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The Siskiyou Mountains are a Coastal Mountain Range in the northern Klamath Mountains in northwestern California and southwestern Oregon in the United States . They extend in an arc for approximately 100 mi (160 km) from east of Crescent City, California northeast along the north side of the Klamath River into Josephine and Jackson counties in Oregon. The mountain range forms a barrier between the Watershed s of the Klamath River to the south and the Rogue River to the north. The highest peaks in the range include Mt. Ashland (elevation 7,533 ft/2,296 m), Dutchman Peak (7,555 ft/2,303 m), and Siskiyou Peak (7,147 ft/2,178 m), all of which are in Oregon. The highest peak in California portion of the range is Preston Peak (7,309 ft/2,228 m). Oregon Caves National Monument is located in the northern part of the range south of Grants Pass, Oregon . The Red Buttes Wilderness protects part of the range on the Oregon side of the border. Much of the range is embraced by the Rogue River , Klamath , and Siskiyou national forests. The Pacific Crest Trail follows a portion of the ridge of the range. The Klamath-Siskiyou Forests are noted for their high Biodiversity . NAME ORIGINS The origin of the word ''siskiyou'' is not known. One version is that it is the Chinook Jargon word for "bob-tailed horse." Another version defined "Siskiyou" as a Cree Indian name for a particular type of bob-tailed racehorse, one of which perished in 1829-1830 on A. R. McLeod 's ill-fated journey over a pass later named for the "siskiyou." The Cree were in the area as part of McLeod's Hudson's Bay Company expedition, and had been recruited far away in their homeland in eastern Canada. Another version, given in an argument before the State Senate in 1852 , is that the French name ''Six Cailloux'', meaning "six-stones," was given to a ford on the Umpqua River by Michel La Frambeau and a party of Hudson's Bay Company company Trapper s in 1832 , because six large stones or rocks lay in the river where they crossed. According to some, the ''Six Cailloux'' name was appropriated to this region by Stephen Meek , another Hudson's Bay Company company trapper who was known for his "discovery" of Scott Valley , in regard to a crossing on the Klamath River near Hornbrook . Still others attribute the name to a local tribe of Native Americans . SISKIYOU PASS Interstate 5 passes through the Siskiyous at Siskiyou Pass, located just north of the Oregon/California border, and just south of Ashland, Oregon . This pass is one of most treacherous in the Interstate highway system. On the Oregon side of the pass (the side which is most hazardous), the freeway gains (loses) 2300 feet in altitude over a 7-mile stretch of freeway. In addition, the pass includes several hazardous curves, and is frequently hit with bad weather (including snow, ice, and fog) during winter storms. During winter, the highway is frequently closed by transportation authorities due to hazardous conditions. EXTERNAL LINKS |
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