Hawkins Peak (California)

Hawkins Peak is a 10,024-foot-elevation (3,055 meter) mountain summit located in Alpine County, California, United States.

Hawkins Peak
Southwest aspect, from Carson Pass area
Highest point
Elevation10,024 ft (3,055 m)[1][2]
Prominence2,144 ft (653 m)[3]
Parent peakStevens Peak (10,059 ft)[4]
Isolation5.91 mi (9.51 km)[4]
Coordinates38°44′19″N 119°52′21″W[5]
Naming
EtymologyJohn Hawkins
Geography
Hawkins Peak is located in California
Hawkins Peak
Hawkins Peak
Location in California
Hawkins Peak is located in the United States
Hawkins Peak
Hawkins Peak
Hawkins Peak (the United States)
LocationHumboldt–Toiyabe National Forest
CountryUnited States of America
StateCalifornia
CountyAlpine
Parent rangeSierra Nevada[3]
Topo mapUSGS Markleeville
Geology
Age of rockMiocene
Mountain typeVolcanic plug, volcanic pinnacle
Type of rockHornblende-andesite[6]
Climbing
Easiest routeclass 2[4]

Description

This landmark of Hope Valley is set 15 miles (24 km) south of South Lake Tahoe, on land managed by Humboldt–Toiyabe National Forest. Hawkins Peak is situated in the Sierra Nevada mountain range, with precipitation runoff from the peak draining into tributaries of the West Fork Carson River. Topographic relief is significant as the north aspect rises 4,000 feet (1,200 meters) above California State Route 88 at West Carson Canyon in two miles. The nearest higher neighbor is Stevens Peak, 5.6 miles (9.0 km) to the west across Hope Valley.[3]

History

In 1833, Joseph R. Walker's expedition passed through the gap between Hawkins Peak and Markleeville Peak to the south.[7] The United States Geological Survey surveyed this area in 1889 and labelled this geographic feature on their 1893 Markleeville quadrangle map. This landform's toponym has been officially adopted by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names,[5] and has been in Sierra Club publications since at least 1895.[8] The mountain's namesake is John Hawkins, the first white settler in Hot Springs Valley and squatter on a cattle ranch east of the peak, circa 1850s.[9]

Climate

According to the Köppen climate classification system, Hawkins Peak is located in an alpine climate zone.[10] 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.

Geology

Hawkins Peak is one of several volcanic peaks that surround Markleeville. It is a possible flank vent of the Round Top (Alpine County, California) volcano.

  • Northwest aspect of Hawkins Peak seen from Waterhouse Peak.
    Northwest aspect of Hawkins Peak seen from Waterhouse Peak.
  • Approaching Hawkins Peak from the south.
    Approaching Hawkins Peak from the south.
  • Summit (andestite)
    Summit (andestite)
  • From summit, view southwest of the Calpine Road approach.Round Top in upper right corner.
    From summit, view southwest of the Calpine Road approach.
    Round Top in upper right corner.
  • Summit view looking north to Freel, Jobs Sister, and Jobs peaks.
    Summit view looking north to Freel, Jobs Sister, and Jobs peaks.
  • The summit
    The summit
  • West aspect
    West aspect
  • Hawkins Peak seen from Red Lake Vista Point along California State Route 88 at Carson Pass
    Hawkins Peak seen from Red Lake Vista Point along California State Route 88 at Carson Pass

See also

References
  1. United States Geological Survey topographical map - Markleeville
  2. Peter Browning, Place Names of the Sierra Nevada: From Abbot to Zumwalt, 1986, Wilderness Press, ISBN 9780899970479, p. 93.
  3. "Hawkins Peak, California". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  4. "Hawkins Peak - 10,024' CA". listsofjohn.com. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  5. "Hawkins Peak". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved 2022-07-02.
  6. Geological Society of America (1902), Bulletin of the Geological Society of America, Volume 13, p. 393
  7. Scott Stine (2015), A Way Across the Mountain: Joseph Walker's 1833 Trans-Sierran Passage and the Myth of Yosemite's Discovery, University of Oklahoma Press, ISBN 9780806153155, p. 160
  8. Mark B. Kerr, R. H. Chapman, Table of Elevations: Within the Pacific Slope, Sierra Club, 1895, p. 8
  9. Erwin Gustav Gudde (2010), California Place Names, University of California Press, ISBN 9780520266193, p. 161
  10. "Climate of the Sierra Nevada". Encyclopædia Britannica.
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