Dead Mountains

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.

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
PeakMount Manchester
Elevation1,097 m (3,599 ft)
Dimensions
Length11 mi (18 km) N-S
Width5 mi (8.0 km) E-W-(widest at north)
Geography
Location of the Dead Mountains in California [1]
CountryUnited States
StateCalifornia
Region(southeast)-Mojave Desert
(Lower Colorado River Valley)
DistrictSan Bernardino County
SettlementNeedles, CA–Mohave Valley, AZ
Range coordinates35°01′40″N 114°44′56″W
Borders onNewberry Mountains (Nevada)-N
Piute Valley & Wash-W & S
Colorado River-E
Interstate 40 in California-S
Topo mapUSGS Mount Manchester

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 as part of the California Desert Protection Act of 1994.[3] They are maintained by the Bureau of Land Management.[4] The vegetation is mostly creosote bush and desert wash scrub. The California Desert Conservation Area[5] 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.[6][7]

See also
  • Category: Flora of the California desert regions
  • Category: Mountain ranges of the Mojave Desert
  • Category: Protected areas of the Mojave Desert

References
  1. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Dead Mountains
  2. "USA.gov. California Desert District". Archived from the original on 2009-03-05. Retrieved 2009-03-08.
  3. "S.21 - 103rd Congress (1993-1994): California Desert Protection Act of 1994". The Library of Congress. 31 October 1994. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
  4. "Dead Mountains Wilderness". Archived from the original on 2010-06-12. Retrieved 2009-03-11.
  5. Bureau of Land Management Archived 2014-11-29 at the Wayback Machine
  6. "Dead Mountains wilderness fauna". Archived from the original on 2009-03-05. Retrieved 2009-03-08.
  7. Synopsis of conservation information on the desert tortoise
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