page_title: Oregon Coast Range
section_title: Climate
hierarchical_section_title: Oregon Coast Range / Climate
caption_attribution_description: South Saddle Mountain with snow from en:Hillsboro, Oregon.
context_page_description: The Oregon Coast Range, often called simply the Coast Range and sometimes the Pacific Coast Range, is a mountain range, in the Pacific Coast Ranges physiographic region, in the U.S. state of Oregon along the Pacific Ocean. This north-south running range extends over 200 miles from the Columbia River in the north on the border of Oregon and Washington, south to the middle fork of the Coquille River. It is 30 to 60 miles wide and averages around 1,500 feet in elevation above sea level. The coast range has three main sections, a Northern, Central, and Southern.
  The oldest portions of the range are over 60 million years old, with volcanics and a forearc basin as the primary mountain building processes responsible for the range. It is part of the larger grouping known as the Pacific Coast Ranges that extends over much of the western edge of North America from California to Alaska. The range creates a rain shadow effect for the Willamette Valley that lies to the east of the mountains, creating a more stable climate and significantly less rain than the coastal region of the state.
context_section_description: A mild maritime climate prevails throughout the range with temperature and precipitation varying due to elevation and distance from the coastline. Characteristic of the climate include cool dry summers followed by mild and wet winters. The majority of precipitation accumulates in the form of rain, with snow during the winter months at the higher elevations, but no permanent snow pack. Annual precipitation differs from 60 inches (1,500 mm) in some parts to up to 120 inches (3,000 mm), with the higher amounts coming in the higher elevations. The average high temperature in January is 36.3 °F (2.4 °C), and the average high in July is 61.9 °F (16.6 °C) with temperatures also varying by elevation. The further inland and the more southerly portions have a more Mediterranean climate that is more similar to the climate of the Willamette Valley. The Coast Range creates a rain shadow effect by forcing moisture laden clouds to rise by expelling moisture. This shields the Willamette Valley and causes a less maritime climate with hotter summers and less precipitation than the Oregon Coast.
caption: Snow on South Saddle Mountain
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