Leavitt Peak
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Leavitt Peak is located in the Emigrant Wilderness near
Sonora Pass Sonora Pass (el. 9,624 ft. / 2,933 m.) is a mountain pass in the Sierra Nevada in California. It is the second-highest pass with a road in California and in the Sierra Nevada. It is lower than Tioga Pass to the south. State Route 108 trav ...
in the eastern
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 ...
range of
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 ...
. Leavitt Peak is located on the
Tuolumne County Tuolumne County (), officially the County of Tuolumne, is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 55,620. The county seat and only incorporated city is Sonora. Tuolumne County comprises the ...
-
Mono County Mono County ( ) is a county located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 13,195, making it the fourth-least populous county in California. The county seat is Bridg ...
line. 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 ...
runs close to the east of Leavitt Peak, at an elevation of about elevation. The peak offers views south to
Yosemite National Park Yosemite National Park ( ) is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in California. It is bordered on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the northwest by Stanislaus National Forest. The p ...
and north towards South
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 ...
. Leavitt Peak is named for Hiram Leavitt, a native of
New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
and an early judge in Mono County. He built a hotel and home in 1863 at the foot of the east end of Sonora Pass to serve the growing number of travelers between
Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...
and Aurora, primarily miners headed to the gold mines at nearby Bodie. Leavitt also erected a stagecoach station at what is called Leavitt Station. Leavitt Peak is a popular hiking destination. Leavitt Lake and Leavitt Meadow are nearby along the
West Walker River The West Walker River is a tributary of the Walker River, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed March 17, 2011 in eastern California and western Nevada in ...
and are also named for the early Leavitt family settlers. Leavitt's is recorded on Charles F. Hoffmann's map of 1873. and Levitt Peak appears on the Mining Bureau map of 1891.


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, Leavitt 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 moisture in the form of rain or snowfall to drop onto the range.


See also

* * Night Cap Peak


References


External links

* * * Mountains of the Sierra Nevada (United States) Mountains of Tuolumne County, California Mountains of Mono County, California Mountains of Northern California {{MonoCountyCA-geo-stub