Sawpit Canyon

Sawpit Canyon is a steep canyon in Southern California’s San Bernardino Mountains, descending from near Monument Peak to a lower mouth now partly altered by Silverwood Lake. A creek once flowed through it to the West Fork Mojave River. Before the reservoir reshaped the lower canyon, this passage formed part of the Mohave Trail, a major route used by Native American traders traveling between the Colorado River region and the Pacific coast. In 1776 Father Francisco Garcés became the first known explorer to follow the route and leave a written account, and in 1826 Jedediah Smith became the first known Anglo-American known to use the trail.

California · United States