[3] Isolated, rugged, and scenic,[4][5] the ridge extends some 15 miles, from near the intersection of Texas State Highway 16 and Farm to Market Road 207 in the southwest, to Crawford Mountain just south of the Fortune Bend on the Brazos River in the northeast.

[2][6] The Palo Pinto Mountains are located in, and form part of, the Carbonate Cross Timbers, a level IV ecoregion defined by the Environmental Protection Agency.

[7] However, the term "Palo Pinto Mountains" is also used colloquially to refer to a much larger area, essentially the entire portion of the much more extensive Western Cross Timbers located north of I-20.

[4][8][9] The mountains have been called a northern extension of the Hill Country,[4] and indeed they are both dissected plateaus featuring karst topography with similar vegetation, including post oak (Quercus stellata), blueberry juniper (Juniperus ashei), and mesquite.

Using the strict definition of the Palo Pinto Mountains, the only road that crosses the range is US 180, which enters from the east at a pass known as Metcalf Gap,[5] although State Highway 16 south of US 180 runs adjacent to the eastern escarpment of the cuesta.