Pinchot Pass

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Pinchot Pass
Pinchot Pass, Sierra Nevada, Fresno County, California, USA 02.jpg
Pinchot Pass (center) viewed from the south, on the John Muir Trail. Mount Wynne is visible to the right.
Elevation 12,090 feet (3,685 m)
Traversed by John Muir Trail, Pacific Crest Trail
Location Fresno County, California, United States
Range Sierra Nevada
Coordinates 36°56′11″N118°24′45″W / 36.9363599°N 118.4124128°W / 36.9363599; -118.4124128
Topo map USGS Mount Pinchot
Relief map of California.png
Red pog.svg
Location in California

Pinchot Pass is a high mountain pass in the Sierra Nevada mountain range of California, in the United States. It lies within far eastern Fresno County, inside Kings Canyon National Park and the Sequoia-Kings Canyon Wilderness.

Contents

Pinchot Pass sits at an elevation of 12,090 feet (3,685 m), running roughly from east to west, situated between 12,874-foot Crater Mountain to the southwest and 13,179-foot Mount Wynne directly to the east. The pass separates a lakes basin that includes Marjorie Lake to the north, and the Woods Creek drainage (a major tributary of the South Fork Kings River) to the south. [1] The seasonally-staffed Bench Lake ranger station is just over 2 miles to the north of the pass, near the trail turnoff from the John Muir Trail to Taboose Pass.

The pass is traversed by the John Muir Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail, which are coincident (sharing the same route) between Crabtree Meadows and Tuolumne Meadows. It is one of the six high mountain passes above 11,000 feet on the John Muir Trail, along with Donohue Pass, Muir Pass, Mather Pass, Glen Pass, and Forester Pass; it is south of Mather Pass and north of Glen Pass.

Naming

Pinchot Pass was named for Gifford Pinchot, fourth chief of the U.S. Division of Forestry from 1898 to 1905 and first head of the United States Forest Service (USFS) from 1905 to 1910. It and the nearby Mount Pinchot were named by Joseph Nisbet LeConte, a noted mountaineer, photographer, and cartographer of the Sierra Nevada, in 1903. [2]

View from atop Pinchot Pass, looking west at Mount Wynne Mt. Wynne from Pinchot Pass.jpg
View from atop Pinchot Pass, looking west at Mount Wynne

See also

Other nearby peaks include:

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Pinchot (California)</span>

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Mount Cedric Wright is a 12,372-foot-elevation (3,771-meter) mountain summit located one mile west of the crest of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, in Fresno County of northern California, United States. It is situated in eastern Kings Canyon National Park, 13 miles (21 km) northwest of the community of Independence, 2.2 miles (3.5 km) southeast of Crater Mountain, and 2.5 miles (4.0 km) south-southeast of Mount Wynne and Pinchot Pass. Topographic relief is significant as the west aspect rises nearly 2,000 feet above the surrounding terrain in approximately one mile. The John Muir Trail traverses below the west aspect of this remote peak. The first ascent was made August 25, 1935, by Norman Clyde.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Rixford</span> Mountain in the American state of California

Mount Rixford is a 12,887-foot-elevation (3,928-meter) mountain summit located one mile west of the crest of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, in the southeast corner of Fresno County, in northern California. It is situated in Kings Canyon National Park, 11.5 miles (18.5 km) west of the community of Independence, and one mile north of the Kearsarge Pinnacles and Kearsarge Lakes. Topographic relief is significant as the north aspect rises 2,346 feet above Rae Lakes in one mile. The John Muir Trail crosses Glen Pass one mile to the west of this mountain. Mt. Rixford ranks as the 183rd highest summit in California. Painted Lady is a subsidiary summit at the end of Rixford's north ridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Striped Mountain</span> Mountain in the American state of California

Striped Mountain is a 13,179-foot-elevation mountain summit located on the crest of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in northern California. It is situated on the common border of Fresno County with Inyo County, as well as the shared boundary of John Muir Wilderness and Kings Canyon National Park. It is 8.5 miles (13.7 km) northwest of the community of Independence, approximately two miles south of Taboose Pass, and 1.9 miles (3.1 km) north of Mount Wynne. Striped Mountain ranks as the 115th highest summit in California. The first ascent of the summit was made in July 1905 by George R. Davis, a USGS topographer. Climbing routes to this mountain include Taboose Pass and the West Ridge. The John Muir Trail passes west of this peak, providing an additional approach to the mountain. Bolton Coit Brown gave this mountain its descriptive name in 1895 when he later wrote: "That nearest the pass is strikingly barred across its steep craggy summit with light streaks. As this is an unusually marked case of this peculiarity and as it seems well occasionally to have a mountain whose name bears some relation to its visible character, I called it Striped Mountain." The numerous stripes are lightly-colored granitic dikes of Lamarck granodiorite intruded within Striped pluton, which is composed of fine-grained mafic granodiorite.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crater Mountain (California)</span> Mountain in the American state of California

Crater Mountain is a 12,874-foot-elevation (3,924-meter) mountain summit located west of the crest of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, in Fresno County of northern California, United States. It is situated in eastern Kings Canyon National Park, 15.5 miles (24.9 km) northwest of the community of Independence, one mile immediately southwest of Pinchot Pass, and 1.3 miles (2.1 km) southeast of Mount Ickes, which is the nearest higher neighbor. Other nearby peaks include Mount Wynne, 1.5 miles (2.4 km) to the northeast, and Mount Cedric Wright, 2.2 miles (3.5 km) to the southeast. Crater Mountain ranks as the 186th highest summit in California. Topographic relief is significant as the west aspect rises 2,000 feet in less than one mile. The approach to this remote peak is made via the John Muir Trail which passes below the east aspect of the mountain. The first ascent of the summit was made July 19, 1922, by W. H. Ink, Meyers Butte, Frank Baxter, and Captain Wallace. This mountain has no crater as the name implies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Perkins (California)</span> Mountain in the American state of California

Mount Perkins is a 12,566-foot-elevation mountain summit located on the crest of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in northern California. It is situated on the common border of Fresno County with Inyo County, as well as the boundary between John Muir Wilderness and Kings Canyon National Park. It is 13.5 miles (21.7 km) northwest of the community of Independence, 1.65 miles (2.66 km) north of Mount Cedric Wright, 2.2 miles (3.5 km) east of Crater Mountain, and 1.4 miles (2.3 km) southeast of Mount Wynne. Climbing routes to the summit include the west slope, and the north and south ridges. The John Muir Trail traverses below the west base of the peak on its descent south from Pinchot Pass, providing an approach to the mountain.

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Mount Ickes is a 12,959-foot-elevation (3,950-meter) mountain summit located west of the crest of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, in Fresno County of northern California, United States. It is situated in eastern Kings Canyon National Park, 13.5 miles (21.7 km) northwest of the community of Independence, 1.5 mile west of Pinchot Pass, and 2 miles (3.2 km) west of Mount Wynne, which is the nearest higher neighbor. Other nearby peaks include Crater Mountain 1.3 miles (2.1 km) to the southeast, Striped Mountain 3 miles (4.8 km) to the northeast, Arrow Peak, three miles (4.8 km) to the west, and Mount Ruskin four miles (6.4 km) to the northwest. Mount Ickes ranks as the 159th highest summit in California. Topographic relief is significant as the north aspect rises 3,080 feet in 2.5 miles. The approach to this remote peak is made via the John Muir Trail which passes to the east of the mountain. The mountain's name was officially adopted in 1964 by the United States Board on Geographic Names to honor Harold L. Ickes (1874–1952), who was responsible for implementing much of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal as Secretary of the Interior from 1933 to 1946 and was instrumental in establishing Kings Canyon National Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pyramid Peak (Fresno County, California)</span> Mountain in the American state of California

Pyramid Peak is a 12,779-foot-elevation (3,895 meter) mountain summit located west of the crest of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, in Fresno County, California, United States. It is situated in Kings Canyon National Park, 2.2 miles (3.5 km) southwest of line parent Mount Ickes and 2.2 miles (3.5 km) southeast of Arrow Peak, which is the nearest higher neighbor. Other nearby peaks include Crater Mountain 2.5 miles (4.0 km) to the northeast, and Window Peak one mile to the south. Pyramid Peak ranks as the 214th-highest summit in California, and topographic relief is significant as the southwest aspect rises over 2,300 feet in approximately one mile.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Bolton Brown</span> Mountain in the state of California

Mount Bolton Brown is a 13,491-foot-elevation (4,112 meter) mountain summit located on the shared border of Fresno County and Inyo County in California, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Prater</span> Mountain in the state of California

Mount Prater is a 13,471-foot-elevation (4,106 meter) mountain summit located on the shared border of Fresno County and Inyo County in California, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mather Pass</span> Mountain pass in the Sierra Nevada, California

Mather Pass is a high mountain pass in the U.S. state of California's Sierra Nevada mountain range. It lies within far eastern Fresno County, inside Kings Canyon National Park and the Sequoia-Kings Canyon Wilderness. The pass lies at an elevation of 12,068 feet, separating Palisade Basin to the north and Upper Basin to the south.

References

  1. "Pinchot Pass Feature Details". USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archived from the original on August 3, 2022. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  2. "Place Names of the High Sierra (1926), "P," by Francis P. Farquhar". www.yosemite.ca.us. Archived from the original on July 2, 2022. Retrieved August 3, 2022.