| Junction Peak | |
|---|---|
"Junction Peak" by Ansel Adams, circa 1930s. |
|
| Elevation | 13,888 ft (4,233 m) [1] |
| Prominence | 765 ft (233 m) [1] |
| Parent peak | Mount Keith[1] |
| Listing | Sierra Peaks Section Mountaineers Peak[2] |
| Location | |
|
Junction Peak
|
|
| Location | Inyo and Tulare counties, California, USA |
| Range | Sierra Nevada |
| Coordinates | [3] |
| Topo map | USGS Mount Williamson[3] |
| Climbing | |
| First ascent | August 8, 1899 by Edwin Bingham Copeland and E. N. Henderson[4] |
| Easiest route | South Face, South Ridge or West Ridge (all class 3 scrambles)[5] |
Junction Peak is a thirteener in the Sierra Nevada. Joseph Nisbet LeConte chose this name in 1896, noting that it marks the point where the Sierra Crest crosses the water divide of the Kern and Kings rivers.[4] Today it also is the boundary between Inyo and Tulare counties, and of the John Muir Wilderness, Kings Canyon National Park, Sequoia National Park.[1]
Botanist Edwin Bingham Copeland and partner E. N. Henderson were the first climbers known to reach Junction Peak's summit, on August 8, 1899. They pioneered the class 3 South Ridge route, following the exposed ridge from Diamond Mesa to the top of Junction. Over the course of nearly a century, several more class 3 and 4 routes were established. The first winter climb was made by the West Ridge, culminating on March 21, 1973. The first technical climb recorded on Junction was the grade III 5.7 North Buttress route.[5]