Warner Mountains

{{Short description|Mountain range in California and Oregon, United States}} {{Use mdy dates|date=February 2026}} {{Use American English|date=February 2026}} {{Infobox mountain  | name= Warner Mountains | native_name= | other_name=  | etymology=  | image= Warner Mountains, NE California.jpg | image_caption= The Jess Valley and the Warner Mountains in northeastern California  | country= United States | subdivision1_type= States | subdivision1= {{hlist|California|Oregon}} | subdivision2_type= Region | subdivision3_type= Districts | subdivision3= {{hlist|[[Modoc County, California|Modoc County]]|[[Lassen County, California|Lassen County]]|[[Lake County, Oregon|Lake County]]}} | topo_map= Davis Creek | topo_maker= [[USGS]]   | range_coordinates= {{coord|41|26|59.619|N|120|15|3.807|W|type:mountain_scale:300000|format=dms|display=inline,title}} | highest= [[Eagle Peak (Modoc County, California)|Eagle Peak]] | elevation_m= | elevation_ft= 9892 | coordinates= | length_mi= | length_orientation= | width_mi= | width_orientation= | area_mi2=  | geology= | orogeny=  | image_map= Wpdms shdrlfi020l warner mountains.jpg | map_caption= Warner Mountains in California and Oregon<ref name="gnis">{{cite gnis|id= 268783|name=Warner Mountains|access-date= 2009-05-03}}</ref> }}

The '''Warner Mountains''' are an {{convert|85|mi|km|adj=mid|-long}} [[mountain range]] running north–south through northeastern [[California]] and extending into southern [[Oregon]] in the [[northwestern United States|United States]]. The range lies within the northwestern corner of the [[Basin and Range Province]], extending from the northeastern corner of [[Lassen County, California]], through eastern [[Modoc County, California]] (east of [[Alturas, California|Alturas]]), and northward into [[Lake County, Oregon]] (east of [[Lakeview, Oregon|Lakeview]]).

The highest peak in the range is [[Eagle Peak (Modoc County, California)|Eagle Peak]] with an elevation of {{convert|9892|ft|m}}. The range is part of the [[Modoc National Forest]] in California and [[Fremont-Winema National Forests|Fremont National Forest]] in Oregon. The southern portion of the range includes Eagle Peak and [[Warren Peak (California)|Warren Peak]], within the [[South Warner Wilderness]].

==Geography== The Warner Range is not part of the [[Sierra Nevada (U.S.)|Sierra Nevada]] range or the [[Cascade Range]], but part of the [[Great Basin]] Ranges. It is in the semi-arid, sparsely populated northeastern corner of California and the south-central portion of Oregon. The range is a classic example of [[horst and graben]] (fault-block) topography with [[pluvial lake|pluvial (ephemeral) lakes]] occupying the graben basins.

The eastern escarpment of the range overlooks the [[Surprise Valley (Modoc County, California)|Surprise Valley]] in California and [[Warner Valley]] in Oregon, enclosed basins that contain [[Upper Alkali Lake]], [[Middle Alkali Lake]], and [[Lower Alkali Lake]] along the [[California]]–[[Nevada]] border, and the [[Warner Lakes]] ([[Crump Lake|Crump]] and [[Hart Lake (Oregon)|Hart]] lakes) in Oregon. The western side of the range overlooks a ranching and farming region drained by the forks of the [[Pit River]], a tributary of the [[Sacramento River]]. [[Goose Lake (Oregon–California)|Goose Lake]] is a {{convert|28|mi|km|adj=on}} long closed-basin lake located in the [[Goose Lake Valley]] along the west side of the range, straddling the California–Oregon border.<ref name=atlas>''Atlas of Oregon Lakes'', [[Oregon State University Press]].</ref> Goose Lake drained into the Pit River only twice in recorded history: in 1868 and 1881. The lake dried up in 1926 and from 1929 to 1934.

==Climate==

Here is climate data gathered from Dismal Swamp near the California-Oregon border at around 7300 feet which shows typical climate patterns that are common for the region.

==History== The [[Fandango Pass]] in the Warner Mountains was on the [[Applegate Trail|Lassen-Applegate Trail]] used by emigrants from 1846 to 1850 as an alternate route to the [[Willamette Valley]] in Oregon and the [[California Gold Rush|gold fields of California]].<ref name=journal1991>''The Journal of the Modoc County Historical Society'', Warner Mountain issue, 1991.</ref> After reaching Goose Lake, the emigrant trains often split, with some continuing to the Willamette Valley and others continuing to the gold fields.

A [[gold rush|gold-mining rush]] occurred in the Warner Mountains in 1912. A number of mines were developed briefly in what was known as the High Grade Mining District just adjacent to the Oregon border in Modoc County, California.<ref name=hill>Hill, James. ''Some Mining Districts in Northeastern California and Northwestern Nevada'', [[U.S. Geological Survey]], Bulletin 594, 1915.</ref>

Great quantities of lumber were removed from the Warner Mountains beginning as early as 1920. [[Ponderosa pine]] logs were used to supply active sawmills and box factories at Lakeview, Oregon; Alturas, California; and Willow Ranch, California. The sawmill and box factory at Willow Ranch near the Oregon–California border was a [[company town]] with a population over 1,000 during the 1930s and 1940s. The operation closed in 1958.

==Namesake== The range was named after explorer Captain [[William H. Warner]], of the [[United States Army Corps of Engineers#History|U.S. Army Corps of Topographical Engineers]], who was killed in the range by [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]] on September 26, 1849, while exploring a route for potential railroad crossings of the Sierra Nevada.<ref name=barry>Barry, Patricia. ''In Search of Captain Warner'', Maverick Publications, 1995.</ref> His remains were never found and his name appeared on maps of the range in 1866.

[[Camp Warner]] was established in the northern portion of the Warner Range in Oregon in 1867 by General [[George Crook]] to "pacify" the Indians.<ref name=gilliss>Gilliss, Julia. ''So Far From Home: An Army Bride on the Western Frontier 1865-1869'', [[Oregon Historical Society]], 1993.</ref> The post was abandoned in 1874. Crook Peak, elevation {{convert|7834|ft|m}} in the Warner Range near Camp Warner, is named after Crook.

==See also== *[[Crane Creek Lumber Company]] *[[Infernal Caverns]] *[[Oregon Outback]] *[[Northern Paiute|Paiute]]

== References == {{Reflist}}

== External links == * {{Commons category-inline|Warner Mountains}}

[[Category:Mountain ranges of Modoc County, California]] [[Category:Mountain ranges of Lassen County, California]] [[Category:Mountain ranges of the Great Basin]] [[Category:Mountain ranges of Oregon]] [[Category:Mountain ranges of Lake County, Oregon]] [[Category:Modoc Plateau]] [[Category:Mountain ranges of Northern California]] [[Category:Horsts (geology)]]