Sierra de Órganos National Park (Spanish: Parque Nacional Sierra de Órganos) is a national park in Mexico. It is located in the northwest part of the municipality of Sombrerete in the state of Zacatecas, near the border with Durango. The park is famous for its dry area ecosystem and large rock formations from the Sierra Madre Occidental mountain range. These rock shapes look like organ pipe cacti or the pipes of a musical instrument, which is how the park got its name.

The park includes conifer forests in higher areas and dry shrubland in lower areas. It also provides a home for many animal species that are found only in this region and others that are at risk of disappearing. People visit the park for activities like hiking and biking, and to enjoy its natural beauty and landscapes.

History

Sierra de Órganos National Park was created by a federal decree on November 27, 2000. It is managed by Mexico's Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources.

Geography and climate

The park covers an area of 11.25 square kilometers (4.34 square miles) on the northwestern edge of Zacatecas in the municipality of Sombrerete. It is located about 21 kilometers (13 miles) northwest of the city of Sombrerete along Highway 45, which connects Zacatecas to the neighboring municipality of Vicente Guerrero in Durango. The park is approximately 8 kilometers (5 miles) northeast of the town of Villa Insurgentes and 90 kilometers (56 miles) east of the city of Durango. A dirt road about 10 kilometers long provides access to the park from Highway 45.

Sierra de Órganos is located within the Sierra Madre Occidental mountain range in an area that is part of the Mexican Plateau physiographic province. The land is uneven, with elevations ranging from 2,120 to 2,560 meters (6,960 to 8,400 feet) above sea level. This creates dramatic ridges and steep peaks that form small plateaus, often with very tall, nearly vertical cliff faces. Small valleys around the peaks offer views of the rock formations from below.

The region has a semi-arid climate, with most rainfall occurring in the winter and very little in the summer. Temperatures are warm to hot during the day and cool to cold at night.

Flora and fauna

The park is a home for a wide variety of wildlife, including plant and animal species found only in this area. The plants in the park are typical of mixed pine-oak forests in the mountains, where trees like Pinus cembroides and encino (oak) grow. At lower elevations, the plants include dry, grassy areas with scrubby vegetation. Other plants in the park are palms, ferns, huizache, maguey, nopal peach, nopal cork, oregano, manzanita, gatuña, jarilla, sotol, biznaga, guayabillo, capulín, tepozán, horse's brush, and wild onion.

The animals in the park are common to the region. Animals often seen in the park include the hare, raccoon, gray fox, cougar, coyote, collared peccary, opossum, badger, red lynx, white-tailed deer, mourning dove, white-winged dove, scaled quail, common calandria, and peregrine falcon. The cacomixtle, a small mammal related to raccoons, and the kit fox are found only in this area and are in danger of disappearing.

The park's rich variety of life faces many dangers from outside sources. Several human communities are growing near the park, many of which are used for farming and raising livestock. These activities have caused serious damage to nearby natural areas in some places. The mining of local sand is also a problem. Despite these challenges, many of the region's original ecosystems remain mostly undisturbed.

• Peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus)
• Black-tailed rattlesnake (Crotalus molossus)
• Golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos)
• Kit fox (Vulpes macrotis)
• Collared peccary (Pecari tajacu)
• Bobcat (Lynx rufus)
• Cougar (Puma concolor)
• Coyote (Canis latrans)

Recreation

Sierra de Órganos is visited by people who enjoy nature and those who like extreme sports, because the steep peaks and slopes are good for rock climbing. Hiking and cycling are also popular activities in the park. Some areas allow camping, but most parts of the park do not have basic services like drinking water, which must be brought from nearby villages. To enter the park, visitors must pay a fee of 20 Mexican pesos per person.

Filming location

The park's beautiful landscapes have been used as filming locations by directors from the United States and Mexico, especially for Western movies made in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. Some of those movies include:

• The Tall Men (film)
• These Thousand Hills
• La Cucaracha (1959 film)
• Geronimo (1962 film)
• Rage (1966 film)
• The War Wagon
• The Scalphunters
• Guns for San Sebastian
• The Undefeated (1969 film)
• Big Jake
• The Train Robbers
• Caveman (film)
• Revenge (1990 film)
• The Cisco Kid (1994 film)
• Wagons East
• One Man's Hero