [http://www.chronos-historical.org/mtholyoke/ "Mt. Holyoke Range Historical Timeline"] . Cited from web Dec. 2, 2007.
*Raymo, Chet and Maureen E. Written in Stone: A Geologic History of the Northeastern United States. Globe Pequot, Chester, Connecticut, 1989.

External links

* [http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/trails/Skinner.gifJ.A. Skinner State Park Map]
* [http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/trails/Holyoke.gifMount Holyoke Range State Park map]
* [http://www.hampshire.edu/cms_html/Holyoke_Range.htm Hampshire College mountain biking map of the Holyoke Range]
* [http://amcberkshire.org/trails/mmtrail Bershire Chapter of the Appalachian Mountain Club]
* [http://www.kestreltrust.org/ The Kestrel Trust]
* [http://www.valleylandfund.org/ The Valley Land Fund]
* [http://www.fomhr.org/ Friends of the Mount Holyoke Range]
* [http://www.mmmtrail.org/NaturalResourcesAssessmentFinal.pdf Natural resource assessment of the Metacomet Ridge]
* [http://www.sunstar-solutions.com/sunstar/geology/Olsen92/NEIGC84.htm Geology of the northern Metacomet Ridge region]
* [http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/central/skin.htm State website for Skinner State Park]