From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Minaret Summit is a mountain pass on Highway 203 in the central
Sierra Nevada.[2] 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, Mammoth Lakes, and Mammoth
Mountain. The elevation of the pass is about 9,265 ft
(2,824 m).[1]
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 highway (or tunnel) connecting the Eastern Sierra
and the San Joaquin Valley via Minaret
Summit had often been discussed (the gap between Minaret Road,
which runs northeast into the Sierras from North
Fork, California, and the end of the Reds Meadow Road is less
than 10 miles). The Wilderness Act
of 1964 excluded an area southwest of Minaret Summit because of
this possibility. After then-Governor Ronald Reagan made a horse-packing trip
to the area he supported conservationists' efforts to cancel these
plans. Reagan
continued his efforts after being elected President in 1980 and
the area was eventually designated Wilderness by the California Wilderness Act
of 1984. The Sierra Nevada escarpment is now a
continuous Wilderness
from Round Mountain (near Inyokern) to Tioga Pass, a distance of about 150
miles.
The Summit is noted for its spectacular views of the Ritter Range,
including The Minarets, Mount Ritter and Banner Peak, to the
west and the Long Valley Caldera and the Glass 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.[3] The
road usually closes near the Main Lodge of Mammoth Mountain Ski Area
before Thanksgiving and is not usually open
before Memorial
Day.
In October 2008 items belonging to missing adventurer Steve Fossett were
found by Preston Morrow[4] on a
hike near Minaret
Lake,[5] which
is in an area visible from Minaret Summit. This led to the
discovery of his remains and aircraft.
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