Sonoma Mountains

Sonoma Mountains
Sonoma Mountain
Highest point
PeakSonoma Mountain
Elevation2,287 ft (697 m)
Coordinates38°19′23″N 122°34′30″W / 38.32306°N 122.57500°W / 38.32306; -122.57500
Dimensions
Length14 mi (23 km) northwest-southeast
Geography
Sonoma Mountains is located in California
Sonoma Mountains
location of Sonoma Mountains in California[1]
CountryUnited States
StateCalifornia
RegionSonoma County
Range coordinates38°17′59.693″N 122°33′3.939″W / 38.29991472°N 122.55109417°W / 38.29991472; -122.55109417
Parent rangeCalifornia Coast Ranges

The Sonoma Mountains[2] are a northwest–southeast trending mountain range of the Inner Coast Ranges in the California Coast Ranges System, located in Sonoma County, Northern California.[3]

Geography[edit]

The Sonoma Mountains range is approximately fourteen miles (23 km) long. It separates the Sonoma Creek watershed from the Petaluma River and Tolay Creek watersheds. The highest point of this range is Sonoma Mountain, elevation 2,287 ft (697 m).[4]

Jack London State Historic Park, Crane Creek Regional Park, and the Fairfield Osborn Preserve are all on Sonoma Mountain. A number of threatened and endangered species are found in the Sonoma Mountains including the fragrant fritillary (Fritillaria liliacea).

Hydrology[edit]

Many creeks rise in the Sonoma Mountains. From the northwestern slopes, Copeland Creek and Hinebaugh Creek flow to the Laguna de Santa Rosa, eventually entering the Pacific Ocean just south of Jenner, California. Matanzas Creek and Spring Creek flow north into Santa Rosa Creek, another tributary of the Laguna.

Tributaries of Sonoma Creek rise on the eastern exposures of the Sonoma Mountains: Yulupa Creek, Carriger Creek, Graham Creek, Felder Creek, and Rogers Creek. These eventually enter San Pablo Bay south of Sonoma, California.

The southwestern slopes drain to San Pablo Bay by other routes: either Tolay Creek or else some tributary of the Petaluma River such as Lichau Creek, Lynch Creek, or Adobe Creek.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Sonoma Mountains". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved 2009-05-04.
  2. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Sonoma Mountains
  3. ^ Santa Rosa Quadrangle, Fifteen minute series, USGS Quadrangle Map, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington DC (1958)
  4. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Sonoma Mountain

External links[edit]

Media related to Sonoma Mountains at Wikimedia Commons