The Galiuro Mountains are a large sky island

Sky island

Sky islands are mountains that are isolated by surrounding lowlands of a dramatically different environment, a situation which, in combination with the altitudinal zonation of ecosystems, has significant implications for natural habitats. Endemism, vertical migration, and relict populations are...

 mountain range

Mountain range

A mountain range is a single, large mass consisting of a succession of mountains or narrowly spaced mountain ridges, with or without peaks, closely related in position, direction, formation, and age; a component part of a mountain system or of a mountain chain...

 of southeast Arizona

Arizona

Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...

, USA

Southwestern United States

The Southwestern United States is a region defined in different ways by different sources. Broad definitions include nearly a quarter of the United States, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah...

. It is a northerly mountain range in the Madrean Sky Islands

Madrean sky islands

The Madrean Sky Islands are enclaves of Madrean pine-oak woodlands, found at higher elevations in a complex of small mountain ranges in southern and southeastern Arizona, southwestern New Mexico, and northwestern Mexico. The sky islands are surrounded at lower elevations by the Sonoran and...

 region of southeast Arizona, northern Sonora

Sonora

Sonora officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 72 municipalities; the capital city is Hermosillo....

, Northern Mexico, and extreme southwest, bootheel New Mexico

New Mexico

New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...

.

The range is noted for its height and ruggedness. The Aravaipa Canyon Wilderness

Aravaipa Canyon Wilderness

Aravaipa Canyon Wilderness is a 19,410 acre wilderness area located in the U.S. State of Arizona. It forms the northwest border of the Galiuro Mountain range. The wilderness is administered by the BLM and is located northeast of Mammoth, Arizona in Graham and Pinal counties, about 120 miles...

 encompasses the north perimeter of the range, and the large Galiuro Wilderness

Galiuro Wilderness

Galiuro Wilderness is a wilderness area encompassing the mid to upper slopes of the Galiuro Mountains. It is located within the Safford Ranger District of the Coronado National Forest in the U.S. state of Arizona. It is bordered on the south by the Redfield Canyon...

 covers the central-south. To the south, the Galiuro Wilderness borders the Redfield Canyon Wilderness. A river valley borders the range to the southwest, and Aravaipa Creek and Valley border its northeast.

Range overview

The Galiuro Mountains are a northwest-southeast trending range. The moderately wide San Pedro Valley

San Pedro Valley (Arizona)

The San Pedro Valley of western Cochise County Arizona is a 50 mile long, mostly north-south valley, trending northwesterly. It drains from Sierra Vista Southeast north towards I-10, Benson, and the southeast of the Rincon Mountains....

 and River

San Pedro River (Arizona)

San Pedro River is a northward-flowing stream originating about ten miles south of Sierra Vista, Arizona near Cananea, Sonora, Mexico. It is one of only two rivers which flow north from Mexico into the United States. The river flows north through Cochise County, Pima County, Graham County, and...

 border its southwest, abutting the northeast of the large sky island Santa Catalina Mountains

Santa Catalina Mountains

The Santa Catalina Mountains, commonly referred to as the Catalina Mountains, are located north, and northeast of Tucson, Arizona, United States, on Tucson's north perimeter. The mountain range is the most prominent in the Tucson area, with the highest average elevation...

 range. The more narrow canyon northeast is the Aravaipa Valley with Aravaipa Creek.

Mammoth, Arizona

Mammoth, Arizona

Mammoth is a town in Pinal County, Arizona, United States. The population was 1,762 at the 2000 census; according to 2006 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the town is 2,167.Mammoth was founded c. 1872 as Mammoth Camp, serving the nearby Mammoth Mine...

, northeast of Tucson

Tucson, Arizona

Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...

 and Oracle

Oracle, Arizona

- Geology :Oracle and the surrounding area sit largely on a slab of granite called "Oracle granite" that is visible as red or grey-and-white speckled "boulders" rising over the scrub and grass. It is mostly porphyritic biotite Precambrian granite with large microcline phenocrysts, and has...

, is the closest city to the range on its northwest.

Peaks and landforms

The highest peak of the range is Bassett Peak at 7663 feet (2,336 m). Other peaks from north-to-south: Black Butte at 4573 feet (1,394 m), Sixtysix Peak, Mescal Peak, Horse Mountain at 6225 feet (1,897 m), Maverick Mountain at 7003 feet (2,135 m), China Peak, Topout Peak, Kennedy Peak at 7549 feet (2,301 m), Sunset Peak, Bassett Peak at 7663 feet (2,336 m), and Saddle Mountain at 6167 feet (1,880 m).

External links

General

• Arizona Mountain Ranges Highpoints
• Galiuro Mountains at mountainzone: Coordinates, Trails, (only accurate info)

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Bassett Peak

• Bassett Peak, Arizona Peaks, 'Climber.Org'