Sonoita Creek is a tributary stream of the Santa Cruz River in Santa Cruz County, Arizona. It originates near and takes its name from the abandoned Pima mission in the high valley near Sonoita. It flows steadily for the first 15 miles (24 km) of its westward course past Patagonia, its bird sanctuary and Patagonia Lake, but sinks beneath the sand seven to eight miles (11 to 13 km) before joining the Santa Cruz River a few miles north of Nogales. This confluence provides water for Tumacácori and Tubac and collects in the marsh lands around San Xavier del Bac downstream, to the north. The Santa Rita Mountains lie to the north and the Canelo Hills, Red Mountain and the Patagonia Mountains lie to the south. Harshaw Creek is a southern tributary which joins the Sonoita near Patagonia. Harshaw Creek drains the area between the Patagonia Mountains to the west and the high San Rafael Valley grasslands to the east. The ghost town of Harshaw lies within its watershed.
Sonoita Creek contains black bullhead, red shiner, mosquitofish, crayfish, American bullfrogs, largemouth bass, Gila topminnows, speckled dace, longfin dace, Sonora suckers, and desert suckers.[4]
The New Mexico and Arizona Railroad paralleled the Sonoita Creek for a portion of the railroad's route. The route ran from a connection with the Southern Pacific Railroad in Benson, then south to Fairbank (about 13 km or 8 miles west of Tombstone) then west to Sonoita – Patagonia and Rio Rico, then south to Nogales. The railroad was constructed in 1881–82 and was abandoned in five phases between 1927 and 1962. Only 15.74 km (9.78 mi) of track remains in place today, from Rio Rico to Nogales, and is operated by the Union Pacific Railroad.
Riparian forest along Sonoita Creek, southwest of Patagonia Lake
SonoitaCreek is a tributary stream of the Santa Cruz River in Santa Cruz County, Arizona. It originates near and takes its name from the abandoned Pima...
Wash Rincon Creek Ciénega Creek Agua Verde Creek Davidson Canyon Mescal Arroyo SonoitaCreek Harshaw Creek San Pedro River Aravaipa Creek Babocomari River...
Mountains, which continue north beyond SonoitaCreek. The Santa Rita Mountains line up to the north across the Sonoita Valley. Both the Patagonias and the...
Oak Creek Canyon is a river gorge located in northern Arizona between the cities of Flagstaff and Sedona. The canyon is often described as a smaller cousin...
and started a ranch. The August 26, 1860 United States Census for the SonoitaCreek settlement in the Arizona Territory indicates that Felix Ward was 12...
Havasu Creek is a stream in the U.S. state of Arizona associated with the Havasupai people. It is a tributary to the Colorado River, which it enters in...
Mountains, and is one of three drainages of the Sonoita Basin, the other two being SonoitaCreek and Cienega Creek. Vegetation consists of riparian trees along...
Peak Red Rock Riordan Mansion Roper Lake San Rafael Ranch Slide Rock SonoitaCreek Tombstone Courthouse Tonto Natural Bridge Tubac Presidio Yuma Quartermaster...
help control the new land, the US Army established Fort Buchanan on SonoitaCreek in present-day southern Arizona on November 17, 1856. The difficulty...
- Flora italiana McLaughlin, Stephen P. (2006). "Vascular floras of SonoitaCreek State Natural Area and San Rafael State Park: Arizona's first natural-area...
direction toward the community of Patagonia, where it joins with SonoitaCreek. Most of Harshaw Creek is ephemeral and experiences its greatest stream-flow after...
recently established SonoitaCreek State Natural Area, Arizona's first major state natural area. Created by the damming of SonoitaCreek, the lake is habitat...
Fossil Creek (Yavapai: Hakhavsuwa or Vialnyucha) is a perennial stream accessed by forest roads near the community of Camp Verde in the U.S. state of...
Slide Rock State Park is an Arizona State Park located in Oak Creek Canyon 7 miles (11 km) north of Sedona, Arizona, United States. It takes its name...
round. Walking tours include the Rim Trail, which runs west from the Pipe Creek viewpoint for about eight miles (13 km) of paved road, followed by seven...
Babocomari River Ciénega Creek Harshaw Creek Santa Cruz River SonoitaCreek Yavapai County Agua Fria River Fossil Creek Granite Creek Hassayampa River Verde...
Rock Riordan Mansion River Island Roper Lake San Rafael Slide Rock SonoitaCreek Tombstone Courthouse Tonto Natural Bridge Tubac Presidio Verde River...
Rock Riordan Mansion River Island Roper Lake San Rafael Slide Rock SonoitaCreek Tombstone Courthouse Tonto Natural Bridge Tubac Presidio Verde River...
trace their ancestries to early immigrants from the Montezuma Castle/Beaver Creek area. Archaeological evidence proves that the Hohokam and Hakataya settled...
Tonto Creek is a 72.5-mile-long (116.7 km) stream located in the Mogollon Rim area of the state of Arizona on the north edge of the Tonto National Forest...
Retrieved 2012-03-16. "USGS Gage #09432000 on the Gila River Below Blue Creek, Near Virden, NM" (PDF). National Water Information System. U.S. Geological...
Global Information
Riparian forest along Sonoita Creek, southwest of Patagonia Lake
Sonoita Creek in the summer of 2014
A great blue heron walking along Sonoita Creek
