Unit 134, Nevada

The Pancake Range is characterized by relatively flat-topped mesas, steep-walled canyons, and basin floors. Elevation ranges from approximately 5,000 ft in the surrounding valleys up to 9,240 ft at Portuguese Mountain, the highest peak. Other named summits include Pancake Summit (6,521 ft) and Sandy Summit near the Lunar Crater volcanic field. Railroad Valley lies to the east; Hot Creek Valley lies to the west-northwest. The western face of Palisade Mesa drops sharply via sheer cliff walls to the valley floor; boulder-capped mesas and small drainages are common throughout. The adjacent Lunar Crater National Natural Landmark (maar volcano and cinder-cone field) lies on the unit's eastern fringe. The range spans Nye and White Pine counties.

Unit 134 is almost entirely BLM public land administered by the BLM Battle Mountain District — Tonopah Field Office (1553 S. Main St., Tonopah, NV 89049; 775-482-7800). No private land blocks access to public lands in this unit. Major paved access routes: U.S. Route 6 crosses the northern end at Sandy Summit near the Lunar Crater area; Nevada SR-375 (the "Extraterrestrial Highway") runs along the eastern valley (Railroad Valley). Most hunters access the unit from Monocline Canyon on the south or from the Lunar Crater area on the north. Away from paved routes, access is via county roads and OHV/jeep trails requiring four-wheel drive. The Palisade Mesa Wilderness Study Area (WSA) — approximately 99,550 acres, 18 miles long by 9 miles wide — lies within the unit and carries strict vehicle travel restrictions; motorized and mechanized travel is limited to existing primitive routes within the WSA. The adjacent "The Wall" WSA is also present. Full services are available only in Tonopah (~60 miles west); primitive camping is standard throughout the unit.

Lower-elevation basins and valley floors are dominated by sagebrush communities: Wyoming big sagebrush, black sagebrush, low sagebrush, winterfat, shadscale, rabbitbrush, Indian ricegrass, bluebunch wheatgrass, and bottlebrush squirreltail. Mid-slopes transition into pinyon-juniper woodland (single-leaf pinyon, Utah juniper, Rocky Mountain juniper). Higher elevations support mountain sagebrush, antelope bitterbrush, Utah serviceberry, snowberry, and currant species. Encroachment of pinyon-juniper into brush zones has been an ongoing management concern; BLM and land managers have conducted mechanical removal on adjacent ranges to maintain open brush communities for deer and other wildlife. Riparian features are limited to scattered seasonal springs and small drainages.

Mule deer are the primary big game species, with a resident herd component at higher elevations and a migratory component moving south from unit 131 into units 132-134 beginning in October; deer concentrate along U.S. Hwy 6 and the White River junction in late October and can be found in the Horse Range and Grant Range as the season progresses. Desert bighorn sheep were reintroduced to the Pancake Range in 1984 (26 animals released per NDOW 2014 status report); the population grew through the 1990s and has been used as transplant stock for other Nevada ranges, though a 2011 pneumonia outbreak significantly reduced numbers. Pronghorn antelope occupy the surrounding valleys at low densities, with higher concentrations near water and alfalfa farms during dry years. Wild horses (the Pancake HMA, AML 240-493) are present on and around the range and actively managed by BLM. Sage grouse and other upland birds inhabit sagebrush and transitional habitats. Mountain lion are present in Nevada's Great Basin ranges broadly. Prairie falcons nest on Palisade Mesa's cliff faces.