Sutton Mountain towers above the surrounding landscape near Mitchell, and the John Day River, which winds around its base.  This rugged mountain displays dramatic cliffs of 16 million year- old volcanic basalt and deposits of ancient volcanic ash.  Hikers can access Sutton’s vast, flat top via a number of steep drainages which have cut into the mountain, or from Carroll Rim, on the mountain’s southeast side.

After a land exchange helped consolidate public lands, Sutton Mountain was designated a Wilderness Study Area (WSA), along with neighboring Pat’s Cabin WSA, which is separated from Sutton by the Bridge Creek road.  In 1996, the BLM recommended Sutton Mountain’s 29,536 acres for future wilderness designation.  Sutton Mountain offers a diverse array of habitats for wildlife, from slopes covered by Idaho fescue and bluebunch wheatgrass to stands of old-growth ponderosa pine and Douglas fir trees.  The mountain is home to large herds of elk and deer, and a variety of bird species.

In 2001, ONDA appealed the BLM’s management plan for the area, in an effort to protect resources from negative effects of livestock grazing.  Most of Sutton has not been grazed in more than ten years, and the results are impressive.  The mountain is now covered with native bunchgrass and wildflowers such as Simpson’s pediocactus and world thelypody, which can be found only in Oregon’s high desert.   ONDA has requested that the BLM permanently remove livestock grazing from this special area, and we will continue work to keep Sutton Mountain wild and free from livestock grazing.