Dome Rock Mountains
Encyclopedia
The Dome Rock Mountains are a regionally short mountain range
in southwestern Arizona in southern La Paz County
. The range borders the Colorado River
–(Blythe, CA
) on the west and also the southern section of the Colorado River Indian Reservation
on the northwest located in the Lower Colorado River Valley
. Quartzsite, Arizona
lies on the eastern foothills of the range.
The Dome Rock Mountains are on the southwest of the regional Maria fold and thrust belt
.
and the Palo Verde Valley border the range on the west, adjacent to the north-south flowing Colorado River
. Interstate 10
bisects the range connecting Blythe, CA
–Ehrenberg, AZ
on the Colorado River, with Quartzsite
at the east of the mountains; Quartzsite at the central, and east mountains, lies on the western edge of the north-south 75-mile (121-km) long La Posa Plain
which drains the western Kofa National Wildlife Refuge
, and various mountain ranges-(the Dome Rock, Trigo Mountains
, and Chocolate Mountains (Arizona)
west, and the Castle Dome
-Kofa Mountains
southeast). The Tyson Wash
Drainage flows north at the western perimeter of the La Posa Plain and turns westwards at the north end of the Dome Rock Mountains to meet the Colorado River region. The drainage does not connect to the river itself.
Cunningham Mountain at 3314 feet (1,010 m) is the highest peak of the Dome Rock Mountains located towards the south, and about 8 miles (13 km) south of Interstate 10
; in the north an unnamed peak rises to 2515 feet (767 m). Numerous mines and dry washes are located in this extreme desert
mountain range. The western mountain washes drain to the Imperial Reservoir
Drainage of the Colorado River, and the eastern washes drain into the La Posa Plain and its north-flowing Tyson Wash Drainage, entering again at the northern parts of the Imperial Reservoir Drainage; the twin end-point of the Bouse Wash
Drainage north does the same, at 15 miles (24 km) further.
.
Quartzsite lying in the east center of the range gives numerous access points. Quartzsite is famous for a rockhounding show because of its desert location for rock exploration, and the numerous regional mountain ranges. Ehrenberg to the west accesses areas of the western mountain flank.
A winter visitor destination site is located on the southeast of the range on the La Posa Plain
.
Mountain range
A mountain range is a single, large mass consisting of a succession of mountains or narrowly spaced mountain ridges, with or without peaks, closely related in position, direction, formation, and age; a component part of a mountain system or of a mountain chain...
in southwestern Arizona in southern La Paz County
La Paz County, Arizona
La Paz County is a county in the western part of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2010 census its population was 20,489. The county seat is Parker...
. The range borders the Colorado River
Colorado River
The Colorado River , is a river in the Southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, approximately long, draining a part of the arid regions on the western slope of the Rocky Mountains. The watershed of the Colorado River covers in parts of seven U.S. states and two Mexican states...
–(Blythe, CA
Blythe, California
Blythe is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, in the "Palo Verde Valley" of the Lower Colorado River Valley region, an agricultural area and part of the Colorado Desert along the Colorado River. Blythe was named after Thomas Blythe, a gold prospector who established primary...
) on the west and also the southern section of the Colorado River Indian Reservation
Colorado River Indian Reservation
The Colorado River Indian Reservation is 189 miles west of Phoenix, Arizona, on highway 95. It lies in western La Paz County, Arizona, southeastern San Bernardino County, California, and northeastern Riverside County, California. It has a total land area of 432.22 sq mi , and most of it lies...
on the northwest located in the Lower Colorado River Valley
Lower Colorado River Valley
The Lower Colorado River Valley is the river region of the lower Colorado River of the southwestern United States in North America that rises in the Rocky Mountains and has its outlet at the Colorado River Delta in the northern Sea of Cortez in northwestern Mexico, between the states of Baja...
. Quartzsite, Arizona
Quartzsite, Arizona
Quartzsite is a town in La Paz County, Arizona, United States. According to Census Bureau estimates, the population of the town was 3,397 in 2006.Interstate 10 runs directly through Quartzsite. It is at the intersection of U.S...
lies on the eastern foothills of the range.
The Dome Rock Mountains are on the southwest of the regional Maria fold and thrust belt
Maria Fold and Thrust Belt
The Maria fold and thrust belt is a portion of the North American Cordillera orogen in which geological structures accommodate roughly north-south to northwest-southeast vergent Mesozoic age crustal shortening. This lies in contrast to the remainder of the Cordillera, in which shortening is...
.
Range summary
The Dome Rock Mountains are a north-south trending range about 30 miles (48 km) long. Blythe, CaliforniaBlythe, California
Blythe is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, in the "Palo Verde Valley" of the Lower Colorado River Valley region, an agricultural area and part of the Colorado Desert along the Colorado River. Blythe was named after Thomas Blythe, a gold prospector who established primary...
and the Palo Verde Valley border the range on the west, adjacent to the north-south flowing Colorado River
Colorado River
The Colorado River , is a river in the Southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, approximately long, draining a part of the arid regions on the western slope of the Rocky Mountains. The watershed of the Colorado River covers in parts of seven U.S. states and two Mexican states...
. Interstate 10
Interstate 10 in Arizona
In the U.S. state of Arizona, Interstate 10, the major east–west Interstate Highway in the southern United States, runs east from California, enters Arizona and continues through Phoenix and Tucson and exits at the border with New Mexico.-Route description:...
bisects the range connecting Blythe, CA
Blythe, California
Blythe is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, in the "Palo Verde Valley" of the Lower Colorado River Valley region, an agricultural area and part of the Colorado Desert along the Colorado River. Blythe was named after Thomas Blythe, a gold prospector who established primary...
–Ehrenberg, AZ
Ehrenberg, Arizona
Ehrenberg, also historically spelled "Ehrenburg" is a census-designated place in La Paz County, Arizona, United States. The population was 1,357 at the 2000 census. Ehrenberg is named for Herman Ehrenberg ....
on the Colorado River, with Quartzsite
Quartzsite, Arizona
Quartzsite is a town in La Paz County, Arizona, United States. According to Census Bureau estimates, the population of the town was 3,397 in 2006.Interstate 10 runs directly through Quartzsite. It is at the intersection of U.S...
at the east of the mountains; Quartzsite at the central, and east mountains, lies on the western edge of the north-south 75-mile (121-km) long La Posa Plain
La Posa Plain
The La Posa Plain is a wide, generally flat plain in western Arizona near the Colorado River and is on the west and northwest border of the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge. The plain lies to the east of the Colorado River Indian Reservation and east of the Dome Rock and Trigo Mountains. Quartzsite,...
which drains the western Kofa National Wildlife Refuge
Kofa National Wildlife Refuge
The Kofa National Wildlife Refuge is located northeast of Yuma, Arizona, southeast of Quartzsite, Arizona, in the southwestern United States. The refuge, established in 1939 to protect Desert Bighorn Sheep, encompasses over of the Yuma Desert region of the Sonoran Desert...
, and various mountain ranges-(the Dome Rock, Trigo Mountains
Trigo Mountains
The Trigo Mountains is a north-south trending mountain range, bordering the Colorado River on the east in the Lower Colorado River Valley and lies north of the Colorado River as it turns east, north of Martinez Lake and the Imperial Reservoir...
, and Chocolate Mountains (Arizona)
Chocolate Mountains (Arizona)
The Chocolate Mountains of Arizona are located in the southwestern part of the state east of the Trigo Mountains and southwest of the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge. The mountains are located about 30 miles east of the Chocolate Mountains of California, but the two ranges are not connected. The...
west, and the Castle Dome
Castle Dome Mountains
The Castle Dome Mountains are a mountain range in Yuma County, Arizona, within the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge. Castle Dome peak, the high point of the range, is a prominent and distinctive landmark. The peak is high, and is located at . Castle Dome was named by American soldiers at old Fort...
-Kofa Mountains
Kofa Mountains
The Kofa Mountains is the central mountain range comprising the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge, about 60 miles northeast of Yuma, Arizona in the southwestern part of the state...
southeast). The Tyson Wash
Tyson Wash
Tyson Wash is one of the larger eastern-bank dry washes that enter the Colorado River in western Arizona. It drains the La Posa Plain south-to-north and is also coincident with the Plain, ....
Drainage flows north at the western perimeter of the La Posa Plain and turns westwards at the north end of the Dome Rock Mountains to meet the Colorado River region. The drainage does not connect to the river itself.
Cunningham Mountain at 3314 feet (1,010 m) is the highest peak of the Dome Rock Mountains located towards the south, and about 8 miles (13 km) south of Interstate 10
Interstate 10
Interstate 10 is the fourth-longest Interstate Highway in the United States, after I-90, I-80, and I-40. It is the southernmost east–west, coast-to-coast Interstate Highway, although I-4 and I-8 are further south. It stretches from the Pacific Ocean at State Route 1 in Santa Monica,...
; in the north an unnamed peak rises to 2515 feet (767 m). Numerous mines and dry washes are located in this extreme desert
Desert
A desert is a landscape or region that receives an extremely low amount of precipitation, less than enough to support growth of most plants. Most deserts have an average annual precipitation of less than...
mountain range. The western mountain washes drain to the Imperial Reservoir
Imperial Reservoir
The Imperial Reservoir is an artificial lake formed by the construction of the Imperial Diversion Dam across the Colorado River in the Lower Colorado River Valley of Imperial County, California, and Yuma County, Arizona...
Drainage of the Colorado River, and the eastern washes drain into the La Posa Plain and its north-flowing Tyson Wash Drainage, entering again at the northern parts of the Imperial Reservoir Drainage; the twin end-point of the Bouse Wash
Bouse Wash
Bouse Wash is one of the larger eastern-bank dry washes that enter the Colorado River in western Arizona.Bouse Wash is located on the north end of the La Posa Plain and drains into the area along the Colorado River occupied by the Colorado River Indian Reservation, south of Parker, Arizona...
Drainage north does the same, at 15 miles (24 km) further.
Dome Rock Mountains access
The northern portion of the mountains can be accessed from the west via Arizona State Route 95; from the east through the Colorado River Indian Reservation, and I 10Interstate 10 in Arizona
In the U.S. state of Arizona, Interstate 10, the major east–west Interstate Highway in the southern United States, runs east from California, enters Arizona and continues through Phoenix and Tucson and exits at the border with New Mexico.-Route description:...
.
Quartzsite lying in the east center of the range gives numerous access points. Quartzsite is famous for a rockhounding show because of its desert location for rock exploration, and the numerous regional mountain ranges. Ehrenberg to the west accesses areas of the western mountain flank.
A winter visitor destination site is located on the southeast of the range on the La Posa Plain
La Posa Plain
The La Posa Plain is a wide, generally flat plain in western Arizona near the Colorado River and is on the west and northwest border of the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge. The plain lies to the east of the Colorado River Indian Reservation and east of the Dome Rock and Trigo Mountains. Quartzsite,...
.
See also
- Maria fold and thrust beltMaria Fold and Thrust BeltThe Maria fold and thrust belt is a portion of the North American Cordillera orogen in which geological structures accommodate roughly north-south to northwest-southeast vergent Mesozoic age crustal shortening. This lies in contrast to the remainder of the Cordillera, in which shortening is...
- List of mountain ranges of La Paz County, Arizona
- List of mountain ranges of Arizona
- List of LCRV Wilderness Areas (Colorado River)
External links
- http://www.treasurejoe.com/index.php?module=article&view=18La PazLa Paz, ArizonaLa Paz was a short-lived, early gold mining town along the Colorado River in La Paz County on the western border of the U.S. state of Arizona. It was the location of the La Paz Incident in 1863, the westernmost confrontation of the American Civil War. The town was settled in 1862 in what was then...
placer deposits, western base of Dome Rock Mountains] - http://pubs.usgs.gov/ds/2006/225/ble_readme.txtDatabase, for BlytheBlythe, CaliforniaBlythe is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, in the "Palo Verde Valley" of the Lower Colorado River Valley region, an agricultural area and part of the Colorado Desert along the Colorado River. Blythe was named after Thomas Blythe, a gold prospector who established primary...
Quadrangle and references to Dome Rock Mountains]