The Bill Williams Basin is the largest basin in the planning area at 3,350 square miles and occupies the entire southern portion of the planning area. Geographic features and principal communities are shown on Figure 4.2-1.  The basin is characterized by hilly terrain in much of the basin and by several major river drainages.  There is a range of vegetation types including Arizona upland and Lower Colorado River Sonoran desertscrub, semi-desert grassland, interior chaparral and Great Basin conifer woodland. (see Figure 4.0-9)  Riparian vegetation is found along streams including cottonwood/willow, mesquite and tamarisk along the Bill Williams, Big Sandy and Santa Maria Rivers and mesquite, cottonwood/willow and mixed broadleaf along sections of Burro Creek.

Principal geographic features shown on Figure 4.2-1 are:

• Alamo Lake east of Swansea

• A short segment of the Colorado River at the California border, with the lowest point in the basin, approximately 470 feet.

• The Bill Williams River flowing from east to west along the La Paz County/Mohave County boundary and its major tributary, the Santa Maria River

• Burro Creek in the north central part of the basin

• Kirkland Creek in the southeastern part of the basin

• Buckskin Mountains in La Paz County

• Poachie Range in the middle of the Basin

• Black Mountains, including Tres Alamos Peak, west of highway 93 in Yavapai County

• Bill Williams Mountains on the western boundary of the basin

• The highest point in the basin is Weaver Peak at 6,514 feet northwest of Peeples Valley

Click to view Figure 4.2-1 Bill Williams Basin Geographic Features

Arizona Water Atlas Home

Upper Colorado River Planning Area Home