The San Rafael Valley is a high intermontane grass valley in eastern

Santa Cruz County, Arizona Santa Cruz is a County (United States), county in southern Arizona, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population is 47,669. The county seat is Nogales, Arizona, Nogales. The county was established in 1899. It b ...

. The valley is bounded to the west by the

Patagonia Mountains The Patagonia Mountains are a mountain range within the Coronado National Forest, and in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States. Geography The Patagonia Mountains begin near the Mexico border east of Nogales, Arizona. Running north, they ...

, to the north and northeast by the

Canelo Hills The Canelo Hills are a range of low mountains or hills in eastern Santa Cruz County, Arizona. The range consists of a series of northwest–southeast trending ridges extending from the Sonoita Creek valley southwest of Sonoita to the Parker Cany ...

and to the east by the

Huachuca Mountains The Huachuca Mountains are part of the Sierra Vista Ranger District of the Coronado National Forest in Cochise County in southeastern Arizona, approximately south-southeast of Tucson and southwest of the city of Sierra Vista. Included in this ar ...

Cochise County Cochise County () is a county in the southeastern corner of the U.S. state of Arizona. It is named after the Native American chief Cochise. The population was 125,447 at the 2020 census. The county seat is Bisbee and the most populous city is ...

. The valley forms the headwaters of the Santa Cruz River which flows south into

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Sonora), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is d ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

just east of the historic Lochiel townsite. The San Rafael de la Zanja Land Grant lies in the valley center just north of Lochiel. The

Nature Conservancy The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US. Founded in 1951, The Natu ...

purchased the former land grant ranch in 1998 and Arizona established the "San Rafael State Natural Area" in the valley in 1999 on the southern part of that property. The protected areas are not open to the public. The land grant is privately owned. The State Natural Area is south of the land grant, and borders Mexico. In 2008, the

San Rafael Ranch The San Rafael Ranch, formerly known as the Greene Ranch, is a historic cattle ranch located in the San Rafael Valley about a mile and a half north of Lochiel, Arizona, near the international border with Sonora, Mexico. History The land that is n ...

headquarters was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

as the "San Rafael Ranch Historic District". Huachuca Mountains From Patagonia Mountains Arizona 2014.JPG, View across the San Rafael Valley towards the Huachuca Mountains. San Raphael Grasslands (4412326574).jpg, The San Rafael Valley with the

Santa Rita Mountains The Santa Rita Mountains (O'odham language, O'odham: To:wa Kuswo Doʼag), located about 65 km (40 mi) southeast of Tucson, Arizona, extend 42 km (26 mi) from north to south, then trending southeast. They merge again southeastw ...

in the background. Cattle Grazing In San Rafael Valley Arizona 2014.JPG, Cattle grazing in San Rafael Valley. Cattle Next To Water Tank San Rafael Valley Arizona 2014.JPG, Cattle next to a water tank.

References

San Rafael State Natural Area – Arizona
{{Authority control Landforms of Santa Cruz County, Arizona Valleys of Arizona Chihuahuan Desert

See also

References