| Kuna Crest | |
|---|---|
 Tioga Pass meadow, lake, Kuna Crest | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 12,170 ft (3,710 m) NAVD 88 [1] |
| Prominence | 919 ft (280 m) [1] |
| Coordinates | 37°50′38″N119°15′25″W / 37.844°N 119.257°W [1] |
| Geography | |
| Location | Yosemite National Park, California, U.S. |
| Parent range | Ritter Range, Sierra Nevada |
| Geology | |
| Age of rock | Cretaceous |
| Mountain type | Kuna Crest Granodiorite |
| Climbing | |
| Easiest route | Hike |
Kuna Crest is a mountain range near Tuolumne Meadows, in Yosemite National Park, California.
The word Kuna probably derives from a Shoshonean word meaning "fire," which appears in the Mono dialect of the area, with a meaning of firewood . [2] [3] On the summit of near-by Kuna Peak, there are many jagged pieces of rock which resemble fire themselves; see Kuna Crest Granodiorite.
The Crest lies between two U-shaped glacial valleys: Lyell Canyon and the canyon of the Parker Pass Creek. Mammoth Peak lies at the northern end of the Kuna Crest. A number of lakes lie in cirques cut into the eastern edge of the Crest, including Kuna Lake, Bingaman Lake, Spillway Lake, and Helen Lake.
The Crest consists of Kuna Crest Granodiorite, which is the oldest granitic rock of the Tuolumne Intrusive Suite. It is rich in biotite and hornblende. [4]
Climbing on Kuna Crest consists of mostly of walking and scrambling; there isn't much rock climbing, on Kuna Crest proper. [5] There is a traverse, between Mammoth Peak and Kuna Peak. [6]
The Sierra Nevada is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily in Nevada. The Sierra Nevada is part of the American Cordillera, an almost continuous chain of mountain ranges that forms the western "backbone" of the Americas.
The exposed geology of the Yosemite area includes primarily granitic rocks with some older metamorphic rock. The first rocks were laid down in Precambrian times, when the area around Yosemite National Park was on the edge of a very young North American continent. The sediment that formed the area first settled in the waters of a shallow sea, and compressive forces from a subduction zone in the mid-Paleozoic fused the seabed rocks and sediments, appending them to the continent. Heat generated from the subduction created island arcs of volcanoes that were also thrust into the area of the park. In time, the igneous and sedimentary rocks of the area were later heavily metamorphosed.
Cathedral Peak is part of the Cathedral Range, a mountain range in the south-central portion of Yosemite National Park in eastern Mariposa and Tuolumne Counties. The range is an offshoot of the Sierra Nevada. The peak which lends its name to the range derives its name from its cathedral-shaped peak, which was formed by glacial activity: the peak remained uneroded above the glaciers in the Pleistocene.
Yosemite National Park is located in the central Sierra Nevada of California. Three wilderness areas are adjacent to Yosemite: the Ansel Adams Wilderness to the southeast, the Hoover Wilderness to the northeast, and the Emigrant Wilderness to the north.
Fairview Dome is a prominent granite dome in Yosemite National Park, located 1.8 miles (2.9 km) north of Cathedral Peak and 4 miles (6.4 km) west of Tuolumne Meadows. Near Fairview Dome is Marmot Dome, linked by an area called Razor Back. Northwest is Hammer Dome.
The Cathedral Peak Granodiorite (CPG) was named after its type locality, Cathedral Peak in Yosemite National Park, California. The granodiorite forms part of the Tuolumne Intrusive Suite, one of the four major intrusive suites within the Sierra Nevada. It has been assigned radiometric ages between 88 and 87 million years and therefore reached its cooling stage in the Coniacian.
Kuna Peak is a summit on the boundary between Mono and Tuolumne counties, in the United States, is the highest point on Kuna Crest. With an elevation of 13,008 feet (3,965 m), Kuna Peak is the 146th-highest summit in the state of California, and is the third-highest mountain in Yosemite National Park.
Half Dome Granodiorite is granodiorite found in a region on and near Half Dome, in Yosemite National Park, California, United States. The granodiorite forms part of the Tuolumne Intrusive Suite, one of the four major intrusive suites within the Sierra Nevada.
El Capitan Granite is a type of granite, in a large area near El Capitan, in Yosemite National Park, California, United States. The granite forms part of the Tuolumne Intrusive Suite, one of the four major intrusive suites within the Sierra Nevada.
Kuna Crest Granodiorite, is found, in Yosemite National Park, United States. The granodiorite forms part of the Tuolumne Intrusive Suite, one of the four major intrusive suites within the Sierra Nevada. Of the Tuolumne Intrusive Suite, it is the oldest and darkest rock.
Sentinel granodiorite is a type of granodiorite found in Yosemite National Park. It is a poorly understood western "outlier" of the ∼93-85-Ma Tuolumne Intrusive Suite of the Sierra Nevada batholith. It is only slightly older than the undated Yosemite Creek Granodiorite and the Kuna Crest Granodiorite.
The Tuolumne Intrusive Suite is one of several intrusive suites in Yosemite National Park. These also include
The Intrusive Suite of Buena Vista Crest is an intrusive suite which extends 30 kilometres (19 mi) southward, from Yosemite Valley to Yosemite National Park's southeastern boundary, into plutons of the Sierra Nevada Batholith, which are slightly older. These intrusive suites also include
The Intrusive Suite of Sonora Pass is one of several intrusive suites in Yosemite National Park. These also include
Hiking, rock climbing, and mountain climbing around Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite National Park has many options.
Tuolumne Peak is a mountain, in Yosemite National Park, in the area of Tuolumne Meadows. It is a fractured granite, twin summited peak, and is close to geographic center of the park. Tuolumne Peak is located approximately 2.5 miles (4.0 km) northeast of Mount Hoffmann via a granite ridge-line. It is climbed less often than Hoffman, probably due to a more difficult approach.
Echo Peaks consists of nine peaks, in the Tuolumne Meadows region of Yosemite National Park, California. They are near Echo Ridge.
Mammoth Peak is a mountain in the area of Tuolumne Meadows, Yosemite National Park, California. The summit is a class 1-2 cross-country hike that features river crossings and boulder scrambling. The peak lies at the northern end of the Kuna Crest and is close to California State Route 120. From the road, its summit appears rounded and quite rocky. Though Mammoth Peak is not as popular as other nearby peaks, its relatively easily accessed summit affords tremendous views of Mount Gibbs, Mount Dana, and Mount Lewis.
Unicorn Peak is a peak, in Tuolumne Meadows, Yosemite National Park. Unicorn Peak is due east of Cathedral Peak, and the north summit is highest.