Black Mountains (Arizona)

For other mountain ranges named Black Mountains, see: Black Mountains

Black Mountains
Black Mountains, N-to-S view from Needles, CA east-northeast (overlooking Mohave Valley and Colorado River) (large block at right-(south)-Black Mesa (Black Mountains)
Highest point
Peak	Mount Perkins
Elevation	5,456 ft (1,663 m)
Coordinates	35°34′12″N 114°30′31″W / 35.56999°N 114.50858°WCoordinates: 35°34′12″N 114°30′31″W / 35.56999°N 114.50858°W
Dimensions
Length	75 mi (121 km) N-S
Width	13 mi (21 km) (variable)
Geography
Black Mountains Black Mountains in Arizona
Country	United States
State	Arizona
Region	Mojave Desert
District	Mohave County, AZ
Settlement	Oatman, AZ-(south)–Kingman, AZ (Needles, CA)
Borders on	Lake Mead-NW–Colorado River-W Detrital Valley-NE White Hills–Hualapai Valley-NE Cerbat Mountains-E Sacramento Valley & Hualapai Mtns-SE Interstate 40 in Arizona-SE & S

The Black Mountains of northwest Arizona are an extensive, mostly linear, north-south 75-mile (121 km) long mountain range. It forms the north-south border of southwest Mohave County as it borders the eastern shore of the south-flowing Colorado River from Hoover Dam.

The northwest, and parts of the west of the range are located in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. Three wilderness areas are in the range, and the historic mining site of Oatman, Arizona, 4 mi adjacent and north of Boundary Cone, is nestled in the range's south between the Mount Nutt and Warm Springs Wildernesses.

Description

The mountain range is generally 10-15 mi wide, narrower in the north, and west of the Detrital Valley northeast. The southern end of the range with the two wilderness areas is a larger block and the Warm Springs Wilderness is made of a mountain section called Black Mesa (western Arizona), separated from the north section by Sitgreaves Pass, on the route to Oatman, AZ.

The high point of the range is Mount Perkins at 5,456 feet (1,663 m),^[1] located west of the water divide of the Detrital Valley northeast, and the Sacramento Valley (Arizona) southeast. The Cerbat Mountains border eastwards. Mount Perkins, in the center-north of the range, is located at 35°34′12″N 114°30′31″W / 35.56999°N 114.50858°W.^[2]

Watersheds

The Black Mountains are in four watersheds. The north and northeast contain the Lake Mead Watershed, and the north-flowing Detrital Wash Watershed.^[3] The west along the Colorado River and southern-west contains the Havasu-Mohave Lakes Watershed where the Sacramento Wash Watershed^[4] flows into the southern Topock Marsh, at the southern third of the Havasu-Mohave Lakes region.

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  Boundary Cone, a prominent landmark in the western foothills of the Black Mountains, viewed from Mohave Valley

• 

  Historic Oatman, AZ, 1921

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  Mojave Desert region

Regional area of the Black Mountains

West of Black Mountains Lake Mead Hoover Dam Colorado River Lake Mead National Recreation Area Black Canyon of the Colorado Willow Beach – Cottonwood Cove, Nevada Lake Mohave – Bullhead City–Arizona Fort Mojave Indian Reservation–Arizona – Topock Marsh–Arizona Topock–Arizona Needles Interstate 40 in California – South

East Lake Mead Black Mountains-Northern section Mount Wilson Wilderness Detrital Valley-North Cerbat Mtns Mount Tipton Wilderness – U.S. Route 93 in Arizona Detrital Valley-South – Kingman (northern)-Sacramento Valley–Interstate 40 Black Mountains-Southern section Mount Nutt Wilderness Black Mesa (western Arizona) Warm Springs Wilderness Yucca, Arizona (southern)-Sacramento Valley–Hualapai Mtns Interstate 40 in Arizona (from Needles, CA) – South

See also

• Boundary Cone
• Black Mesa (Arizona)
• Fortification Hill

References

1. Mount Perkins, Arizona Road & Recreation Atlas, c 1998, p. 32-33.
2. Mount Perkins, mountainzone
3. Detrital Wash Watershed
4. Sacramento Wash Watershed

External links

• Mount Perkins, mountainzone.com, coord
• Mount Perkins, trails.com

Watersheds

• Detrital Wash Watershed
• Havasu-Mohave Lakes Watershed
• Sacramento Wash Watershed, in Sacramento Valley