Wah Wah Valley

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Wah Wah Valley

Rain in the Wah Wah Valley.jpg

A spring storm hits the Wah Wah Valley,
May 2009
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Wah Wah Valley
Location of the Wah Wah Valley within the State of Utah
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Wah Wah Valley
Wah Wah Valley (the US)
Location Beaver and Millard counties, Utah, United States
Floor elevation 4,577 feet (1,395 m) [1]
Geography
Coordinates 38°43′20″N113°15′35″W / 38.72222°N 113.25972°W / 38.72222; -113.25972 Coordinates: 38°43′20″N113°15′35″W / 38.72222°N 113.25972°W / 38.72222; -113.25972 [1]
Traversed by State Route 21

Wah Wah Valley [1] is an endorheic (internal drainage) valley within the Basin and Range of west-central Utah, United States.

Endorheic basin Closed drainage basin that allows no outflow

An endorheic basin is a limited drainage basin that normally retains water and allows no outflow to other external bodies of water, such as rivers or oceans, but converges instead into lakes or swamps, permanent or seasonal, that equilibrate through evaporation. Such a basin may also be referred to as a closed or terminal basin or as an internal drainage system or interior drainage basin.

Basin and Range Province geologic province extending through much of the western United States and Mexico

The Basin and Range Province is a vast physiographic region covering much of the inland Western United States and northwestern Mexico. It is defined by unique basin and range topography, characterized by abrupt changes in elevation, alternating between narrow faulted mountain chains and flat arid valleys or basins. The physiography of the province is the result of tectonic extension that began around 17 million years ago in the early Miocene epoch.

Utah A state of the United States of America

Utah is a state in the western United States. It became the 45th state admitted to the U.S. on January 4, 1896. Utah is the 13th-largest by area, 31st-most-populous, and 10th-least-densely populated of the 50 United States. Utah has a population of more than 3 million according to the Census estimate for July 1, 2016. Urban development is mostly concentrated in two areas: the Wasatch Front in the north-central part of the state, which contains approximately 2.5 million people; and Washington County in Southern Utah, with over 160,000 residents. Utah is bordered by Colorado to the east, Wyoming to the northeast, Idaho to the north, Arizona to the south, and Nevada to the west. It also touches a corner of New Mexico in the southeast.

Contents

Description

The valley is bound by the Wah Wah Mountains to the west and south and the San Francisco Mountains to the east. The northern part of the valley bifurcates around the southern end of the House Range, leading into Tule Valley to the northwest and the Sevier Desert-(Sevier Lake region), to the northeast. [2]

Wah Wah Mountains

The Wah Wah Mountains are a north-south trending range in west-central Utah, part of the larger Basin and Range Province. It is bounded by Pine Valley to the west, Wah Wah Valley to the east, the Escalante Desert to the south, and on trend with the Confusion Range to the north. The Wah Wah Mountains are located in Beaver and Millard counties. State Route 21 bisects the range, crossing over Wah Wah Summit at about 6,500 feet (1,980 m) above sea level. Elevations range from about 6,000 feet (1,800 m) at the mountain front to 9,393 feet (2,863 m) in the southern Wah Wahs.

San Francisco Mountains (Utah) American mountain range

The San Francisco Mountains are a 20-mile-long (32 km) mountain range located in north‑central Beaver County, Utah, United States that extend into central-south Millard County.

House Range mountain range in Millard County, Utah, United States

The House Range is a north-south trending mountain range in Millard County, of west-central Utah. The House Range was named in 1859 by James H. Simpson. It was named by Simpson because "...of its well-defined stratification and the resemblance of portions of its outline to domes, minarets, houses, and other structures."

The 'Wah Wah' name comes from Wah Wah Springs, on the eastern slope of the Wah Wah Mountain range. 'Wah Wah' is reported to mean "good clear water". [3]

The lowest point in Beaver County is located just south of the Wah Wah Hardpan (dry lake), at the Millard County line. [4]

Beaver County, Utah County in the United States

Beaver County is a county in west central Utah, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 6,629. Its county seat and largest city is Beaver. The county was named for the abundance of beavers in the area.

Dry lake A basin or depression that formerly contained a standing surface water body

A dry lake is either a basin or depression that formerly contained a standing surface water body, which disappeared when evaporation processes exceeded recharge. If the floor of a dry lake is covered by deposits of alkaline compounds, it is known as an alkali flat. If covered with salt, it is known as a salt flat.

Millard County, Utah County in the United States

Millard County is a county in the U.S. state of Utah. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 12,503. Its county seat is Fillmore, and the largest city is Delta.

The valley is sparsely populated today, but it has had residents in the past, like in the ghost town of Newhouse. These people moved here for mining, but later, the region was used for grazing.

Ghost town City depopulated of inhabitants and that stays practically intact

A ghost town is an abandoned village, town, or city, usually one that contains substantial visible remains. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it has failed, or due to natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, prolonged droughts, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, war, pollution, or nuclear disasters. The term can sometimes refer to cities, towns, and neighbourhoods that are still populated, but significantly less so than in past years; for example, those affected by high levels of unemployment and dereliction.

Newhouse, Utah Ghost town in Utah, United States

Newhouse is a ghost town located on the eastern edge of the Wah Wah Valley in Beaver County, Utah, United States. A silver mining town based on the Cactus Mine on the western slopes of the San Francisco Mountains, Newhouse was smaller and quieter than Frisco, 5 miles (8.0 km) to the southeast.

See also

Related Research Articles

Wasatch Range Mountain range in Utah, United States

The Wasatch Range is a mountain range that stretches approximately 160 miles (260 km) from the Utah-Idaho border, south through central Utah in the western United States. It is the western edge of the greater Rocky Mountains, and the eastern edge of the Great Basin region. The northern extension of the Wasatch Range, the Bear River Mountains, extends just into Idaho, constituting all of the Wasatch Range in that state.

Sevier River river in the United States of America

The Sevier River is a 385-mile (620 km)-long river in the Great Basin of southwestern Utah in the United States. Originating west of Bryce Canyon National Park, the river flows north through a chain of high farming valleys and steep canyons along the west side of the Sevier Plateau, before turning southwest and terminating in the endorheic basin of Sevier Lake in the Sevier Desert. It is used extensively for irrigation along its course, with the consequence that Sevier Lake is usually dry.

Great Salt Lake Desert large dry lake in northern Utah

The Great Salt Lake Desert is a large dry lake in northern Utah, United States, between the Great Salt Lake and the Nevada border which is noted for white evaporite Lake Bonneville salt deposits.

EskDale, Utah Unincorporated community in Utah, United States

Eskdale is a small unincorporated community in western Millard County, Utah, United States, just east of the Nevada border.

Axtell, Utah Unincorporated community in Utah, United States

Axtell is an unincorporated community in the Sevier Valley on the southwestern edge of Sanpete County, Utah, United States.

Birdseye, Utah Unincorporated community in Utah, United States

Birdseye is an unincorporated community in southeastern Utah County, Utah, United States.

Lapoint, Utah Unincorporated community in Utah, United States

Lapoint is an unincorporated community in western Uintah County, Utah, United States.

Tule Valley valley within the Great Basin in western Utah

Tule Valley is a valley in Millard County, Utah, United States.

Rosette, Utah Unincorporated community in Utah, United States

Rosette is an unincorporated ranching community in northwestern Box Elder County, Utah, United States.

Trout Creek, Utah Unincorporated community in Utah, United States

Trout Creek is a small farming unincorporated community, in far western Juab County, Utah, United States.

Mountain Home Range mountain range in Utah, USA

The Mountain Home Range is a north-south trending mountain range in western Beaver County in southwest Utah, United States. It is part of the Basin and Range Province. It is bound by Hamlin Valley to the west, Snake Valley to the north, Pine Valley to the east, and trends into the Indian Peak Range to the south. Collectively, the Mountain Home Range and Indian Peak Range are known as the Needle Mountains due to their jagged nature.

Sevier Desert Desert located in the southeast of the Great Basin

The Sevier Desert is a large arid section of central-west Utah, United States, and is located in the southeast of the Great Basin. It is bordered by deserts north, west, and south; its east border is along the mountain range and valley sequences at the perimeter of the Great Basin, with the large north-south Wasatch Range and its associated mountainous landforms. Its eastern border is specifically, the East Tintic, Gilson, and Canyon Mountains; also the massive Pavant Range.

Juab Valley valley in Utah, United States

The Juab Valley is a 40-mile (64 km) long valley located on the eastern edge of Juab County, Utah, United States.

Caineville, Utah Unincorporated community in Utah, United States

Caineville is an unincorporated community in central Wayne County, Utah, United States.

Crystal Spring is a spring in northern Beaver County, Utah, United States.

Daves Hollow is a canyon in southeastern Garfield County, Utah, United States.

Dell Lott Hollow is a canyon, mostly within the Fishlake National Forest, on the southeast edge of the Pavant Range in southwest Sevier County, Utah, United States.

Denmark Wash is a stream and a canyon in eastern Millard County and north-central Sevier County, Utah, United States.

Frisco Peak is a summit near the north‑center edge of Beaver County, Utah, United States.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Wah Wah Valley". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey.
  2. ↑ "MyTopo Maps - Wah Wah Valley, Utah, USA" (Map). mytopo.com. Trimble Navigation, Ltd. Retrieved 16 Feb 2018.
  3. ↑ Van Cott, John W. (1990). Utah Place Names: A Comprehensive Guide to the Origins of Geographic Names: A Compilation. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press. p. 387. ISBN   978-0-87480-345-7. OCLC   797284427 . Retrieved 16 Feb 2018.
  4. ↑ Nash, Fred J., 2008, Utah's Low Points: A guide to the Lowest Points in Utah's 29 Counties, ISBN   978-0-87480-932-9

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