[1] The summit and the hills are in the Jornada del Muerto plateau, mostly in Sierra County, New Mexico.
[1] Point of Rocks was a landmark along the El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro that passed to the west of these hills.
The paraje was named for a little dog that returned with muddy paws to the thirsty Onate expedition, prompting the search for and discovery of two small waterholes nearby that the Spanish fittingly named Los Charcos del Perrillo (The Puddles of the Doggy).
[2] From the time that travelers came into the Jornada del Muerto they would be under scrutiny from mountains and hills along the route.
Point of Rocks itself was a dangerous place, ideal for Apache warriors to conceal an attack or an ambush of passing travelers.