2018 Map of Horse Trap Mesa

About this map

Horse Trap Mesa rises above a high-desert landscape defined by vital water management and the sprawling boundaries of the Kaibab National Forest on the border of Coconino and Yavapai Counties. This 2018 survey reveals a modern rural grid emerging south of the forest, where residential roads like Valley View Blvd and Coconino Blvd contrast with the primitive tracks of the northern cattle country. The landscape is dotted with named tanks such as Pitts Homestead Tank, Santa Fe Tank, and Potts Tank, reflecting a long history of ranching infrastructure built to capture seasonal runoff from drainages like Eightmile Cr and Partridge Cr. These features indicate how modern settlement patterns in northern Arizona have both followed and expanded upon the older water-dependent ranching boundaries that once dominated this high plateau.