The Cargo Muchacho Mountains are located in the southeast

Colorado Desert The Colorado Desert is a part of the larger Sonoran Desert located in California, United States, and Baja California, Mexico. It encompasses approximately , including the heavily irrigated Coachella, Imperial and Mexicali valleys. It is home to ...

in the Lower Colorado River Valley, in

Imperial County, California Imperial County is a county located on the southeast border of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 179,702, ranking as the least populous county in Southern California. The county seat and largest city is ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Much of the range's geology was described by the geologist John T. Dillon.

Geography

The range lies in a northwest-southeasterly direction, southeast of the

Imperial Valley The Imperial Valley ( or ''Valle Imperial'') of Southern California lies in Imperial and Riverside counties, with an urban area centered on the city of El Centro. The Valley is bordered by the Colorado River to the east and, in part, the S ...

and northwest of the

Colorado River The Colorado River () is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The river, the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), 5th longest in the United St ...

and Yuma, AZ– Winterhaven, CA. The range lies south and southeast of the Chocolate Mountains and east of the

Algodones Dunes The Algodones Dunes is a large sand dune field, or Erg (landform), erg, located in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of California, near the border with Arizona and the Mexican state of Baja California. The field is approximately long ...

. Pilot Knob is a

volcanic plug A volcanic plug, also called a volcanic neck or lava neck, is a volcano, volcanic object created when magma hardens within a Volcanic vent, vent on an active volcano. When present, a plug can cause an extreme build-up of high gas pressure if risi ...

formed landmark peak to the south of the range. The mountains are home to the American Girl Mine, and the Golden Bee and Cargo mines. The

All American Canal The All-American Canal is an aqueduct, located in southeastern California. It conveys water from the Colorado River into the Yuma Project, the Imperial Valley (California), Imperial Valley, and to nine cities. It is the Imperial Valley's only w ...

passes to the south of the range.

References

* Mountain ranges of the Colorado Desert Mountain ranges of the Lower Colorado River Valley Mountain ranges of Imperial County, California {{ImperialCountyCA-geo-stub