Lanfair Valley is located in the

Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily ...

in southeastern

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

near the

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

state line. It is bounded on the north by the

New York Mountains The New York Mountains are a small mountain range found in northeastern San Bernardino County in California, USA. The range's northeastern area lies in southeastern Nevada. The range lies just south of the small community of Ivanpah, and north ...

and Castle Mountains, on the east by the Piute Range, and on the south by the

Woods Mountains The Woods Mountains are found in southeastern California in the Mojave Desert, at the southwestern end of the Lanfair Valley just east of Hole-in-the-Wall. The mountains are located in the Mojave National Preserve north of Interstate 40 and the Cli ...

and Vontrigger Hills.

Joshua Tree ''Yucca brevifolia'' is a plant species belonging to the genus ''Yucca''. It is tree-like in habit, which is reflected in its common names: Joshua tree, yucca palm, tree yucca, and palm tree yucca. This monocotyledonous tree is native to the ar ...

s can be found in most of the valley. Elevation is 4,045 feet. The valley proper is drained southeastwards, then due south by the

Sacramento Wash The Sacramento Wash is a major drainage of northwest Arizona in Mohave County, Arizona, Mohave County. The wash is east of the Black Canyon of the Colorado and drains into the south-flowing Colorado River 45 mi south of Lake Mohave, and 90&n ...

; the wash then turns due-east and combines with the Piute Wash drainage (south out of

), to immediately enter the west bank of the

Colorado River The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. s ...

. The dual valley drainage is a U-shape, and the first major ''dry

wash WASH (or Watsan, WaSH) is an acronym that stands for "water, sanitation and hygiene". It is used widely by non-governmental organizations and aid agencies in developing countries. The purposes of providing access to WASH services include achievi ...

'' drainage from the west, into the Colorado, south of

Lake Mead Lake Mead is a reservoir formed by the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River in the Southwestern United States. It is located in the states of Nevada and Arizona, east of Las Vegas. It is the largest reservoir in the US in terms of water capacity. L ...

Mojave Road

The Old Mojave Road traverses the valley center, west to east. It passes eastwards just south of center at the Piute Range, and then through a central-southern stretch of the

Piute Valley The Piute Valley is a north–south valley southeast of Las Vegas, Nevada, and northwest of Needles. The north of the valley is at Searchlight, with some of the valley extending northwest from Searchlight. At the center-north lies Cal-Nev-Ari ...

to its eastern terminus at ''north of AVI Casino across from FT. Mohave AZ'', west bank of the

opposite Fort Mohave Mesa, Arizona,

Castle Mountains National Monument

---- The Castle Mountains National Monument is part of the north and northeast perimeter of Lanfair Valley, (its watershed). The Castle Mountains (California) proper is on the water divide between the headwaters of a south-flowing section of Lanfair Valley, and a northwesterly section of the south-flowing Piute Wash of

(the similar south-trending valley and wash adjacent east). The central part of the valley contains the Grotto Hills (also known as Giotto Hills) and Lanfair Buttes.

Lanfair, California

The valley is home to the Lanfair

ghost town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * ''Ghost Town'' (1956 film), an American Western film by All ...

at the intersection of Cedar Canyon Road and Lanfair Road. While once thriving, all that is now left of the town of Lanfair is rubble. Both Lanfair Valley, and its ghost town, are named for Ernest L. Lanfair, a settlement owner. Tens of thousand of acres in the valley are privately held, despite being located in the

Mojave National Preserve Mojave National Preserve is a United States National Preserve located in the Mojave Desert of San Bernardino County, California, USA, between Interstate 15 and Interstate 40. The preserve was established October 31, 1994, with the passage of ...

. Few people live in the valley today, but at one time there were schools, farms,

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional ser ...

s, and even a

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

Geography

The

Hart Hart often refers to: * Hart (deer) Hart may also refer to: Organizations * Hart Racing Engines, a former Formula One engine manufacturer * Hart Skis, US ski manufacturer * Hart Stores, a Canadian chain of department stores * Hart's Reptile Wo ...

ghost town site in the northeast of the Lanfair Valley is located at . Lanfair ghost town site is located at .

References

* * Casebier, Dennis G. ''Lanfair Valley - A Black Homesteading Experience''

External links

Ghost Towns (and Historic Towns) of Mojave National Preserve, (coord, Lanfair)
File:New York Mountains Road 2.jpg, complete west-to-east Lanfair Valley vista to Piute Range (from foothills of