Dead Mountains

This article is about the mountain range in California. For the mountain range in Austria, see Totes Gebirge.
Dead Mountains

Seen from Needles Highway-(I-40)
Highest point
Peak Mount Manchester
Elevation 1,097 m (3,599 ft)
Dimensions
Length 11 mi (18 km) N-S
Width 5 mi (8.0 km) E-W-(widest at north)
Geography

Location of Dead Mountains in California [1]

Country United States
State California
Region (southeast)-Mojave Desert
(Lower Colorado River Valley)
District San Bernardino County
Settlement Needles, CA–Mohave Valley, AZ
Range coordinates 35°01′40″N 114°44′56″W / 35.0278°N 114.7489°W / 35.0278; -114.7489Coordinates: 35°01′40″N 114°44′56″W / 35.0278°N 114.7489°W / 35.0278; -114.7489
Borders on Newberry Mountains (Nevada)-N
Piute Valley & Wash-W & S
Colorado River-E
Interstate 40 in California-S
Topo map USGS Mount Manchester

The Dead Mountains are a mountain range in the southeastern Mojave Desert, in San Bernardino County, California.[1] The range borders the tri-state intersection of Nevada, Arizona and California, and the Mohave Valley, with the Fort Mojave Indian Reservation bordering the range foothills on the east and northeast, in the three states.

Geography

The Dead Mountains are 12 miles (19 km) northwest of Needles, California. They border the Colorado River on the east, and the Piute Wash of the Piute Valley on the west. Piute wash drains south, then turns east for 8 mi at the south of the range to meet the Colorado River.

Mount Manchester is the highest point at 3,598 feet (1,097 m).[2]

Dead Mountains Wilderness

The rust colored mountains, which cover 46,758 acres, were designated the Dead Mountains Wilderness in 1994 by the United States Congress. They are maintained by the Bureau of Land Management.[3] The vegetation is mostly creosote bush and desert wash scrub. The California Desert Conservation Area [4] is located within the wilderness and Smoke trees are found there.

The wildlife found on the mountains includes coyote, a small herd of bighorn sheep, rattlesnakes, falcons, hawks, eagles. A portion of the wilderness is critical habitat for the endangered Desert Tortoise.[5][6]

See also

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dead Mountains.
  1. 1 2 U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Dead Mountains
  2. ↑ USA.gov. California Desert District
  3. ↑ Dead Mountains Wilderness
  4. ↑ BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
  5. ↑ Dead Mountains wilderness fauna
  6. ↑ Synopsis of conservation information on the desert tortoise
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/19/2014. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.