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.
Mount Whitney is the highest mountain in the contiguous United States and the Sierra Nevada, with an elevation of 14,505 feet (4,421 m). It is in East–Central California, on the boundary between California's Inyo and Tulare counties, 84.6 miles (136.2 km) west-northwest of North America's lowest point, Badwater Basin in Death Valley National Park, at 282 ft (86 m) below sea level. The mountain's west slope is in Sequoia National Park and the summit is the southern terminus of the John Muir Trail, which runs 211.9 mi (341.0 km) from Happy Isles in Yosemite Valley. The eastern slopes are in Inyo National Forest in Inyo County.
Clarence Rivers King was an American geologist, mountaineer and author. He was the first director of the United States Geological Survey from 1879 to 1881. Nominated by Republican President Rutherford B. Hayes, King was noted for his exploration of the Sierra Nevada mountain range.
Josiah Dwight Whitney was an American geologist, professor of geology at Harvard University, and chief of the California Geological Survey (1860–1874). Through his travels and studies in the principal mining regions of the United States, Whitney became the foremost authority of his day on the economic geology of the U.S. Mount Whitney, the highest point in the contiguous 48 United States, and the Whitney Glacier, the first confirmed glacier in the United States, on Mount Shasta, were both named after him by members of the Survey.
Mount Ritter is the highest mountain in Madera County, California, in the Western United States, at an elevation of 13,149 feet (4,008 m). It is also the highest and most prominent peak of its namesake, the Ritter Range, a subrange of the Sierra Nevada in the Ansel Adams Wilderness of the Inyo and Sierra National Forests. Mount Ritter is the 15th highest mountain peak in California with at least 500 meters of topographic prominence.
Mount Morrison is located in the Sierra Nevada, in the Sherwin Range. It rises south of Convict Lake near the town of Mammoth Lakes.
Francis Peloubet Farquhar was an American mountaineer, environmentalist and author. In his professional life, he was a Certified Public Accountant.
Mount Darwin is a flat-topped mountain in the Sierra Nevada, on the border of between Fresno and Inyo counties in Kings Canyon National Park and the John Muir Wilderness of California.
Henry Gannett was an American geographer who is described as the "father of mapmaking in America." He was the chief geographer for the United States Geological Survey essentially from its founding until 1902. He was also a founding member and president of the National Geographic Society.
William John McGee, LL.D. was an American inventor, geologist, anthropologist, and ethnologist, born in Farley, Iowa.
Mount Conness is a 12,590 foot (3,840 m) mountain in the Sierra Nevada range, to the west of the Hall Natural Area. Conness is on the boundary between the Inyo National Forest and Yosemite National Park. The Conness Glacier lies north of the summit.
James Terry Gardiner was an American surveyor and engineer.
Richard D. Cotter, also known as Dick Cotter and R.D. Cotter, was an Irish born American member of the first California Geological Survey.
Mount Brewer is on the Great Western Divide, a sub-range of the Sierra Nevada in California. It is located in Kings Canyon National Park,
Mount Clarence King, located in the Kings Canyon National Park, is named for Clarence King, who worked on the Whitney Survey, the first geological survey of California. King later became the first chief of the United States Geological Survey.
Richard Urquhart Goode was an American geographer and topographer with the United States Geological Survey, Northern Transcontinental Railroad Survey, and the Panama Canal Company.
Mount Gabb is in the central Sierra Nevada in the U.S. state of California. Mount Gabb is in the John Muir Wilderness of Sierra National Forest and is named after William More Gabb, a paleontologist and member of the Whitney Survey.
Henry Gardiner Ferguson was an American geologist with the United States Geological Survey (USGS). He worked primarily in Nevada and was a pioneer in the geology of the central Great Basin, producing many publications including multiple USGS geological maps of central Nevada. Ferguson was a lifelong friend and colleague of Levi Noble, a mentor to Ralph Roberts, and worked extensively with Siemon Muller. Along with his wife Alice Ferguson, he helped found the Moyaone Reserve community in Accokeek, Maryland.
Mount Johnson is a 12,871-foot-elevation mountain summit located on the crest of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in California, United States. It is situated on the boundary between Kings Canyon National Park and John Muir Wilderness, and along the county line between Fresno County and Inyo County. It is also 18 miles (29 km) west of the community of Big Pine, 0.9 miles (1.4 km) southeast of Mount Gilbert, and one mile (1.6 km) west-northwest of Mount Goode. Mount Johnson ranks as the 187th-highest summit in California. Topographic relief is significant as the southwest aspect rises 3,670 feet above LeConte Canyon in 1.5 mile, and the north aspect rises 3,100 feet above South Lake in 2.5 miles.
Mount Lewis is a 12,350-foot-elevation mountain summit located along the crest of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, in Mono County of northern California, United States. It is situated in the Ansel Adams Wilderness, on land managed by Inyo National Forest. The summit lies less than one mile outside of Yosemite National Park's eastern boundary, and some of the lower western slope lies within the park. The mountain rises 1.8 mile (2.9 km) southeast of Mono Pass, 1.5 mile (2.4 km) northeast of Parker Pass, and two miles north of Parker Peak, which is the nearest higher neighbor. Topographic relief is significant as it rises over 5,200 feet (1,585 meters) above Grant Lake in four miles which makes the mountain visible from Highway 395.
