Dicks Peak is a mountain

summit A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous. The term (mountain top) is generally used only for ...

located in the

Sierra Nevada 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 primari ...

mountain range in

El Dorado County El Dorado County (; ''El Dorado'', Spanish language, Spanish for "The Golden ne), officially the County of El Dorado, is a List of counties in California, county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, United States. It is the third-highest peak in the Desolation Wilderness, and is set on land managed by

Eldorado National Forest Eldorado National Forest is a U.S. National Forest located in the central Sierra Nevada mountain range, in eastern California. Geography Most of the forest (72.8%) lies in El Dorado County. In descending order of land area the others countie ...

. It is situated south of

Lake Tahoe Lake Tahoe (; Washo language, Washo: ''dáʔaw'') is a Fresh water, freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada of the Western United States, straddling the border between California and Nevada. Lying at above sea level, Lake Tahoe is the largest a ...

, and approximately west of the community of

South Lake Tahoe South Lake Tahoe is the most populous incorporated city in El Dorado County, California, United States, in the Sierra Nevada mountains. The city's population was 21,330 at the 2020 census, down from 21,403 at the 2010 census. The city, along the ...

Topographic relief Terrain (), alternatively relief or topographical relief, is the dimension and shape of a given surface of land. In physical geography, terrain is the lay of the land. This is usually expressed in terms of the elevation, slope, and orientati ...

is significant as the west aspect rises over above Rockbound Valley in approximately one mile. One-half mile east of the peak the

Pacific Crest Trail The Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), officially designated as the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail, is a long-distance hiking and equestrian trail closely aligned with the highest portion of the Cascade and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges, which lie ...

and Tahoe Rim Trail traverse Dicks Pass, which provides an approach option for those climbing the peak. Inclusion on the

Sierra Peaks Section The Sierra Peaks Section (SPS) is a mountaineering society within the Angeles Chapter of the Sierra Club that serves to provide mountaineering activities for Sierra Club members in the Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada, and to honor mountaineers ...

peakbagging Peak bagging or hill bagging is an activity in which hikers, climbers, and mountaineers attempt to reach a collection of summits, published in the form of a list. This activity has been popularized around the world, with lists such as 100 Peaks o ...

list generates climbing interest.

Etymology

This mountain's name remembers Captain Dick Barter, known as the "Hermit of

Emerald Bay Emerald Bay may refer to: Geography * Emerald Bay, Catalina Island, California * Emerald Bay, Orange County, California * Emerald Bay State Park in El Dorado County, California * Emerald Bay, Lake Arrowhead, California * Emerald Bay, Texas Othe ...

Fannette Island Fannette Island is the only island in Lake Tahoe, California, United States. It lies within Emerald Bay State Park, Emerald Bay, on the California side of the lake. Over a long period of time, it was called many different names, including Coquette ...

was Captain Dick's home from 1863 to 1873, and one night while rowing back to the island the retired sailor from England perished in a storm near Rubicon Point in 1873. This landform's toponym has been officially adopted by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names.

Climate

According to the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Dicks Peak is located in an

alpine climate Alpine climate is the typical climate for elevations above the tree line, where trees fail to grow due to cold. This climate is also referred to as a mountain climate or highland climate. Definition There are multiple definitions of alpine cli ...

zone. Most

weather front A weather front is a boundary separating air masses for which several characteristics differ, such as air density, wind, temperature, and humidity. Disturbed and unstable weather due to these differences often arises along the boundary. For ins ...

s originate in the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

, and travel east toward the Sierra Nevada mountains. As fronts approach, they are forced upward by the peaks (

orographic lift Orographic lift occurs when an air mass is forced from a low elevation to a higher elevation as it moves over rising terrain. As the air mass gains altitude it quickly cools down adiabatically, which can raise the relative humidity to 100% and cr ...

), causing them to drop their moisture in the form of rain or

snowfall Snow consists of individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water througho ...

onto the range. Precipitation runoff from the mountain ultimately drains to

Gallery

File:Dicks Peak, Velma Lakes.jpg, North aspect of Dicks Peak, from Phipps Peak File:Dicks Peak, east aspect.jpg, East aspect File:Dicks Peak.jpg, Dicks Peak and lake from northeast File:Jacks Peak, Dicks Peak.jpg, Jacks Peak (left) and Dicks Peak (right) from southeast File:Fontanillis Lake.jpg, North aspect of Dicks Peak reflected in Fontanillis Lake File:Dicks Peak summit vista.jpg, Summit view looking south at Jacks Peak, Pyramid Peak, and Mount Price File:Desolation Wilderness from Mt. Tallac.jpg, View from Mt. Tallac. Left to rightː Pyramid Peak, Mt. Price, Jacks Peak, Dicks Peak. File:Susie Lake, Dicks Peak.jpg, Southeast aspect of Dicks Peak seen from Susie Lake File:Dicks Peak, Lower Velma Lake.jpg, Dicks Peak and Lower Velma Lake

References

External links

* Weather forecast
Dicks Peak
* Story of Captain Dick
Hermit's Ghost Haunts Emerald Bay
{{Geographic Location 2 , Center = Dicks Peak , North =

, Northeast = Dicks Lake , East =

Mount Tallac Mount Tallac is a mountain peak southwest of Lake Tahoe, in El Dorado County, California, El Dorado County, California. The peak lies within the Desolation Wilderness in the Eldorado National Forest. It is quite visible from California State Rout ...

, Southeast = Susie Lake , South =

Lake Aloha Lake Aloha is a large shallow backcountry reservoir located at an elevation of in the Sierra Nevada Range, west of Lake Tahoe in El Dorado County, in eastern California. The reservoir is located in Desolation Valley, within the federally prote ...

, Southwest = Mount Price , West = Crystal Range , Northwest = Rockbound Valley Eldorado National Forest Mountains of El Dorado County, California Mountains of the Desolation Wilderness Three-thousanders of the United States Mountains of Northern California Sierra Nevada (United States)

Etymology

Climate

Gallery

See also

References

External links