San Gorgonio Pass
| San Gorgonio Pass | |||
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 Part of the San Gorgonio Pass Wind Farm, with Mt. San Jacinto in the background |
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| Compass direction | west | east | |
| Pass height | 485 m | ||
| US state | California ( USA ) | ||
| Valley locations | San Bernardino | Palm Springs | |
| expansion | Railway line |
 Interstate 10
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| Built | 1875 | 1952 | |
| Mountains | San Bernardino Mountains , San Jacinto Mountains | ||
| Map (California) | |||
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| Coordinates | 33 ° 55 '0 " N , 116 ° 45' 3" W | ||
The San Gorgonio Pass (height 485 m) is a mountain pass in the US state of California . It forms the border between the San Bernardino Mountains in the north and the San Jacinto Mountains in the south. The Interstate 10 and a railroad line of the Union Pacific Railroad lead over the pass; In terms of traffic, it thus serves as a connection between the Greater Los Angeles Area and Coachella Valley . The pass is named after St. Gorgonius of Rome .
The San Gorgonio Pass is mainly used by commuters from the San Bernardino Valley who work in Palm Springs , the Coachella Valley or in Phoenix in the neighboring state of Arizona .
geography
Located between the cities of San Bernardino and Palm Springs , the San Gorgonio Pass forms the border of the San Bernardino Mountains and San Jacinto Mountains . Its official height is 485 m and was measured at the narrowest point of the pass at Cabazon , but the highest point is about 790 m in Beaumont . Like the Cajon Pass to the northwest, the San Gorgonio Pass was created by the San Andreas Fault . The San Gorgonio Pass is one of the deepest mountain passes in the Continental United States and is not as steep as the Cajon or Tejon Pass. Mountains at the San Gorgonio Pass are San Gorgonio Mountain in the north and San Jacinto Peak in the south; both are over 3300 m high. The latter has the fifth largest rock face in North America and its summit is 10 km south of Interstate 10 .
Infrastructure
The traffic development of the pass began with the construction of a railway line through the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1875. The tracks are used today by the Union Pacific Railroad . In 1952 a freeway was built over the pass, which is now Interstate 10 . At the highest point of the San Gorgonio Pass in Beaumont it meets California State Route 60 , at the east end of the pass it joins California State Route 111 . On the San Gorgonio Pass and its surroundings there is usually at least one or two snowfalls a year in winter.
The pass is known for the San Gorgonio Pass Wind Farm on its eastern slope. This wind farm marks the entrance to the Coachella Valley and was built in one of the windiest places in Southern California .
Web links
- San Gorgonio Pass Historical Society (English)