La Sal Mountains

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La Sal Mountains
Mantilasalfromarches.jpg
La Sal Mountains as seen from Arches National Park
Highest point
Peak Mount Peale
Elevation 12,721 ft (3,877 m)
Coordinates 38°26′19″N109°13′45″W / 38.43861°N 109.22917°W / 38.43861; -109.22917
Geography
USA Utah relief location map.svg
Red triangle with thick white border.svg
La Sal Mountains
Location of the La Sal Range within Utah
CountryUnited States
StateUtah
Range coordinates 38°26′56″N109°14′28″W / 38.44889°N 109.24111°W / 38.44889; -109.24111
Parent range Rocky Mountains

The La Sal Mountains or La Sal Range is a mountain range located in Grand and San Juan counties in the U.S. state of Utah, along the border with Colorado. The range rises above and southeast of Moab and north of the town of La Sal. This range is part of the Manti-La Sal National Forest and the southern Rocky Mountains. The maximum elevation is at Mount Peale, reaching 12,721 feet (3,877 m) above sea level.

Contents

The range contains three clusters of peaks separated by passes. The peaks span a distance of about 10 miles (16 km). The name of the range dates to Spanish times, when the Sierra La Sal (meaning the "Salt Mountains") was a prominent landmark on the Old Spanish Trail between Santa Fe and Los Angeles.

Geology

Mountain ranges associated with laccoliths and other igneous intrusions on part of the Colorado Plateau. The red dot marks the Four Corners, the intersection of Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona. L, La Sal Mountains; A, Abajo Mountains; S, (Sleeping) Ute Mountain; C, Carrizo Mountains; N, Navajo Mountain; H, Henry Mountains. Plateau laccoliths NASA.jpg
Mountain ranges associated with laccoliths and other igneous intrusions on part of the Colorado Plateau. The red dot marks the Four Corners, the intersection of Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona. L, La Sal Mountains; A, Abajo Mountains; S, (Sleeping) Ute Mountain; C, Carrizo Mountains; N, Navajo Mountain; H, Henry Mountains.

The range formed due to intrusion of igneous rocks and subsequent erosion of the surrounding less-resistant sedimentary rocks. The most abundant igneous rocks are porphyritic, with phenocrysts of hornblende and plagioclase: these rocks are called diorite in some accounts, but trachyte in at least one other source. Syenite, some containing the unusual mineral nosean, makes up a few percent of the igneous rocks present. Some igneous intrusions have the shapes of laccoliths. The ages of these igneous rocks fall between 25 and 28 million years. The magmas were emplaced into sedimentary rocks with ages from Permian to Cretaceous.

The La Sal Mountains rise high over the surrounding Colorado Plateau. Two other ranges on the Plateau, the Abajo Mountains and the Henry Mountains, formed around igneous intrusions of about the same age. Yet other nearby ranges, such as the Carrizo Mountains and Ute Mountain, formed about otherwise similar intrusions emplaced about 70 million years ago. The formation of these igneous rocks in two distinct time intervals has attracted the interest of scientists seeking explanations for magma production below relatively stable parts of the Earth's crust.

Peaks of the La Sal Mountains

The significant peaks of the La Sal Mountains are:
peak namefeet/meter
Mount Peale 12,721 feet (3,877 m)
Mount Mellenthin 12,645 feet (3,854 m)
Mount Tukuhnikivatz 12,482 feet (3,805 m)
Mount Waas 12,331 feet (3,758 m)
Manns Peak 12,272 feet (3,741 m)
Mount Laurel 12,271 feet (3,740 m)
Mount Tomasaki12,239 feet (3,730 m)
Pilot Mountain 12,200 feet (3,719 m)
Green Mountain12,163 feet (3,707 m)
Little Tuk12,048 feet (3,672 m)
Castle Peak12,044 feet (3,671 m)
La Sal Peak12,001 feet (3,658 m)

See also

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dike (geology)</span> A sheet of rock that is formed in a fracture of a pre-existing rock body

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laccolith</span> Mass of igneous rock formed from magma

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abajo Mountains</span> Mountain range in San Juan County, Utah, USA

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henry Mountains</span> Mountain range in Utah, USA

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manti–La Sal National Forest</span>

The Manti–La Sal National Forest covers more than 1.2 million acres (4,900 km2) and is located in the central and southeastern parts of the U.S. state of Utah and the extreme western part of Colorado. The forest is headquartered in Price, with ranger district offices in Price, Ferron, Ephraim, Moab and Monticello. The maximum elevation is Mount Peale in the La Sal Mountains, reaching 12,721 feet (3,877 m) above sea level. The La Sal Mountains are the second highest mountain range in Utah after the Uintas. Parts of the forest are included in the Bears Ears National Monument.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ute Mountain</span> Mountain in Colorado, US

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Igneous intrusion</span> Body of intrusive igneous rocks

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Igneous rock</span> Rock formed through the cooling and solidification of magma or lava

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tomichi Dome</span> Igneous mountain in Colorado, US

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carbon Peak</span> Mountain in Colorado, United States

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Beckwith Mountain</span> Mountain in Colorado, USA

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central Montana Alkalic Province</span> Geologic area in Montana

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Volcanic and igneous plumbing systems</span> Magma chambers

Volcanic and igneous plumbing systems (VIPS) consist of interconnected magma channels and chambers through which magma flows and is stored within Earth's crust. Volcanic plumbing systems can be found in all active tectonic settings, such as mid-oceanic ridges, subduction zones, and mantle plumes, when magmas generated in continental lithosphere, oceanic lithosphere, and in the sub-lithospheric mantle are transported. Magma is first generated by partial melting, followed by segregation and extraction from the source rock to separate the melt from the solid. As magma propagates upwards, a self-organised network of magma channels develops, transporting the melt from lower crust to upper regions. Channelled ascent mechanisms include the formation of dykes and ductile fractures that transport the melt in conduits. For bulk transportation, diapirs carry a large volume of melt and ascent through the crust. When magma stops ascending, or when magma supply stops, magma emplacement occurs. Different mechanisms of emplacement result in different structures, including plutons, sills, laccoliths and lopoliths.

References

Jules D. Friedman and A. Curtis Huffman Jr., Coordinators, Laccolith Complexes of Southeastern Utah: Time of Emplacement and Tectonic Setting—Workshop Proceedings, United States Geological Survey Bulletin 2158, 292 pages, 1998. http://pubs.usgs.gov/bul/b2158/B2158.pdf

Further reading