1984 Map of Alkali Buttes

About this map

Alkali Valley dominates this high desert landscape in Lake County, Oregon, revealing a terrain defined by arid basins and prominent volcanic outcrops. At the southern end of the sheet, the Alkali Buttes rise sharply above the valley floor, providing a stark vertical contrast to the sprawling Sand Dunes that shift across the eastern flats. Water is a scarce and vital resource here, marked primarily by the presence of North Alkali Lake and human-made infrastructure like the Three Corners Well. The map captures a moment in the early 1980s when the region remained largely undeveloped, characterized by a grid of township and range lines that slice through the open basin. This survey serves as a clear record of the geological and hydraulic features of a remote Oregon playa before modern environmental changes.