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58-624: The Wilderness Area was created by the 1994 California Desert Protection Act, and encompasses 72,575 acres (29,370 ha) of Great Basin wildlands , east of the Owens Valley and west of the Eureka Valley . There are three separate units of the wilderness, separated by vehicle corridors, with elevations from 3,430 feet (1,050 m) to 8,805 feet (2,684 m). The landscape is characterized by steep mountains, narrow canyons, sloping alluvial fans and level floodplains. It includes

116-772: A language in the Numic language group. To close a 1951 Indian Claims Commission case, the Western Shoshone Claims Distribution Act of 2004 established the United States payment of $ 117 million to the Great Basin tribe for the acquisition of 39,000 square miles (100,000 km ). European exploration of the Great Basin occurred during the 18th century Spanish colonization of the Americas . The first immigrant American to cross

174-798: A large portion of Europe drains to the endorheic Caspian Sea, Europe's wet climate means it contains relatively few terminal lakes itself: any such basin is likely to continue to fill until it reaches an overflow level connecting it with an outlet or erodes the barrier blocking its exit. There are some seemingly endorheic lakes, but they are cryptorheic, being drained either through manmade canals , via karstic phenomena, or other subsurface seepage. A few minor true endorheic lakes exist in Spain (e.g. Laguna de Gallocanta , Estany de Banyoles ), Italy , Cyprus ( Larnaca and Akrotiri salt lakes) and Greece . Many small lakes and ponds in North Dakota and

232-709: A mountain range, cutting off water egress to the ocean. The inland water flows into dry watersheds where the water evaporates, leaving a high concentration of minerals and other inflow erosion products. Over time this input of erosion products can cause the endorheic lake to become relatively saline (a " salt lake "). Since the main outflow pathways of these lakes are chiefly through evaporation and seepage, endorheic lakes are usually more sensitive to environmental pollutant inputs than water bodies that have access to oceans, as pollution can be trapped in them and accumulate over time. Endorheic regions can occur in any climate but are most commonly found in desert locations. This reflects

290-523: A redistribution of water from these hydrologically landlocked basins such that endorheic water loss has contributed to sea level rise , and it is estimated that most of the terrestrial water lost ends up in the ocean. In regions such as Central Asia, where people depend on endorheic basins and other surface water sources to satisfy their water needs, human activity greatly impacts the availability of that water. Large endorheic regions in Africa are located in

348-720: A subrange of the Inyo Mountains called the Chocolate Mountains, a northwestern section of the Last Chance Range and the upper end of Eureka Valley which is immediately north of Death Valley National Park . The highest peaks of the wilderness are in the Chocolate Mountains and include Mount Nunn (7,815 feet) and Lime Hill (6,532 feet). The wilderness's namesake Piper Mountain (labeled 'Chocolate Mountain' on topo maps) rises to an elevation of 7,546 feet (2,300 m). The vehicle corridors that break

406-466: Is a drainage basin that normally retains water and allows no outflow to other external bodies of water (e.g. rivers and oceans ); instead, the water drainage flows into permanent and seasonal lakes and swamps that equilibrate through evaporation . Endorheic basins are also called closed basins , terminal basins , and internal drainage systems . Endorheic regions contrast with open lakes (exorheic regions), where surface waters eventually drain into

464-664: Is defined by plant and animal communities, and, according to the National Park Service , its boundaries approximate the hydrographic Great Basin but exclude the southern " panhandle ". The Great Basin Province was defined by botanist Armen Takhtajan to extend well beyond the boundaries of the hydrographically defined Great Basin: it includes the Snake River Plain , the Colorado Plateau ,

522-551: Is nicknamed "The Loneliest Road in America", and Nevada State Route 375 is designated the "Extraterrestrial Highway". The Great Basin is traversed by several rail lines including the Union Pacific Railroad 's Overland Route (Union Pacific Railroad) through Reno and Ogden , Feather River Route , Central Corridor and Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad . There has been a succession of indigenous peoples of

580-403: Is one such case, with annual precipitation of 850 mm (33 in) and characterized by waterlogged soils that require draining. Endorheic regions tend to be far inland with their boundaries defined by mountains or other geological features that block their access to oceans. Since the inflowing water can evacuate only through seepage or evaporation, dried minerals or other products collect in

638-471: Is part of the Great Basin's central Lahontan subregion. The hydrographic Great Basin contains multiple deserts and ecoregions , each with its own distinctive set of flora and fauna. The ecological boundaries and divisions in the Great Basin are unclear. The Great Basin overlaps four different deserts: portions of the hot Mojave and Colorado (a region within the Sonoran Desert ) Deserts to

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696-592: Is slightly misleading; the region comprises many small basins. The Great Salt Lake , Pyramid Lake , and the Humboldt Sink are a few of the "drains" in the Great Basin. The Salton Sink is another closed basin within the Great Basin. The Great Basin Divide separates the Great Basin from the watersheds draining to the Pacific Ocean. The southernmost portion of the Great Basin is the watershed area of

754-522: Is the result of extension and thinning of the lithosphere , which is composed of crust and upper mantle . Extensional environments like the Basin and Range are characterized by listric normal faulting , or faults that level out with depth. Opposing normal faults link at depth producing a horst and graben geometry, where horst refers to the upthrown fault block and graben to the down dropped fault block. Sediment build-up over thousands of years filled

812-560: Is the single most limiting factor when exploring this desert wilderness. Caching water is possible in many locations because of the road corridors through the area. The majority of visitors are students from Deep Springs College in Deep Springs Valley, located between highway 168 and the western edge of the wilderness. Most often hiked is the deep notch of the Soldier Pass Canyon which extends east to west in

870-627: The Bonneville flood . The Malheur / Harney lake system in Oregon is normally cut off from drainage to the ocean, but has an outflow channel to the Malheur River . This is presently dry, but may have flowed as recently as 1,000 years ago. Examples of relatively humid regions in endorheic basins often exist at high elevation. These regions tend to be marshy and are subject to substantial flooding in wet years. The area containing Mexico City

928-599: The Cui-ui sucker fish (endangered 1967) and the Lahontan cutthroat trout (threatened 1970). Large invertebrates include tarantulas (genus Aphonopelma ) and Mormon crickets . Exotic species, including chukar , grey partridge , and Himalayan snowcock , have been successfully introduced to the Great Basin, although the latter has only thrived in the Ruby Mountains . Cheatgrass , an invasive species which

986-702: The Great Basin fence lizard , longnose leopard lizard and horned lizard are common, especially in lower elevations. Rattlesnakes and gopher snakes are also present. The Inyo Mountains salamander is endangered. Shorebirds such as phalaropes and curlews can be found in wet areas. American white pelicans are common at Pyramid Lake . Golden eagles are also very common in the Great Basin. Mourning dove , western meadowlark , black-billed magpie , and common raven are other common bird species. Two endangered species of fish are found in Pyramid Lake:

1044-698: The Laguna Salada . The Great Basin's longest and largest river is the Bear River of 350 mi (560 km), and the largest single watershed is the Humboldt River drainage of roughly 17,000 sq mi (44,000 km ). Most Great Basin precipitation is snow, and the precipitation that neither evaporates nor is extracted for human use will sink into groundwater aquifers , while evaporation of collected water occurs from geographic sinks . Lake Tahoe , North America's largest alpine lake ,

1102-942: The Sahara Desert , the Sahel , the Kalahari Desert , and the East African Rift : Endorheic lakes exist in Antarctica's McMurdo Dry Valleys , Victoria Land , the largest ice-free area. Much of Western and Central Asia is a giant endorheic region made up of a number of contiguous closed basins. The region contains several basins and terminal lakes, including: Other endorheic lakes and basins in Asia include: Australia , being very dry and having exceedingly low runoff ratios due to its ancient soils, has many endorheic drainages. The most important are: Though

1160-685: The Uinta Basin , and parts of Arizona north of the Mogollon Rim . The Great Basin physiographic section is a geographic division of the Basin and Range Province defined by Nevin Fenneman in 1931. The United States Geological Survey adapted Fenneman's scheme in their Physiographic division of the United States . The "section" is somewhat larger than the hydrographic definition. The Great Basin culture area , or indigenous peoples of

1218-535: The Basin and Range Province contains the Great Basin, but extends into eastern Oregon , southern Idaho , and the Colorado River watershed and the northwest corner of Arizona ). The Basin and Range region is the product of geological forces stretching the Earth's crust, creating many north–south trending mountain ranges. These ranges are separated by flat valleys or basins. These hundreds of ranges make Nevada

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1276-477: The Chocolate Mountains. Maps dating to 1879 show a "Soldier Pass" label. The eastern face of the Chocolate Mountains rise 2,000 feet (610 m) above the canyon mouth with the canyon narrowing as it rises in elevation. The broad saddle of Soldier Pass is gained after 3.2 miles (5.1 km) and is at an elevation of 5,500 feet (1,700 m). The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) encourages the practice of Leave No Trace principles of wilderness travel to help protect

1334-564: The Fremont built small villages and grew crops like corn and squash. Seven hundred years ago, the Shoshone inhabited the area after the Fremont. They were hunter-gathers and lived in temporary homes to be able to follow animal herds and collect plants. Now, Shoshone descendants live in nearby areas. Other tribes in the area included the Ute , Mono , and Northern Paiute . All of the tribes speak

1392-453: The French word endoréisme , which combines endo- ( Ancient Greek : ἔνδον éndon 'within') and ῥεῖν rheîn 'flow'. Endorheic lakes (terminal lakes) are bodies of water that do not flow into an ocean or a sea. Most of the water that falls to Earth percolates into the oceans and the seas by way of a network of rivers, lakes, and wetlands . Analogous to endorheic lakes is

1450-580: The Great Basin , is a cultural classification of indigenous peoples of the Americas and a cultural region located between the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada. The culture area covers approximately 400,000 sq mi (1,000,000 km ), or just less than twice the area of the hydrographic Great Basin. The hydrographic Great Basin is a 209,162-square-mile (541,730 km ) area that once drained internally. All precipitation in

1508-466: The Great Basin . Paleo-Indian habitation by the Great Basin tribes began as early as 10,000 B.C. . Archaeological evidence of habitation sites along the shore of Lake Lahontan date from the end of the ice age when its shoreline was approximately 500 feet (150 m) higher along the sides of the surrounding mountains. The Paleo-Indians were mainly hunters and hunted bison, the extinct mammoth, and extinct ground sloth. For housing, since they followed

1566-711: The Great Basin from the Sierra Nevada was Jedediah Strong Smith in 1827. Peter Skene Ogden of the British Hudson's Bay Company explored the Great Salt Lake and Humboldt River regions in the late 1820s, following the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada to the Gulf of California. Benjamin Bonneville explored the northeast portion during an 1832 expedition . The United States had acquired claims to

1624-745: The Great Basin into three ecoregions roughly according to latitude: the Northern Basin and Range ecoregion , the Central Basin and Range ecoregion , and the Mojave Basin and Range ecoregion . Great Basin wildlife includes pronghorn , mule deer , mountain lion , and lagomorphs such as black-tailed jackrabbit and desert cottontail and the coyotes that prey on them. Packrats , kangaroo rats and other small rodents are also common, and are predominantly nocturnal. Elk and bighorn sheep are present but uncommon. Small lizards such as

1682-579: The North American low point at Badwater Basin in Death Valley to the highest point of the contiguous United States , less than 100 miles (160 km) away at the summit of Mount Whitney . The region spans several physiographic divisions, biomes , ecoregions , and deserts . The term "Great Basin" is applied to hydrographic , biological , floristic , physiographic, topographic , and ethnographic geographic areas. The name

1740-615: The animals they were hunting, they had no permanent villages. The next group to live in the area was the Great Basin Desert Archaic, from approximately 9,000 to 1,500 years ago. They hunted animals like mule deer and antelope and gathered onions, wild rye, and pinyon pine nuts. Then, from 1,500 to 700 years ago, the Fremont lived in the area. Unlike the Paleo-Indians, who moved around to follow bison herds,

1798-493: The balance between tectonic subsidence and rates of evaporation and sedimentation. Where the basin floor is dropping more rapidly than water and sediments can accumulate, any lake in the basin will remain below the sill level (the level at which water can find a path out of the basin). Low rainfall or rapid evaporation in the watershed favor this case. In areas where rainfall is higher, riparian erosion will generally carve drainage channels (particularly in times of flood), or cause

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1856-539: The basin experiences a semi-arid or arid climate with warm summers and cold winters. However, some of the mountainous areas in the basin are high enough in elevation to experience an alpine climate . Due to the region's altitude and aridity, most areas in the Great Basin experience a substantial diurnal temperature variation . Endorheic basin An endorheic basin ( / ˌ ɛ n d oʊ ˈ r iː . ɪ k / EN -doh- REE -ik ; also endoreic basin and endorreic basin )

1914-408: The basin, eventually making the water saline and also making the basin vulnerable to pollution. Continents vary in their concentration of endorheic regions due to conditions of geography and climate. Australia has the highest percentage of endorheic regions at 21 per cent while North America has the least at five per cent. Approximately 18 per cent of the Earth's land drains to endorheic lakes or seas,

1972-537: The class of bodies of water located in closed watersheds (endorheic watersheds) where the local topography prevents the drainage of water into the oceans and the seas. These endorheic watersheds (containing water in rivers or lakes that form a balance of surface inflows, evaporation and seepage) are often called sinks. Endorheic lakes are typically located in the interior of a landmass, far from an ocean, and in areas of relatively low rainfall. Their watersheds are often confined by natural geologic land formations such as

2030-842: The continuity of the Piper Wilderness Area into three parts were a concession made when the area was added to the California Desert Protection Act. Desert vegetation include xeric shrublands of Creosote bush ( Larrea tridentata ) in the lower valleys. Plants in the higher elevations include: Shadscale ( Atriplex confertifolia ), Littleleaf Horsebrush ( Tetradymia axillaris ), Stansbury cliffrose ( Purshia stansburiana ), Desert-olive ( Forestiera pubescens ) and Mormon tea ( Ephedra californica ) on . North-facing high elevation slopes are studded with Single-leaf Pinyon ( Pinus monophylla ) and California juniper ( Juniperus californica ). Within

2088-564: The degree that a lake no longer forms. Even most permanent endorheic lakes change size and shape dramatically over time, often becoming much smaller or breaking into several smaller parts during the dry season. As humans have expanded into previously uninhabitable desert areas, the river systems that feed many endorheic lakes have been altered by the construction of dams and aqueducts. As a result, many endorheic lakes in developed or developing countries have contracted dramatically, resulting in increased salinity, higher concentrations of pollutants, and

2146-440: The disruption of ecosystems. Even within exorheic basins, there can be "non-contributing", low-lying areas that trap runoff and prevent it from contributing to flows downstream during years of average or below-average runoff. In flat river basins, non-contributing areas can be a large fraction of the river basin, e.g. Lake Winnipeg 's basin. A lake may be endorheic during dry years and can overflow its basin during wet years, e.g.,

2204-687: The down-faulted basins between ranges and created relatively flat lacustrine plains from Pleistocene lake beds of the Great Basin. For example, after forming about 32,000 years ago , Lake Bonneville overflowed about 14,500 years ago in the Bonneville Flood through Red Rock Pass and lowered to the "Provo Lake" level (the Great Salt Lake , Utah Lake , Sevier Lake , Rush Lake , and Little Salt Lake remain). Lake Lahontan , Lake Manly , and Lake Mojave were similar Pleistocene lakes. The Great Basin physiographic section of

2262-733: The eastern regions of the 1848 California Gold Rush , with its immigrants crossing the Great Basin on the California Trail along Nevada's Humboldt River to Carson Pass in the Sierras. The Oregon Territory was established in 1848 and the Utah Territory in 1850. In 1869 the First transcontinental railroad was completed at Promontory Summit in the Great Basin. Around 1902, the San Pedro, Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad

2320-402: The elevation increases, the temperature decreases and precipitation increases. Because of this, forests can occur at higher elevations. Utah juniper / single-leaf pinyon (southern regions) and mountain mahogany (northern regions) form open pinyon-juniper woodland on the slopes of most ranges. Stands of limber pine and Great Basin bristlecone pine ( Pinus longaeva ) can be found in some of

2378-783: The former Tulare Lake . Because the Earth's climate has recently been through a warming and drying phase with the end of the Ice Ages, many endorheic areas such as Death Valley that are now dry deserts were large lakes relatively recently. During the last ice age, the Sahara may have contained lakes larger than any now existing. Climate change coupled with the mismanagement of water in these endorheic regions has led to devastating losses in ecosystem services and toxic surges of pollutants. The desiccation of saline lakes produces fine dust particles that impair agriculture productivity and harm human health. Anthropogenic activity has also caused

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2436-570: The fragile desert environment. Great Basin The Great Basin ( Spanish : Gran Cuenca ) is the largest area of contiguous endorheic watersheds , those with no outlets to the ocean, in North America . It spans nearly all of Nevada , much of Utah , and portions of California , Idaho , Oregon , Wyoming , and Baja California . It is noted for both its arid climate and the basin and range topography that varies from

2494-517: The higher ranges. In riparian areas with dependable water cottonwoods ( Populus fremontii ) and quaking aspen ( Populus tremuloides ) groves exist. Because the forest ecosystem is distinct from a typical desert, some authorities, such as the World Wildlife Fund , separate the mountains of the Great Basin desert into their own ecoregion: the Great Basin montane forests . Many rare and endemic species occur in this ecoregion, because

2552-598: The individual mountain ranges are isolated from each other. During the Last Glacial Period , the Great Basin was wetter. As it dried during the Holocene epoch, some species retreated to the higher isolated mountains and have high genetic diversity. Other authorities divide the Great Basin into different ecoregions, depending on their own criteria. Armen Takhtajan defined the "Great Basin floristic province". The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency divides

2610-422: The largest of these land areas being the interior of Asia. In deserts, water inflow is low and loss to solar evaporation high, drastically reducing the formation of complete drainage systems . In the extreme case, where there is no discernible drainage system, the basin is described as arheic . Closed water flow areas often lead to the concentration of salts and other minerals in the basin. Minerals leached from

2668-536: The most mountainous state in the country. The Great Basin's two most populous metropolitan areas are the Reno-Sparks metropolitan area to the west and the Wasatch Front to the east (with the latter being significantly more populous than the former). The region between these two areas is sparsely populated, but includes the smaller cities of Elko , Ely , Wendover , West Wendover , and Winnemucca . To

2726-903: The north are; in California Susanville , in Oregon Burns and Hines , in Idaho Malad and in Wyoming Evanston . To the south are Cedar City , Tonopah , and Bishop and the very southern area of the basin has the communities of Pahrump , Palmdale , Victorville , and Palm Springs . Interstate Highways traversing the Great Basin are Interstate 80 (I-80) and I-15 , and I-70 and I-84 have their respective endpoints within its boundaries. Other major roadways are U.S. Route 6 (US 6), US 50 , US 93 , US 95 and US 395 . The section of US 50 between Delta, Utah , and Fallon, Nevada ,

2784-462: The ocean. In general, water basins with subsurface outflows that lead to the ocean are not considered endorheic; but cryptorheic . Endorheic basins constitute local base levels , defining a limit of the erosion and deposition processes of nearby areas. Endorheic water bodies include the Caspian Sea , which is the world's largest inland body of water. The term endorheic derives from

2842-837: The region evaporated, sank underground or flowed into lakes (mostly saline). As observed by Fremont, creeks, streams, or rivers find no outlet to either the Gulf of Mexico or the Pacific Ocean . The region is bounded by the Wasatch Mountains to the east, the Sierra Nevada and Cascade Ranges to the west, and the Snake River Basin to the north. The south rim is less distinct. The Great Basin includes most of Nevada , half of Utah , substantial portions of Oregon and California , and small areas of Idaho , Wyoming , and Baja California, Mexico . The term "Great Basin"

2900-481: The south, and the cold Great Basin and Oregon High Deserts in the north. The deserts can be distinguished by their plants: the Joshua tree and creosote bush occur in the hot deserts, while the cold deserts have neither. The cold deserts are generally higher than the hot and have more even spread of precipitation throughout the year. The climate and flora of the Great Basin are strongly dependent on elevation; as

2958-599: The surrounding rocks are deposited in the basin, and left behind when the water evaporates. Thus endorheic basins often contain extensive salt pans (also called salt flats, salt lakes, alkali flats , dry lake beds, or playas). These areas tend to be large, flat hardened surfaces and are sometimes used for aviation runways , or land speed record attempts, because of their extensive areas of perfectly level terrain. Both permanent and seasonal endorheic lakes can form in endorheic basins. Some endorheic basins are essentially stable because climate change has reduced precipitation to

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3016-615: The territory north of the 42nd parallel via the 1819 Adams–Onís Treaty with Spain and 1846 Oregon Treaty with Britain. The US gained claims to most of the rest of the Great Basin via the 1848 Mexican Cession . The first non-indigenous settlement was in 1847 in the Great Salt Lake Valley, leading to the first American religious settlement effort of the Mormon provisional State of Deseret in 1849 in present-day Utah and northern Nevada. Later settlements were connected with

3074-495: The water level in the terminal lake to rise until it finds an outlet, breaking the enclosed endorheic hydrological system's geographical barrier and opening it to the surrounding terrain. The Black Sea was likely such a lake, having once been an independent hydrological system before the Mediterranean Sea broke through the terrain separating the two. Lake Bonneville was another such lake, overflowing its basin in

3132-410: The wilderness grows one of the northernmost stands of Joshua Tree ( Yucca brevifolia ), at the base of the Inyo Mountains. Rare wildflowers include black milkvetch or Funeral Mountain milkvetch ( Astragalus funereus ), and the cactus Redspined fishhook cactus or Mojave fish hook cactus ( Sclerocactus polyancistrus ), which grows in Joshua tree "woodland" communities. There are three areas within

3190-479: The wilderness that are habitat for the Desert Bighorn Sheep . Recreational opportunities are day-hiking and backpacking with solitude almost guaranteed as the wilderness is very lightly used. The Bureau of Land Management oversees the Piper Wilderness and does not require any permits for visitors. Because the Piper Mountain Wilderness Area received federal protection so recently, the 19 miles (31 km) of trail are actually closed four-wheel drive roads. Water

3248-402: Was constructed in the lower basin and Mojave Desert for California-Nevada rail service to Las Vegas, Nevada. The climate varies throughout the Great Basin by elevation, latitude, and other factors. Higher elevations tend to be cooler and receive more precipitation. The western areas of the basin tend to be drier than the eastern areas because of the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada . Most of

3306-504: Was originally coined by John C. Frémont , who, based on information gleaned from Joseph R. Walker as well as his own travels, recognized the hydrographic nature of the landform as "having no connection to the ocean". The hydrographic definition is the most commonly used, and is the only one with a definitive border. The other definitions yield not only different geographical boundaries of "Great Basin" regions but regional borders that vary from source to source. The Great Basin Desert

3364-422: Was unintentionally introduced, forms a critical portion of their diets. Feral horses ( mustangs ) and feral burros are highly reproductive, and ecosystem-controversial, alien species. Most of the Great Basin is open range and domestic cattle and sheep are widespread. The Great Basin includes valleys, basins, lakes and mountain ranges of the Basin and Range Province . The basin and range topography

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