Minaret Summit is a
mountain pass
A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since mountain ranges can present formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human and animal migration t ...
on
Highway 203 in the
central Sierra Nevada. The pass, lying on the Madera-Mono County border, is within the
Mammoth Ranger District of the
Inyo National Forest and located near
Devils Postpile National Monument
A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in many and various cultures and religious traditions.
Devil or Devils may also refer to:
* Satan
* Devil in Christianity
* Demon
* Folk devil
Art, entertainment, and media
Film and ...
,
Mammoth Lakes, and
Mammoth Mountain
Mammoth Mountain is a lava dome complex partially located in the town of Mammoth Lakes, California, in the Inyo National Forest of Madera County, California, Madera and Mono County, California, Mono counties. It is home to a large Mammoth Mounta ...
. The elevation of the pass is about .
[ Highway 203 ends at Minaret Summit. The road continues, now called Reds Meadow Road, until its dead end at the Reds Meadow Pack Station near the Rainbow Falls trailhead.
Plans for a Trans-Sierra Highway connecting the Eastern Sierra and the ]San Joaquin Valley
The San Joaquin Valley ( ; Spanish language in California, Spanish: ''Valle de San Joaquín'') is the southern half of California's Central Valley (California), Central Valley. Famed as a major breadbasket, the San Joaquin Valley is an importa ...
via Minaret Summit had been discussed since the early days of highway building.Governor of California
The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The Governor (United States), governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard.
Established in the Constit ...
, Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
made a horse packing trip into the area. Afterwards he supported conservationists' efforts to prevent this highway. Reagan continued his efforts after being elected President
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*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
*'' Præsident ...
in 1980 and the area was eventually designated wilderness
Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plurale tantum, plural) are Earth, Earth's natural environments that have not been significantly modified by human impact on the environment, human activity, or any urbanization, nonurbanized land not u ...
by the California Wilderness Act of 1984.[ 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 ...
escarpment is now a continuous Wilderness
Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plurale tantum, plural) are Earth, Earth's natural environments that have not been significantly modified by human impact on the environment, human activity, or any urbanization, nonurbanized land not u ...
from Ball Mountain (near Inyokern) to Tioga Pass, a distance of about .
The Summit offers views of the Ritter Range, including The Minarets, Mount Ritter and Banner Peak, to the west and the Long Valley Caldera
Long Valley Caldera is a Depression (geology), depression in eastern California that is adjacent to Mammoth Mountain. The valley is one of the Earth's largest calderas, measuring about long (east-west), wide (north-south), and up to deep.
Lo ...
, the Glass Mountains
The Glass Mountains (also known as Gloss Mountains or Gloss Hills) are not actually mountains, but a series of mesas and buttes that are part of the Blaine Escarpment that extends from the Permian red beds of northwestern Oklahoma in Major Cou ...
and the White Mountains to the east. The Middle Fork of the San Joaquin River runs through the valley between the Summit and the Minarets.
The pass receives significant snowfall during the winter. The road usually closes near the Main Lodge of Mammoth Mountain Ski Area
Mammoth Mountain Ski Area is a ski resort in eastern California, located on the east side of the Sierra Nevada, Sierra Nevada mountain range within the Inyo National Forest. The resort is located in the town of Mammoth Lakes, California. The res ...
before Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in October and November in the United States, Canada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Germany. It is also observed in the Australian territory ...
and usually doesn't open much before Memorial Day
Memorial Day (originally known as Decoration Day) is a federal holiday in the United States for mourning the U.S. military personnel who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. It is observed on the last Monday of May.
It i ...
.
In October 2008 items belonging to missing adventurer Steve Fossett
James Stephen Fossett (April 22, 1944 – September 3, 2007) was an American businessman and a record-setting aviator, sailor, and adventurer. He was the first person to fly solo nonstop around the world in a balloon and in a fixed-wing aircraf ...
were found by Preston Morrow on a hike near Minaret Lake,New Clues Uncovered in Steve Fossett Disappearance
/ref> which is in an area visible from Minaret Summit. This led to the discovery of his remains and aircraft.
References
{{Sierra Nevada, state=collapsed
Mountain passes of the Sierra Nevada (United States)
Inyo National Forest
Landforms of Madera County, California
Landforms of Mono County, California