Mount Watkins (California)
| Mount Watkins | |
|---|---|
| File:Mirror Lake, Mount Watkins.jpg Southwest aspect reflected in Mirror Lake | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 8,497 ft (2,590 m)[1][2] |
| Prominence | 266 ft (81 m)[1][2] |
| Parent peak | Mount Hoffmann (10,855 ft)[2] |
| Isolation | 1.86 mi (2.99 km)[2] |
| Coordinates | Lua error in Module:Coordinates at line 489: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).[3] |
| Naming | |
| Etymology | Carleton Watkins |
| Geography | |
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| |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | Mariposa |
| Protected area | Yosemite National Park |
| Parent range | Sierra Nevada |
| Topo map | USGS Yosemite Falls |
| Geology | |
| Rock age | Cretaceous |
| Mountain type | Fault block |
| Rock type | Granodiorite |
| Climbing | |
| Easiest route | class 2[2] |
Mount Watkins is an 8,497-foot-elevation (2,590-meter) mountain summit in the Sierra Nevada mountain range, in Mariposa County, California, United States.
Description
[edit | edit source]Mount Watkins is located in Yosemite National Park, 2.72 miles (4.38 km) north of Half Dome, and 1.86 miles (2.99 km) northwest of Clouds Rest.[1] Precipitation runoff from this mountain drains into Tenaya Creek which is a tributary of the Merced River. Topographic relief is significant as the summit rises 2,700 feet (823 meters) above Tenaya Canyon in less than one mile (1.6 km). The mountain is composed of Half Dome Granodiorite which formed during the Cretaceous period.[4] An ascent of the summit involves 7.4 miles of hiking (round-trip) with 750 feet of elevation gain, and the months of June through October offer the best conditions.[5] The Approach is via the Snow Creek Trail starting near Olmsted Point.
History
[edit | edit source]The mountain is named after Carleton Watkins (1829–1916),[3] an American photographer in the 1800s whose photographs of Yosemite significantly influenced the United States Congress' decision to preserve it as a National Park. His photograph of Mount Watkins reflected in Mirror Lake was especially popular, and likely led to his name being affixed to this mountain.[6] This mountain's toponym was officially adopted on June 30, 1932, by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names,[3] although it was featured in publications as early as 1871.[7] The Native American name for the mountain is "Waijau" which means Pine Mountain.[8][9]
Climbing
[edit | edit source]Along with El Capitan and Half Dome, Mount Watkins is one of the three main big walls in Yosemite for rock climbing.[10]
Rock climbing routes:
- South Face - class 5.11 - First ascent July 1964 - Warren Harding, Chuck Pratt, Yvon Chouinard[11][12]
- Teabag Wisdom - class 5.11 - FA 2016 - Vitaliy Musiyenko, Chris Koppl[13]
- The Twisted Road - class 5.12[14]
Climate
[edit | edit source]According to the Köppen climate classification system, Mount Watkins is located in an alpine climate zone.[15] Most weather fronts originate in the Pacific Ocean and travel east toward the Sierra Nevada mountains. As fronts approach, they are forced upward by the peaks (orographic lift), causing them to drop their moisture in the form of rain or snowfall onto the range.
See also
[edit | edit source]Gallery
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References
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- ^ a b c Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Keith Daniel Putirka, Geologic Excursions from Fresno, California, and the Central Valley: A Tour of California s Iconic Geology, Geological Society of America, 2013, Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value)., p. 16.
- ^ Scott Turner, Day Hiking: Yosemite National Park, Mountaineers Books, 2021, Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value)..
- ^ Francis P. Farquhar, Place Names of the High Sierra (1926)
- ^ Samuel Kneeland, The Wonders of the Yosemite Valley, and of California, A. Moore, 1871, p. 39.
- ^ Place Names of the High Sierra, Francis Peloubet Farquhar, Sierra Club, 1926, p. 102.
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Jared Ogden, Big Wall Climbing: Elite Technique, The Mountaineers Books, 2005, Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value)., p. 192.
- ^ South Face, Mountainproject.com, Retrieved 2024-10-24.
- ^ Maurice Isserman, Continental Divide: A History of American Mountaineering, W. W. Norton & Company, 2016, Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value)..
- ^ Teabag Wisdom, Mountainproject.com, Retrieved 2024-10-24.
- ^ The Twisted Road, Mountainproject.com, Retrieved 2024-10-24.
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
External links
[edit | edit source]- Weather forecast: Mount Watkins
- Mount Watkins rock climbing: mountainproject.com
- Watkins Pinnacles (photo): Flickr
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