The Santa Maria Mountains are a 16-mi (26 km) long[1] mountain range in central-northwest Arizona, and in northwest Yavapai County. The range lies in a region of mesas and mountain ranges in the northwest of Arizona's transition zone. The Santa Maria Mountains lie east of the transition zone's northwest perimeter, the parallel Aquarius and Mohon Mountains.

Santa Maria Mountains
Santa Maria Mountains is located in Arizona
Santa Maria Mountains
Santa Maria Mountains
Santa Maria Mountains in Arizona
Highest point
PeakHyde Creek Mountain, Santa Maria Mountains-(center-SW)
Elevation7,272 ft (2,217 m)
Coordinates34°50′07″N 112°55′07″W / 34.8353°N 112.91852°W / 34.8353; -112.91852
Dimensions
Length16 mi (26 km) NW-SE
Geography
CountryUnited States
StateArizona
RegionArizona transition zone
CountyYavapai
CommunitiesTucker, Chino Valley, Bagdad and Seligman
Range coordinates34°51′24″N 112°54′34″W / 34.8567°N 112.9094°W / 34.8567; -112.9094
Borders onMohon Mountains, Juniper Mountains, Chino Valley, Williamson Valley, Sierra Prieta and Cornell Mountains

The townsite of Tucker, Arizona lies 8 mi east, and is located just west of Chino Valley, AZ. Tucker lies in the center-east of the small Williamson Valley.

Description

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The Santa Maria Mountains are northwest–southeast trending and attached to a smaller range on its south, the Cornell Mountains. The small Chino Valley north-trending tributary Williamson Valley Wash and Valley, border the range's east. Numerous hills, peaks, mesas, and flats are in the region. North Fork Creek and Juniper Mesa-(part of southeast Juniper Mountains), border north. Tailholt Mesa, borders southeast, east of the Cornell Mountains.

On the range's northwest, Sawmill and Johnson Flats merge west into the Mohon Mountains. Southwest are other various ridges and mesas, that are all part of smaller mountain areas just northeast of the mining district of Bagdad.

Mountain peaks

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Various peaks are in the range. The northwest area has Bear Mountain, Janes Butte, and Dairy Mountain, 7,165 feet (2,184 m). The center-south of the range is at Granite Knob, 6,625 feet (2,019 m). Bald Mountain, 5,900 feet (1,798 m), is northeast; just southwest, closer to the Cornell Mountains, is the range highpoint, Hyde Creek Mountain, 7,272 feet (2,217 m).[2] The Apache Creek Wilderness is adjacent north of Hyde Creek Mountain.

References

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  1. ^ Arizona Road & Recreation Atlas, Benchmark Maps, 1998, pp. 66–67, 68.
  2. ^ Arizona Road & Recreation Atlas, pp. 66–67, 68.

Notes

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  • Lucchitta, Ivo (2001). "Hiking Arizona's Geology" Part 2, Arizona Transition Zone, Graphic, w/text, Hikes 18–26, Mountaineers's Books. 272 pages, 41 Hikes. (Transition zone: Hikes 18–26, pp. 143–182.) (softcover, ISBN 0-89886-730-4)
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