Panoche Pass
mountain pass in Diablo Range, California
Panoche Pass is a mountain pass within the Diablo Range in San Benito County, California connecting the southern extremity of the Santa Clara Valley in the west to the Panoche Valley and San Joaquin Valley in the east. The name Panoche Pass is used for the United States Geological Survey quadrangle map for the local area. County Route J1, also known as the Panoche Road, traverses the pass.
The elevation of 2,250 feet (690 m) posted on the official highway sign is at least 130 feet (40 m) higher than that indicated on the official USGS topographic map of the area.
Natural history
The headwaters of Panoche Creek are located at Panoche Pass.
The locale has numerous flora and fauna species. There are also a number of wildflower species including the iconic yellow mariposa lily, Calochortus luteus, which has been specifically noted in the Panoche Pass.
See also
Panoche Hills
Pacheco Pass lies to the north of Panoche Pass and is more heavily travelled
New Idria, California
Notes
References
David L. Durham. 2000. Durham's place names of California's Central Coast, page 145 of 241 pages
C. Michael Hogan.
The public source identifies “Panoche Pass” as mountain pass in Diablo Range, California. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Panoche, Pass and mountain.
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A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Panoche Pass”, the useful work is to connect “mountain pass in Diablo Range, California” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 20, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q7131445. Authority coordinates are 36.628, -121.014. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2000.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
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This entry incorporates text from “Panoche Pass” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.