The Spring Mountains are a mountain range of Southern Nevada in the United States , running generally northwest–southeast along the west side of Las Vegas and south to the border with California. Most land in the mountains is owned by the United States Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management and managed as the Spring Mountains National Recreation Area within the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest and the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area .
31-589: The Spring Mountains range is named for the number of springs to be found, many of them in the recesses of Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area , which is on the eastern side of the mountains. The Spring Mountains divide the Pahrump Valley and Amargosa River basins from the Las Vegas Valley watershed, which drains into the Colorado River watershed, by way of Las Vegas Wash into Lake Mead , thus
62-450: A sky island ecosystem . With an area around 860 square miles (2,200 km), and a vertical range of nearly 2 miles (3.2 km), the mountains encompass a wide variety of habitats , and the biological diversity is probably greater than anywhere else in Nevada; 37 species of trees are known (more than any other Nevadan range), and 600 species of vascular plants have been reported from
93-504: A heat source for thousands of years. In the 20th century, they became a renewable resource of geothermal energy for heating homes and buildings. The city of Beppu, Japan contains 2,217 hot spring well heads that provide the city with hot water. Hot springs have also been used as a source of sustainable energy for greenhouse cultivation and the growing of crops and flowers. Springs have been represented in culture through art, mythology, and folklore throughout history. The Fountain of Youth
124-474: A kind of mythic quality in that some people falsely believe that springs are always healthy sources of drinking water. They may or may not be. One must take a comprehensive water quality test to know how to use a spring appropriately, whether for a mineral bath or drinking water. Springs that are managed as spas will already have such a test. Springs are often used as sources for bottled water. When purchasing bottled water labeled as spring water one can often find
155-414: A network of cracks and fissures—openings ranging from intergranular spaces to large caves , later emerging in a spring. The forcing of the spring to the surface can be the result of a confined aquifer in which the recharge area of the spring water table rests at a higher elevation than that of the outlet. Spring water forced to the surface by elevated sources are artesian wells . This is possible even if
186-479: A series of wood-block prints , Two Artists Tour the Seven Hot Springs (Sōhitsu shichitō meguri) in 1854. The Chinese city Jinan is known as "a City of Springs" (Chinese: 泉城), because of its 72 spring attractions and numerous micro spring holes spread over the city centre. Arid Aridity is the condition of a region that severely lacks available water, to the extent of hindering or preventing
217-511: Is a mythical spring which was said to restore youth to anyone who drank from it. It has been claimed that the fountain is located in St. Augustine, Florida , and was discovered by Juan Ponce de León in 1513. However, it has not demonstrated the power to restore youth, and most historians dispute the veracity of Ponce de León's discovery. Pythia, also known as the Oracle at Delphi was the high priestess of
248-481: Is an example of an entire creek vanishing into the groundwater system. The water emerges 9 miles (14 km) away, forming some of the discharge of Mammoth Spring in Arkansas . Human activity may also affect a spring's discharge—withdrawal of groundwater reduces the water pressure in an aquifer, decreasing the volume of flow. Springs fall into three general classifications: perennial (springs that flow constantly during
279-613: Is endemic to the Spring Mountains. Spring (hydrosphere) A spring is a natural exit point at which groundwater emerges from the aquifer and flows onto the top of the Earth's crust ( pedosphere ) to become surface water . It is a component of the hydrosphere , as well as a part of the water cycle . Springs have long been important for humans as a source of fresh water , especially in arid regions which have relatively little annual rainfall . Springs are driven out onto
310-576: Is greater than human body temperature, usually in the range of 45–50 °C (113–122 °F), but they can be hotter. Those springs with water cooler than body temperature but warmer than air temperature are sometimes referred to as warm springs. Hot springs or geothermal springs have been used for balneotherapy , bathing, and relaxation for thousands of years. Because of the folklore surrounding hot springs and their claimed medical value, some have become tourist destinations and locations of physical rehabilitation centers. Hot springs have been used as
341-582: Is protected in the Mount Charleston Wilderness . The main town in the area is also named Mount Charleston (Nevada), which lies in Kyle Canyon. The area is typically 30-40 °F cooler than the valleys below, and it is a popular getaway for Las Vegas residents and visitors. The Lee Canyon (Ski and Snowboard Resort) lies in Lee Canyon on State Highway 156. Strawberry Valley is the gap pass on
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#1733085214085372-411: Is said to result in the absorption of the minerals from the water. Some springs contain arsenic levels that exceed the 10 ppb World Health Organization (WHO) standard for drinking water . Where such springs feed rivers they can also raise the arsenic levels in the rivers above WHO limits. Water from springs is usually clear. However, some springs may be colored by the minerals that are dissolved in
403-648: The Missouri and Arkansas Ozarks , which contain 10 known of first-magnitude; and 11 more in the Thousand Springs area along the Snake River in Idaho . The scale for spring flow is as follows: Minerals become dissolved in the water as it moves through the underground rocks . This mineral content is measured as total dissolved solids (TDS). This may give the water flavor and even carbon dioxide bubbles, depending on
434-559: The Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area alone. The bases of the mountains are part of the Mojave zone dominated by creosote bush and white bursage , then rising to a blackbush scrub zone, followed by a pygmy conifer zone with juniper , pinyon pine , and mountain mahogany , and topped by a montane zone with many species of conifers around Mt. Charleston and its connecting ridges. Palmer's chipmunk
465-578: The Temple of Apollo . She delivered prophesies in a frenzied state of divine possession that were "induced by vapours rising from a chasm in the rock". It is believed that the vapors were emitted from the Kerna spring at Delphi. The Greek myth of Narcissus describes a young man who fell in love with his reflection in the still pool of a spring. Narcissus gazed into "an unmuddied spring, silvery from its glittering waters, which neither shepherds nor she-goats grazing on
496-476: The form of a particular name, an associated legend , the attribution of healing qualities to the water through the numinous presence of its guardian spirit or of a Christian saint , or a ceremony or ritual centered on the well site. Christian legends often recount how the action of a saint caused a spring's water to flow - a familiar theme, especially in the hagiography of Celtic saints. The geothermally heated groundwater that flows from thermal springs
527-540: The growth and development of plant and animal life. Regions with arid climates tend to lack vegetation and are called xeric or desertic . Most arid climates are located in the subtropics ; these regions include parts of Africa , Asia , South America , North America , and Australia . The distribution of aridity at any time is largely the result of the general circulation of the atmosphere . The latter does change significantly over time through climate change . For example, temperature increase by 1.5–2.1 percent across
558-720: The mountain nor any other cattle had touched, which neither bird nor beast nor branch fallen from a tree had disturbed." (Ovid) The early 20th century American photographer, James Reuel Smith created a comprehensive series of photographs documenting the historical springs of New York City before they were capped by the city after the advent of the municipal water system. Smith later photographed springs in Europe leading to his book, Springs and Wells in Greek and Roman Literature, Their Legends and Locations (1922). The 19th century Japanese artists Utagawa Hiroshige and Utagawa Toyokuni III created
589-616: The mountains define part of the boundary of the Great Basin . The Great Basin Divide , (one of the Great Basin region borders) continues north through the Indian Springs Pass region, then turns due east at the perimeter mountain ranges north of Las Vegas. The highest point is Mount Charleston (officially Charleston Peak), at 11,918 ft (3,633 m). The area around Mount Charleston
620-731: The nature of the geology through which it passes. This is why spring water is often bottled and sold as mineral water , although the term is often the subject of deceptive advertising . Mineral water contains no less than 250 parts per million (ppm) of tds. Springs that contain significant amounts of minerals are sometimes called ' mineral springs '. (Springs without such mineral content, meanwhile, are sometimes distinguished as 'sweet springs'.) Springs that contain large amounts of dissolved sodium salts , mostly sodium carbonate , are called 'soda springs'. Many resorts have developed around mineral springs and are known as spa towns . Mineral springs are alleged to have healing properties. Soaking in them
651-460: The north point of the Spring Mountains. U.S. Route 95 in Nevada goes though the pass. Nevada State Route 160 is just west of the Strawberry Valley pass. In addition to Mount Charleston, other major summits in the Spring Mountains range include Bonanza Peak , McFarland Peak , Mummy Mountain , Griffith Peak , Bridge Mountain , Mount Wilson and Mount Potosi . The Spring Mountains are
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#1733085214085682-400: The outlet is in the form of a 300-foot-deep (91 m) cave. In this case the cave is used like a hose by the higher elevated recharge area of groundwater to exit through the lower elevation opening. Non-artesian springs may simply flow from a higher elevation through the earth to a lower elevation and exit in the form of a spring, using the ground like a drainage pipe. Still other springs are
713-430: The recharge include the size of the area in which groundwater is captured, the amount of precipitation, the size of capture points, and the size of the spring outlet. Water may leak into the underground system from many sources including permeable earth, sinkholes, and losing streams . In some cases entire creeks seemingly disappear as the water sinks into the ground via the stream bed. Grand Gulf State Park in Missouri
744-446: The result of pressure from an underground source in the earth, in the form of volcanic or magma activity. The result can be water at elevated temperature and pressure, i.e. hot springs and geysers . The action of the groundwater continually dissolves permeable bedrock such as limestone and dolomite , creating vast cave systems. Spring discharge, or resurgence , is determined by the spring's recharge basin. Factors that affect
775-410: The surface by various natural forces, such as gravity and hydrostatic pressure . A spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater is known as a hot spring . The yield of spring water varies widely from a volumetric flow rate of nearly zero to more than 14,000 litres per second (490 cu ft/s) for the biggest springs. Springs are formed when groundwater flows onto
806-459: The surface. This typically happens when the water table reaches above the surface level, or if the terrain depresses sharply. Springs may also be formed as a result of karst topography , aquifers or volcanic activity . Springs have also been observed on the ocean floor , spewing warmer, low- salinity water directly into the ocean. Springs formed as a result of karst topography create karst springs , in which ground water travels through
837-594: The water test for that spring on the website of the company selling it. Springs have been used as sources of water for gravity-fed irrigation of crops. Indigenous people of the American Southwest built spring-fed acequias that directed water to fields through canals. The Spanish missionaries later used this method. A sacred spring, or holy well, is a small body of water emerging from underground and revered in some religious context: Christian and/or pagan and/or other. The lore and mythology of ancient Greece
868-487: The water. For instance, water heavy with iron or tannins will have an orange color. In parts of the United States a stream carrying the outflow of a spring to a nearby primary stream may be called a spring branch , spring creek , or run. Groundwater tends to maintain a relatively long-term average temperature of its aquifer; so flow from a spring may be cooler than other sources on a summer day, but remain unfrozen in
899-543: The winter. The cool water of a spring and its branch may harbor species such as certain trout that are otherwise ill-suited to a warmer local climate . Springs have been used for a variety of human needs - including drinking water, domestic water supply, irrigation, mills , navigation, and electricity generation . Modern uses include recreational activities such as fishing, swimming, and floating; therapy ; water for livestock; fish hatcheries; and supply for bottled mineral water or bottled spring water. Springs have taken on
930-569: The year); intermittent (temporary springs that are active after rainfall, or during certain seasonal changes); and periodic (as in geysers that vent and erupt at regular or irregular intervals). Springs are often classified by the volume of the water they discharge. The largest springs are called "first-magnitude", defined as springs that discharge water at a rate of at least 2800 liters or 100 cubic feet (2.8 m ) of water per second. Some locations contain many first-magnitude springs, such as Florida where there are at least 27 known to be that size;
961-471: Was replete with sacred and storied springs—notably, the Corycian , Pierian and Castalian springs. In medieval Europe, pagan sacred sites frequently became Christianized as holy wells. The term "holy well" is commonly employed to refer to any water source of limited size (i.e., not a lake or river, but including pools and natural springs and seeps), which has some significance in local folklore . This can take