Pinacate Peaks

Pinacate Peaks in northwestern Sonora, Mexico, form a young volcanic mountain group rising from the edge of the Gran Desierto de Altar near Arizona and Puerto Peñasco. Their highest summit, Cerro del Pinacate or Volcán Santa Clara, reaches 3,904 feet. Formed by eruptions beginning about 4 million years ago and lasting until roughly 11,000 years ago, the region contains more than 400 cinder cones, nine major craters, and broad basalt and lava fields. Its harsh desert also supports species such as the elephant tree and endangered Sonoran pronghorn. Explored by Padre Eusebio Kino and later used by NASA for Apollo astronaut training, it is now protected within the El Pinacate y Gran Desierto de Altar Biosphere Reserve.

Sonora · Mexico