San Jacinto Mountains

Coordinates: 33°48′52″N 116°40′45″W / 33.81444°N 116.67917°W / 33.81444; -116.67917
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
San Jacinto Mountains
Jalisco Mountains, Indian Land
Mohave)
Geography
CountryUnited States
StateCalifornia
District
USGS
 San Jacinto Peak

The San Jacinto Mountains (

patron in Latin America
.

Geography

The range extends for approximately 30 mi (50 km) from the

Baja California Peninsula. The highest peak in the range is San Jacinto Peak (3,302 m; 10,834 ft) NAVD 88,[3] and the range is also a Great Basin Divide landform for the Salton Watershed
to the east.

San Jacinto mountains as viewed from the north, when approaching the gateway to Palm Springs, California on Highway 62

The

Greater Los Angeles
as a whole.

Much of the range is embraced by the

Coachella Valley Mountains Conservancy
to protect the mountains surrounding the valley.

Geology

The range is a fault block of granitic rocks squeezed between the San Jacinto fault on the west and the San Andreas fault system on the east. The fault scarp on the northern and eastern side is one of the most abrupt in North America, going from sea level to 10,000 feet in a few miles. The height and steepness of the range points out that the San Jacinto fault and San Andreas fault are very active and very capable of producing major earthquakes (well in excess of magnitude 7). The last massive quake struck the southern segment of the San Andreas-San Jacinto fault complex more than 200 years ago making another major earthquake likely but not currently possible to predict. Rock slides from the range are possible during major earthquakes in the future, as they have been in the past. These slides may potentially impact the communities built directly adjacent to the steep escarpment on the desert side of the range.

Climate

The San Jacinto Mountains, like the neighboring San Bernardino Mountains, are a humid island above the surrounding desert and semi-desert. Annual precipitation ranges from about 15 inches at the western base (and only 6 inches on the eastern, desert base) to as much as 32 inches above 5,500 feet (the mountain town of Idyllwild averages 27 inches per year). The coastal (western) side of the range receives more precipitation than the eastern (desert) side. Most of the precipitation falls between November and March, with a secondary maximum associated with thunderstorms during the summer monsoon season between July and September. The precipitation totals are highly variable from year to year. Snow usually falls above 4,000 feet elevation in winter. Above 8,000 feet, snow sometimes persists until June. Near the crest, there are often a few patches of snow that may persist all year in shady spots.

Flora and fauna

East slope of San Jacinto Peak

The range can be thought of as a

Red fir, Manzanita, and deciduous oak. There is also a grove of over 150 giant sequoia trees on the northeast facing slope. The sequoias (native to the Sierra Nevada Mountains) were planted by the U.S. Forest Service in the 1970s, and are now apparently healthy and producing seedlings.[6] As in many other western U.S areas, bark beetle infestations have caused loss of some of the forest trees in recent years, especially during droughts. Wildfires, such as the Mountain Fire and the Cranston Fire
, have also temporarily denuded some areas.

Like many other isolated high elevation mountains in California, the San Jacinto mountains are home to several endemic species, including the

San Jacinto shieldback katydid and shaggy-haired alumroot
.

Human use

The communities of

Idyllwild-Pine Cove, Mountain Center, and Pinyon Pines
are located in the San Jacinto Mountains.

The indigenous

Cahuilla
live in the deserts around the San Jacinto Mountains and used the range for hunting, foraging, and to escape the summer heat.

The range was a frequent subject for Palm Springs artists Carl Eytel (1862–1925) and Paul Grimm (1892–1974).

Hollywood film directors have used the mountains to shoot film scenes. In Frank Capra's 1937 film, Lost Horizon, the Tahquitz Falls in Tahquitz Canyon was used as a scene.[7]

Today, the range is a destination for outdoor recreation. The Pacific Crest Trail runs along the spine of the range. A popular walking route runs from the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway Mountain Station above Palm Springs, to the high point of the range, with a relatively mild climb of 2,400 ft (700 m) compared to other routes with more elevation gain.

Above Idyllwild is historic Tahquitz Peak and other rock climbing areas.

Wilderness

Established in 1964 by the U.S. Congress with the original

U.S. Forest Service.[8]

See also

References

  1. ^ Munro, P., et al. A Mojave Dictionary. Los Angeles: UCLA. 1992.
  2. ^ "San Jacinto Mountains". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved 2009-05-03.
  3. ^ "San Jacinto". NGS Data Sheet. National Geodetic Survey, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, United States Department of Commerce. Retrieved 2012-11-30.
  4. ^ University of California Publications in Botany, Published by University of California Press, Berkeley, Ca., 1903, Item notes: v.1 (1902–1903)
  5. ^ C. Michael Hogan (2008) Quercus kelloggii, Globaltwitcher.com, ed. Nicklas Stromberg "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-02-18. Retrieved 2012-02-18.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. ^ Masters, Nathan (21 May 2014). "These Sequoia Trees Are Thriving 175 Miles South of Their Natural Range". gizmodo.com. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  7. ^ Lost Horizon at the American Film Institute Catalog
  8. ^ San Jacinto Wilderness - Wilderness Connect
  • Robinson, John W.; Risher, Bruce D.; Bakker, Elna (1993). The San Jacintos: The Mountain Country from Banning to Borrego Valley. Arcadia, CA: Big Santa Ana Historical Society. p. 252.
    ISBN 0-9615421-6-0
    .

External links
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