Sierra Vista Sanctuary

Sierra Vista Sanctuary is our second largest protected property and our largest gift to date from very generous people with a deep concern for the land and our community. The preserve began as an 80 acre conservation easement that was gifted to DFLT in December 2008 and an additional 55 acre easement was added in 2018. In 2020 the entire 135 acres was gifted to the DFLT. Since conservation easements are permanent the preserve is now owned by DFLT and the Cave Creek Museum has become a coholder with DFLT for both easements.

This is a key property in our Continental Mountain Conservation area and is part of a larger vision for an east-west corridor linking Federal, State and local lands. Sierra Vista Sanctuary is located on the western slope of Continental Mountain and includes the upper part of Willow Springs wash. It follows a line of springs, and flowing water or pools are often found year-round. The property is located off of a shared and gated private road, there is no public access.

Sierra Vista Sanctuary has a rich history: pre-historic, mining, cattle ranching and guest ranch. The Cave Creek Museum has a collection of pre-historic items collected from Sierra Vista by Dr. John Owen.