Mount Norwottuck
Encyclopedia
Mount Norwottuck, 1106 feet (337.1 m) feet above sea level, is the highest peak of the Holyoke Range
of traprock mountains located in the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts
and part of the greater Metacomet Ridge
which stretches from Long Island Sound
to nearly the Vermont
border. The peak rises steeply from the valley 1000 feet (304.8 m) below and offers sweeping views of the surrounding countryside. It is located within the towns of Amherst
and Granby, Massachusetts
. From Mount Norwottuck, the ridgeline of the Holyoke Range continues east as Long Mountain
and west as Bare Mountain
.
with a colorful history. Hitchcock coined the term "Scenographical Geology" in 1841 to describe the dramatic geologic landscape of the Holyoke Range. Originally called Hilliard Knob, Hitchcock applied the Native American name Norwottuck to the mountain. Norwottuck is the Indian name of the village of Hadley. Hitchcock is also famous for suggesting that local dinosaur
tracks discovered in the Triassic
sediments near the range had been produced by an ancient species of bird (the relationship between modern bird
s and prehistoric dinosaurs would not be established by scientists until the latter half of the 20th century). A summit of the Holyoke Range to the west of Mount Norwottuck is named after Hitchcock.
Many miles of hiking trails cross Mount Norwottuck including the 110 miles (177 km) Metacomet-Monadnock Trail
and the 47 miles (75.6 km) Robert Frost Trail
. Sweeping views of the Pioneer Valley
to the north and the University of Massachusetts, Amherst campus can be had from various open ledges on the mountain. A lower, eastern ridge known as Rattlesnake Knob, 813 feet (247.8 m), also offers ledgetop views. The Horse Caves
, believed to have been used as a bivouac by rebels during Shays' Rebellion
, are a series of sedimentary rock overhangs located beneath the summit of Norwottuck. Most of Mount Norwottuck has been conserved as part of the Mount Holyoke Range State Park
; local conservations commissions and private land holders own the remaining acreage.
, also called traprock, a volcanic rock. The mountain formed near the end of the Triassic Period with the rifting apart of the North America
n continent 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 Mount Norwottuck. 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.
Holyoke Range
The Holyoke Range or Mount Holyoke Range is a traprock mountain range located in the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts. It is a sub-range of the narrow, linear Metacomet Ridge that extends from Long Island Sound near New Haven, Connecticut north through the Connecticut River Valley of...
of traprock mountains located in the Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
and part of the greater Metacomet Ridge
Metacomet Ridge
The Metacomet Ridge, Metacomet Ridge Mountains, or Metacomet Range of southern New England, United States, is a narrow and steep fault-block mountain ridge known for its extensive cliff faces, scenic vistas, microclimate ecosystems, and communities of plants considered rare or endangered...
which stretches from Long Island Sound
Long Island Sound
Long Island Sound is an estuary of the Atlantic Ocean, located in the United States between Connecticut to the north and Long Island, New York to the south. The mouth of the Connecticut River at Old Saybrook, Connecticut, empties into the sound. On its western end the sound is bounded by the Bronx...
to nearly the Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
border. The peak rises steeply from the valley 1000 feet (304.8 m) below and offers sweeping views of the surrounding countryside. It is located within the towns of Amherst
Amherst, Massachusetts
Amherst is a town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States in the Connecticut River valley. As of the 2010 census, the population was 37,819, making it the largest community in Hampshire County . The town is home to Amherst College, Hampshire College, and the University of Massachusetts...
and Granby, Massachusetts
Granby, Massachusetts
Granby is a town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 6,420 at the 2010 census.It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area.Part of the town is comprised in the census-designated place of Granby....
. From Mount Norwottuck, the ridgeline of the Holyoke Range continues east as Long Mountain
Long Mountain (Hampshire County, Massachusetts)
Long Mountain, feet above sea level, is a traprock mountain of the Holyoke Range, part of the greater Metacomet Ridge which stretches from Long Island Sound to nearly the Vermont border. The mountain rises steeply from the surrounding landscape below and consists of five distinct peaks, from east...
and west as Bare Mountain
Bare Mountain (Massachusetts)
Bare Mountain, 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...
.
Description and history
Mount Norwottuck received its name from Edward Hitchcock, a former professor of geology at Amherst CollegeAmherst College
Amherst College is a private liberal arts college located in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. Amherst is an exclusively undergraduate four-year institution and enrolled 1,744 students in the fall of 2009...
with a colorful history. Hitchcock coined the term "Scenographical Geology" in 1841 to describe the dramatic geologic landscape of the Holyoke Range. Originally called Hilliard Knob, Hitchcock applied the Native American name Norwottuck to the mountain. Norwottuck is the Indian name of the village of Hadley. Hitchcock is also famous for suggesting that local dinosaur
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
tracks discovered in the Triassic
Triassic
The Triassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about 250 to 200 Mya . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic. Both the start and end of the Triassic are marked by major extinction events...
sediments near the range had been produced by an ancient species of bird (the relationship between modern bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s and prehistoric dinosaurs would not be established by scientists until the latter half of the 20th century). A summit of the Holyoke Range to the west of Mount Norwottuck is named after Hitchcock.
Many miles of hiking trails cross Mount Norwottuck including the 110 miles (177 km) Metacomet-Monadnock Trail
Metacomet-Monadnock Trail
The Metacomet-Monadnock Trail is a hiking trail that traverses the Metacomet Ridge of the Pioneer Valley region of Massachusetts and the central uplands of Massachusetts and southern New Hampshire...
and the 47 miles (75.6 km) Robert Frost Trail
Robert Frost Trail (Massachusetts)
The Robert Frost Trail is a long footpath that passes through the eastern Connecticut River Valley of Massachusetts. The trail runs from the Connecticut River in South Hadley, Massachusetts to Ruggles Pond in Wendell State Forest, through both Hampshire and Franklin County and includes a number of...
. Sweeping views of the Pioneer Valley
Pioneer Valley
The Pioneer Valley is the colloquial name for the U.S. Commonwealth of Massachusetts's portion of the Connecticut River Valley. The Pioneer Valley consists of three counties in Massachusetts which collectively feature much of New England's most fertile farmland...
to the north and the University of Massachusetts, Amherst campus can be had from various open ledges on the mountain. A lower, eastern ridge known as Rattlesnake Knob, 813 feet (247.8 m), also offers ledgetop views. The Horse Caves
Horse Caves
The Horse Caves of Amherst, Massachusetts are a geological feature in the southern part of the town of Amherst, on the slope of Mount Norwottuck....
, believed to have been used as a bivouac by rebels during Shays' Rebellion
Shays' Rebellion
Shays' Rebellion was an armed uprising in central and western Massachusetts from 1786 to 1787. The rebellion is named after Daniel Shays, a veteran of the American Revolutionary War....
, are a series of sedimentary rock overhangs located beneath the summit of Norwottuck. Most of Mount Norwottuck has been conserved as part of the Mount Holyoke Range State Park
Mount Holyoke Range State Park
The Mount Hoyoke Range State Park of the Pioneer Valley region of Massachusetts, encompasses the eastern half of the Holyoke Range to traprock mountains. The park is managed by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation...
; local conservations commissions and private land holders own the remaining acreage.
Geology and ecology
Mount Norwottock, like much of the Metacomet Ridge, is composed of basaltBasalt
Basalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
, also called traprock, a volcanic rock. The mountain formed near the end of the Triassic Period with the rifting apart of the North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
n continent from Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
and Eurasia
Eurasia
Eurasia is a continent or supercontinent comprising the traditional continents of Europe and Asia ; covering about 52,990,000 km2 or about 10.6% of the Earth's surface located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres...
. Lava
Lava
Lava refers both to molten rock expelled by a volcano during an eruption and the resulting rock after solidification and cooling. This molten rock is formed in the interior of some planets, including Earth, and some of their satellites. When first erupted from a volcanic vent, lava is a liquid at...
welled up from the rift and solidified into sheets of strata hundreds of feet thick. Subsequent faulting and earthquake
Earthquake
An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...
activity tilted the strata, creating the dramatic cliffs and ridges of Mount Norwottuck. Hot, dry upper slopes, cool, moist ravines, and mineral-rich ledges of basalt talus
Scree
Scree, also called talus, is a term given to an accumulation of broken rock fragments at the base of crags, mountain cliffs, or valley shoulders. Landforms associated with these materials are sometimes called scree slopes or talus piles...
produce a combination of microclimate
Microclimate
A microclimate is a local atmospheric zone where the climate differs from the surrounding area. The term may refer to areas as small as a few square feet or as large as many square miles...
ecosystems on the mountain that support plant and animal species uncommon in greater Massachusetts.
External links
- J.A. Skinner State Park Map
- Mount Holyoke Range State Park map
- Hampshire College mountain biking map of the Holyoke Range
- Berkshire Chapter of the Appalachian Mountain Club
- The Kestrel Trust
- The Valley Land Fund
- Friends of the Mount Holyoke Range
- Natural resource assessment of the Metacomet Ridge
- Geology of the northern Metacomet Ridge region
- State website for Skinner State Park
