Mount Carl Heller
Vacation Peak
West aspect
Highest point
Elevation13,211 ft (4,027 m)[1][2]
Prominence495 ft (151 m)[3]
Parent peakTunnabora Peak (13,563 ft)[4]
Isolation1.00 mi (1.61 km)[4]
Coordinates36°36′42″N 118°17′55″W / 36.611594°N 118.298654°W / 36.611594; -118.298654[3]
Naming
EtymologyDr. Carl Heller
Geography
Mount Carl Heller is located in California
Mount Carl Heller
Mount Carl Heller
Location in California
Mount Carl Heller is located in the United States
Mount Carl Heller
Mount Carl Heller
Mount Carl Heller (the United States)
LocationSequoia National Park
Tulare County / Inyo County
California, U.S.
Parent rangeSierra Nevada
Topo mapUSGS Mount Whitney
Geology
Age of rockCretaceous
Mountain typeFault block
Type of rockgranitic
Climbing
First ascent1966
Easiest routeclass 3 scrambling[4]

Mount Carl Heller is a 13,211-foot-elevation (4,031 meter) mountain summit located on the crest of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in California.[1] It is situated on the common border shared by Tulare County with Inyo County, as well as the shared boundary of Sequoia National Park and John Muir Wilderness. It is set 13.5 miles (21.7 km) west of the community of Lone Pine, 1.9 miles (3.1 km) north of Mount Whitney, and 0.6 miles (0.97 km) northwest of Tunnabora Peak, the nearest higher neighbor. Mount Carl Heller ranks as the 105th-highest summit in California.[4] Topographic relief is significant as the west aspect rises approximately 1,755 feet (535 meters) above Wallace Lake in 0.38 miles (0.61 km).

History

The first ascent of the summit was made in August 1966 by Carl Heller and Al Green via the East Arête.[2]

This landform is unofficially named after Dr. Carl Anthony Heller (1922–1984), founder of the China Lake Mountain Rescue Group in 1958.[5] His group's search and rescue operations in the Mount Whitney area saved many. He was a research chemist and mountaineer who made the first ascent of this peak. This feature has also been called "Vacation Peak",[1] in association with its position immediately above Vacation Pass.

Peaks seen from Mount Whitney summit. Mount Carl Heller near center (see file annotations for identifications)

Climate

According to the Köppen climate classification system, Mount Carl Heller is located in an alpine climate zone.[6] 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. Precipitation runoff from this mountain drains west to the Kern River via Wallace Creek, and east to Owens Valley via George Creek.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 R. J. Secor, The High Sierra Peaks, Passes, Trails, 2009, Third Edition, Mountaineers Books, ISBN 9781594857386, page 83.
  2. 1 2 John Moynier, Claude Fiddler (1993), Sierra Classics: 100 Best Climbs in the High Sierra, Chockstone Press, ISBN 9780934641609, p. 50
  3. 1 2 "Mount Carl Heller, California". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved 2022-06-12.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Carl Heller, Mount - 13,225' CA". listsofjohn.com. Retrieved 2022-06-12.
  5. ↑ Elizabeth Wenk (2016), One Best Hike, Wilderness Press, ISBN 9780899978321, p. 138
  6. ↑ "Climate of the Sierra Nevada". Encyclopædia Britannica.
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