5 Mountain Passes to Explore in Arizona

Apache Pass is a historic mountain pass in the U.S. state of Arizona between the Dos Cabezas Mountains and Chiricahua Mountains at an elevation of 5,110 feet. It is approximately 20 miles east-southeast of Willcox, Arizona, in Cochise County.

Buffalo Pass is a high mountain pass at an elevation of 2.610m (8,562ft) above the sea level, located in the Navajo Nation of Apache County, in northeast Arizona, in USA. It’s called Indian Route 13. It’s a great little curvy road with twists and turns in a scenic panorama of sandstone cliffs and tall ponderosa pines.

Montezuma Pass is within Coronado National Memorial. This site provides views of the San Raphael Valley to the west, the San Pedro Valley to the east, and Mexico to the south. Exhibit panels at the pass provide information about the Coronado Expedition, the flora and fauna of Sky Island habitats, and visible geography. It is also the trailhead for the southern terminus of the great Arizona Trail.

Sitgreaves Pass is a mountain pass at an elevation of 1.096m above the sea level. It is also known as the Oatman Highway. The road is pretty narrow, very curvy, with lots of blind hairpin turns and with no shoulders. It’s a fabulous drive if you are not scared of heights or of tumbling down a mountain side.

The White Tank Mountain Regional Park is a large regional park located in west-central Maricopa County, Arizona. Encompassing 29,271 acres of desert and mountain landscape, it is the largest regional park in the county. The bulk of the White Tank Mountains range is located within the park's boundaries.