Beaver Dam Mountains Wilderness

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Beaver Dam Mountains Wilderness
IUCN Category Ib (Wilderness Area)

Location:	Arizona and Utah, USA
Nearest city:	St. George, UT
Coordinates:	36°59′″N, 113°47′″W
Area:	17,600 acres (71 km²)
Established:	August 28, 1984
Governing body:	U.S. Bureau of Land Management

The Beaver Dam Mountains Wilderness is located in northwestern Arizona and southwestern Utah, USA, within the arid Colorado Plateau region. The jagged mountains and gently sloping alluvial plain of the Beaver Dam Mountains straddle the border between the two states. The wilderness contains some of the lowest elevation land in Utah, and includes a 13 mile (21 km) section of the Virgin River Gorge. The wilderness area is approximately 17,600 acres (71 km²). Arizona contains 15,000 acres (61 km²) and Utah contains approximately 2,600 acres (11 km²). The wilderness area was designated by the U.S. Congress in 1984 and is administered by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.

The Mojave Desert landscape of the Beaver Dam Mountains features multitudes of Joshua Tree yucca plants (see: Yucca). Notable wildlife include desert bighorn sheep, the threatened desert tortoise, and large numbers of raptors. South of Beaver Dam lies the Paiute Wilderness, on the other side of the Interstate 15 corridor.

The Beaver Dam Mountains

[edit] See also

[edit] References

Lynna P. Howard, Utah's Wilderness Areas: The Complete Guide (Westcliffe Publishers, 2005) ISBN 1-56579-388-9
Bill Cunningham & Polly Burke, Wild Utah: A Guide to 45 Roadless Recreation Areas (Falcon Publishing, 1998) ISBN 1-56044-616-1