Red Rock-Secret Mountain Wilderness | |
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Location | Coconino / Yavapai counties, Arizona, United States |
Nearest city | Sedona, AZ |
Coordinates | 34°57′56″N111°51′24″W / 34.96556°N 111.85667°W |
Area | 47,194 acres (191 km2) |
Established | 1984 |
Governing body | U.S. Forest Service |
The Red Rock-Secret Mountain Wilderness is a 47,195-acre (19,099 ha) wilderness area located within the Coconino National Forest in the U.S. state of Arizona. [1]
The wilderness is predominantly wind and water sculpted pinnacles, windows, arches, and slot canyons, and the red-rock cliffs of the Mogollon Rim that mark the edge of the Colorado Plateau. Bordered on the east by Sycamore Canyon Wilderness, the high mesas of Secret Mountain and Wilson Mountain jut out into the lower country and canyons as deep as 1,500 feet (457 m) drain into Oak Creek and the Verde River. [1]
Petroglyphs and abandoned cliff dwellings can be found in the wilderness. [2]
The high rims are relatively cool and moist compared with the lower desertland of the wilderness, and a wide variety of vegetation supports plentiful wildlife, including elk, mule deer, white-tailed deer, javelina, coyote, rabbit, mountain lion, and black bear. [1]
Common recreational activities in the Red Rock-Secret Mountain Wilderness include horseback riding, photography, wildlife viewing, swimming, and hiking. There are numerous short trails in the wilderness: [2]
Sedona is a city that straddles the county line between Coconino and Yavapai counties in the northern Verde Valley region of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2010 census, its population was 10,031. It is within the Coconino National Forest.
The Mogollon Rim is a topographical and geological feature cutting across the northern half of the U.S. state of Arizona. It extends approximately 200 miles (320 km), starting in northern Yavapai County and running eastward, ending near the border with New Mexico. It forms the southern edge of the Colorado Plateau in Arizona.
The Tonto National Forest, encompassing 2,873,200 acres, is the largest of the six national forests in Arizona and is the ninth largest national forest in the United States. The forest has diverse scenery, with elevations ranging from 1,400 feet in the Sonoran Desert to 7,400 feet in the ponderosa pine forests of the Mogollon Rim. The Tonto National Forest is also one of the most visited "urban" forests in the United States.
Northern Arizona is an unofficial, colloquially defined region of the U.S. state of Arizona. Generally consisting of Apache, Coconino, Mohave, Navajo, and Yavapai counties, the region is geographically dominated by the Colorado Plateau, the southern border of which in Arizona is called the Mogollon Rim.
The Coconino National Forest is a 1.856-million acre United States National Forest located in northern Arizona in the vicinity of Flagstaff, with elevations ranging from 2,600 feet to the highest point in Arizona at 12,633 feet. Originally established in 1898 as the "San Francisco Mountains National Forest Reserve", the area was designated a U.S. National Forest by Pres. Theodore Roosevelt on July 2, 1908, when the San Francisco Mountains National Forest Reserve was merged with lands from other surrounding forest reserves to create the Coconino National Forest. Today, the Coconino National Forest contains diverse landscapes, including deserts, ponderosa pine forests, flatlands, mesas, alpine tundra, and ancient volcanic peaks. The forest surrounds the towns of Sedona and Flagstaff and borders four other national forests; the Kaibab National Forest to the west and northwest, the Prescott National Forest to the southwest, the Tonto National Forest to the south, and the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest to the southeast. The forest contains all or parts of nine designated wilderness areas, including the Kachina Peaks Wilderness, which includes the summit of the San Francisco Peaks. The headquarters are in Flagstaff. The Coconino National Forest consists of three districts: Flagstaff Ranger District, Mogollon Rim Ranger District, and Red Rock Ranger District, which have local ranger district offices in Flagstaff, Happy Jack, and Sedona.
Oak Creek Canyon is a river gorge located in northern Arizona between the cities of Flagstaff and Sedona. The canyon is often described as a smaller cousin of the Grand Canyon because of its scenic beauty. State Route 89A enters the canyon on its north end via a series of hairpin turns before traversing the bottom of the canyon for about 13 miles (21 km) until the highway enters the town of Sedona.
Fossil Creek is a perennial stream accessed by forest roads near the community of Camp Verde in the U.S. state of Arizona. Primary access is from Forest Road 708 off Arizona State Route 260 east of Camp Verde. A tributary of the Verde River, Fossil Creek flows from its headwaters on the Mogollon Rim to meet the larger stream near the former Childs Power Plant.
Sycamore Canyon is the second largest canyon in the Arizona redrock country, after Oak Creek Canyon. The 21-mile (34 km) long scenic canyon reaches a maximum width of about 7 miles (11 km). It is in North Central Arizona bordering and below the Mogollon Rim, and is located west and northwest of Sedona in Yavapai and Coconino counties.
Sycamore Canyon Wilderness is a 56,000-acre wilderness area in the Coconino, Kaibab and Prescott national forests in the U.S. state of Arizona. Encompassing Sycamore Canyon and its surrounds from south of Williams to the confluence of Sycamore Creek with the Verde River, the wilderness is about 40 miles (64 km) southwest of Flagstaff. The canyon is one of several in Arizona that cut through the Mogollon Rim. Relevant United States Geological Survey (USGS) map quadrangles are Davenport Hill, White Horse Lake, May Tank Pocket, Perkinsville, Sycamore Basin, and Clarkdale. Red Rock-Secret Mountain Wilderness borders Sycamore Canyon Wilderness on the east.
Wet Beaver Wilderness is a 6,155-acre wilderness area located in the Coconino National Forest in the U.S. state of Arizona.
The San Gabriel Wilderness is a wilderness area created in 1968 of more than 36,118 acres (150 km2) within the Angeles National Forest and San Gabriel Mountains National Monument.
The Mazatzal Mountains are a mountain range in south central Arizona, about 30–45 miles northeast of the Phoenix metropolitan area. The origin of the name remains obscure but one possibility is that it is from the Nahuatl language meaning "place of the deer". The crest of the Mazatzals forms the county line between Maricopa County and Gila County. SR 87, the Beeline Highway, traverses the Mazatzals on its way to Payson. The highest peak is Mazatzal Peak at 7,903 feet (2,409 m). They also include the Four Peaks, with elevation 7,659 ft, 2,334 m; a prominent mountain and landmark of the eastern Phoenix area.
House Mountain is a shield volcano located in the U.S. state of Arizona located between the Sedona Red Rock Country and the Verde Valley in the Coconino National Forest. House Mountain erupted approximately 13–15 million years ago on the edge of where the Mogollon Rim stood at that time. Thus, the basalt that was emitted preserved the sedimentary layers below it, including the Schnebly Hill Formation and the thin band of Fort Apache Limestone. The Mogollon Rim has receded at a rate of 1 foot per 600 years since and the current edge of the rim can be seen several miles away from the summit.
Juniper Mesa Wilderness is a 7,406-acre wilderness area in the Prescott National Forest in the U.S. state of Arizona. The mesa is about an hour's drive northwest of Prescott in the Juniper Mountains of Yavapai County. The wilderness varies in elevation from 5,600 to 7,000 feet. It is entirely within the Juniper Mountain quadrangle of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) topographic map.
Haigler Creek is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in northern Gila County, Arizona, United States. It lies at an elevation of 5,240 feet and is surrounded by the Tonto National Forest. As of the 2020 census, Haigler Creek had a population of 39 people.
Wilson Mountain is a 7,122-foot-elevation (2,171-meter) summit in Coconino County, Arizona, United States.
Bear Mountain is a 6,572-foot-elevation (2,003-meter) summit in Yavapai County, Arizona, United States.
Lost Wilson Mountain is a 6,762-foot-elevation (2,061-meter) summit in Yavapai County, Arizona, United States.
East Pocket Knob is a 7,196-foot-elevation (2,193-meter) summit in Coconino County, Arizona, United States.