QuakeIndex

Fault · California

Hilton Creek fault

30 kmlong (19 mi), as mapped
1–5 mm/yrhow fast it slips
last 150 yearssince it last broke the surface
341quakes of M2.5+ within 10 km since 2016

Updated , with the latest earthquake of M2.5 or more within 10 km of the trace: M 2.9, 19 km SW of Toms Place, CA.

In plain English

The two sides move 1 to 5 mm a year — 10 to 50 cm (4 to 20 inches) every century.

It has broken the ground surface within the last 150 years.

The largest earthquake recorded near it was M 6.8 in 1872 (Near Round Valley, California) — about 500,000 times the energy of an M3.0, the size people start to feel. It released about 240 kilotons of TNT.

This week vs. its last ten years

39/100

typical

1 quake of M1.5+ within 5 km of the trace in the last 7 days — busier than 39% of weeks since 2016. A normal week: 0–2.

Computed from the USGS catalogue · a description of the past, not a forecast · method

San Andreas faultSouthern Sierra Nevada faultOwens Valley faultWassuk Range faultWhite Mountains faultFish Lake Valley faultBenton Spring faultHuntoon Valley fault systemEmigrant Peak faultRound Valley faultSilver Lake faultLong Valley faultDeep Springs faultFish Slough faultHartley Springs faultMono Lake faultRobinson Creek faultMcAfee Canyon fault M 6.8 · 1872 · Near Round Valley, California M 6.0 · 1941 · Mammoth Lakes area, California M 6.0 · 1941 · Mammoth Lakes area, California
The Hilton Creek fault as mapped at the surface (glowing), with the other mapped faults nearby, 341 of the M2.5+ earthquakes within 10 km of it since 2016 (dots) and the epicentres of the large historic earthquakes recorded near it (rings). Traces: USGS Quaternary Fault and Fold Database. Historic epicentres are estimates.

Every year since 2016

Earthquakes of M2.5+ with an epicentre within 10 km of the mapped trace. Near is not the same as on: some will have slipped on neighbouring faults.

The big ones recorded near it

  1. M 6.8 Near Round Valley, California
    April 11, 1872 · epicentre 23 km from the trace
  2. M 6.0 Mammoth Lakes area, California
    September 14, 1941 · epicentre 5 km from the trace
  3. M 6.0 Mammoth Lakes area, California
    September 14, 1941 · epicentre 5 km from the trace
  4. M 4.4 13km WNW of Toms Place, CA
    February 1, 2020 · epicentre 5 km from the trace
  5. M 4.0 16km WSW of Toms Place, CA
    April 5, 2020 · epicentre 7 km from the trace

Before 1973 from the USGS ComCat historical catalogue (within 25 km; epicentres of old earthquakes are estimates). Since 2016, M4+ within 10 km.

Most recent near it

  1. M 2.9 19 km SW of Toms Place, CA
    2026-10-24 · 9 km from the trace
  2. M 2.9 19 km SW of Toms Place, CA
    2026-10-17 · 9 km from the trace
  3. M 2.8 19 km SW of Toms Place, CA
    2026-10-16 · 9 km from the trace
  4. M 2.6 18 km SW of Toms Place, CA
    2026-08-24 · 9 km from the trace
  5. M 2.8 18 km SW of Toms Place, CA
    2026-08-24 · 9 km from the trace
  6. M 2.8 19 km SW of Toms Place, CA
    2026-08-24 · 9 km from the trace

Neighbouring faults

Fault trace, slip rate and age: USGS Quaternary Fault and Fold Database (public domain), simplified for the web. Earthquakes: USGS ComCat. QuakeIndex does not forecast earthquakes; a fault's history describes the past. For early warning use ShakeAlert.