Its northern extreme above Fra Cristobal Mountain extends into Socorro County.

The range borders the eastern shore of Elephant Butte Reservoir on the Rio Grande, and the range lies towards the southwest of the Jornada del Muerto, the desert region east of the river.

[1] The Fra Cristobal Range is an arid, moderate elevation, north–south trending mountain range, about 17 mi long and narrow, only about 7 mi at its widest.

Crater Hill, 5,087 feet (1,551 m) lies west of the central ridgeline, and north of Black Bluffs, Red Cliff at the Reservoir.

It is located at 33°28′12″N 107°05′55″W / 33.47000°N 107.09861°W / 33.47000; -107.09861 (Fra Cristobal Mountain)[2] The mountain is said to have resembled the profile of a priest, Fray Cristóbal de Salazar, a cousin of Juan de Oñate, with the first colonizing expedition in 1598.