The San Gorgonio Pass, or Banning Pass, is a 2,600 ft (790 m) elevation[1] gap on the rim of the Great Basin between the San Bernardino Mountains to the north and the San Jacinto Mountains to the south. The pass was formed by the San Andreas Fault, a major transform fault between the Pacific plate and the North American plate that is slipping at a rate of 7.2 ±2.8 mm/year.[2] The tall mountain ranges on either side of the pass result in the pass being a transitional zone from a Mediterranean climate west of the pass, to a Desert climate east of the pass. This also makes the pass area one of the windiest places in the United States, and why it is home to the San Gorgonio Pass wind farm.
It serves as a major transportation corridor between the Greater Los Angeles region and the Coachella Valley, and ultimately into Arizona and the United States interior. Both Interstate 10, and the Union Pacific Railroad, utilize the pass. When the rail line was completed in January, 1883, by the Southern Pacific Railroad, it was billed as the second U.S. transcontinental railroad.[3]
The pass is one of the deepest mountain passes in the 48 contiguous states, with the mountains to either side rising almost 9,000 ft (2,700 m) above it. San Gorgonio Mountain, taller but farther away and less visible, is at the northern side of the pass, and Mount San Jacinto is on the southern side. Mount San Jacinto has the fifth-largest rock wall in North America, and its peak is only six miles south of Interstate 10. The pass is also referred to as the Banning Pass due to the town of Banning being located about 6.5 miles east of the pass summit.[4] The city itself was named for Phineas Banning who founded the town.
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"San Gorgonio Pass". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved 2010-04-04.
SanGorgonio Mountain, also known locally as Mount SanGorgonio, or Old Greyback, is the highest peak in Southern California and the Transverse Ranges...
serves as the southern border of the SanGorgonioPass. Naturalist John Muir wrote of San Jacinto Peak, "The view from San Jacinto is the most sublime spectacle...
northern Riverside County, Southern California. It begins north of SanGorgonioPass, approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) west of Morongo Valley and 10 miles...
SanGorgonio is Spanish for "Saint Gorgonius"; SanGorgonio might also refer to: SanGorgonio Mountain, California, United States SanGorgonioPass, California...
The SanGorgonio River is a 26.8-mile-long (43.1 km) river primarily flowing in western Riverside County, with a small upstream section in southwestern...
Rancho SanGorgonio, or SanGorgonio Rancho, might refer to; Rancho SanGorgonio, a cattle ranch established in the SanGorgoniopass in 1824 by the San Gabriel...
range tops out at 11,503 feet (3,506 m) at SanGorgonio Mountain – the tallest peak in Southern California. The San Bernardinos form a significant region of...
The valley extends approximately 45 mi (72 km) southeast from the SanGorgonioPass to the northern shore of the Salton Sea and the neighboring Imperial...
Coachella and Victor Valleys, respectively on the other sides of the SanGorgonioPass and San Bernardino Mountains from the Santa Ana River watershed that forms...
southern base of the San Bernardino Mountains, crosses through the Cajon Pass and continues northwest along the northern base of the San Gabriel Mountains...
eastward from Politana toward the SanGorgonioPass and settled in a valley that branched off to the northeast from San Timoteo Canyon, at a village named...
more. These include: SanGorgonioPass, the site of the ranch SanGorgonio Mountain, an 11,500 foot peak north of the passSanGorgonio River, a seasonal...
Morongo Reservation is located in Riverside County, California in the SanGorgonioPass. Established as the Portrero Reservation by executive order in 1876...
narrowest part of the canyon on the eastern approach to the summit (as at SanGorgonioPass), where the elevation is about 3,771 feet (1,149 m). The actual high...
complex setting along the San Andreas Fault Zone where it bisects SanGorgonio Mountain and San Jacinto Peak at the SanGorgonioPass and was the first in...
regions: Altamont Pass wind farm (east of San Francisco); Tehachapi Pass wind farm (south east of Bakersfield) and SanGorgonioPass wind farm (near Palm...
through the SanGorgonioPass. Near Cabazon, the aqueduct begins to run underground until it enters the San Jacinto Tunnel at the base of the San Jacinto...
terminates at Lake Perris, in the area of the SanGorgonioPass. It passes through parts of Kern, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, and Riverside counties. East...
Cucamonga Valley San Jacinto Valley San Bernardino Valley San Bernardino Downtown San Bernardino Chino Valley Perris Valley SanGorgonioPassSan Bernardino...
the cities of Palm Springs and Rancho Mirage. SanGorgonioPass separates the range from Mount SanGorgonio to the north. The western slope holds the community...
recording equipment. Filming started on November 20, 2010, at the SanGorgonioPass wind farm near Palm Springs, California. Teams were spotted at Oceanworld...
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