Junipero Serra Peak
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Junipero Serra Peak rises to 1,784 m in California. Pinyon Peak stands 1,602 m to the northeast, 2.6 miles off. The nearest named place is Bear Mountain, a peak 2.5 miles away. Big Sur Coast Highway - Route 1 passes 11 miles off.
The story
Junipero Serra Peak is the highest mountain in the Santa Lucia range of central California with a height of 1,785 metres (5,856 feet). It is also the highest peak in Monterey County, and is located within the boundaries of Los Padres National Forest. It is named after Saint Junípero Serra, the Spanish Franciscan priest who founded the California Missions in the 18th century. There is a fire lookout, with a tower and building, near the peak that was constructed around 1935. An unauthorized skiing operation on the summit was reported sometime before 1970. Good astronomical observing conditions were an early attraction to the peak. Astronomers scratched a trail to the summit in January 1880 to observe a total eclipse of the sun. Observations from the peak were also made on the transit of Venus in 1882.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wikidata Q8519545, referenced by the OpenStreetMap record.
What the record says
- Elevation
- 1,784 m
How to reach it
- 10.9 mi off the Big Sur Coast Highway - Route 1, National
- 24.5 mi off the San Luis Obispo North Coast Byway - Route 1, National
Overlooks nearby
- Julia Pfieffer Burns Vista Point · 15 mi
- Breaker Point · 26 mi
- Point Sierra Nevada · 26 mi
Named places within 25 miles
- Bear Mountain: 2.5 mi
- Pinyon Peak: 2.6 mi
- Lost Peak: 5.9 mi
- Cone Peak: 7.8 mi
- Wizard Peak: 7.9 mi
- Old oak park: 13.8 mi
- Patriot Park: 14.5 mi
- Pine Meadows Park 1: 15.1 mi
- Pine Meadows Park 2: 15.2 mi
- Pine Canyon Mobile Estates Rec Area: 15.3 mi
- Jackhammer Spring: 5.1 mi
- Redondo Spring: 7.1 mi
- Quail Spring: 8.7 mi
- Redwood Spring: 9.5 mi
- Pajaiso Springs: 13.1 mi
- Eagle Creek Falls: 4.7 mi
- Devil's falls: 7.6 mi
- Canogas Falls: 9.1 mi
- Tassajara Creek Falls: 9.5 mi
- Middle Fork Falls: 10.5 mi
- Bear Canyon Wilderness Study Area: 6.6 mi
- Bear Mountain Wilderness Study Area: 7.2 mi
- Ventana Wilderness: 8.0 mi
- Landels-Hill Big Creek Nature Reserve: 11.3 mi
- John Little State Natural Reserve: 12.1 mi
- Santa Lucia Adobe: 6.5 mi
- Bill Cotta Memorial: 7.8 mi
- Suzuki-Roshi: 9.6 mi
- Limekilns: 10.6 mi
- Tin House: 14.8 mi
- Devil's Falls: 7.6 mi
- Sycamore Flats: 8.7 mi
- Drinking Fountain (abandoned): 10.9 mi
- Rigdon Drinking Fountain (disused): 11.4 mi
- Esalen Institute: 12.3 mi
- Arroyo Seco Day Use: 7.1 mi
- Mill Creek Day Use Area: 11.9 mi
- DeAnza Picnic Site: 15.6 mi
- Picnic Area B: 15.7 mi
- Sand Dollar Picnic Area and Beach: 15.7 mi
- Sand Dollar Beach: 15.6 mi
- Wreck Beach: 22.0 mi
- Pfeiffer Beach: 23.2 mi
- Puente Big Creek Bridge: 11.4 mi
- Father Junipero Serra: 13.1 mi
- Monterey County Agricultural and Rural Life Museum: 15.8 mi
- Mission Soledad Museum: 18.2 mi
- Memorial Rose Garden: 16.5 mi
- Sykes Hot Spring: 16.8 mi
- Los Padres Dam Slide: 21.7 mi
- Keyhole Arch: 23.1 mi
Other summits around it
The highest named summits within 22.8 miles of Junipero Serra Peak. Elevation from each summit’s own record; bearing measured between the two coordinates.
| Summit | Bearing | Elevation | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pinyon Peak | NE 53° | 1,602 m | 2.6 mi |
| Cone Peak | SSW 214° | 1,572 m | 7.8 mi |
| Chews Ridge | NW 324° | 1,549 m | 14.1 mi |
| South Ventana Cone | NW 306° | 1,517 m | 15.1 mi |
| Black Butte | NW 321° | 1,497 m | 10.8 mi |
| Ventana Double Cone | WNW 302° | 1,477 m | 19.5 mi |
| Twin Peak | SW 218° | 1,468 m | 8.1 mi |
| Bear Mountain | ENE 69° | 1,451 m | 2.5 mi |
When to go
Light through the year
| Date | Sunrise | Golden hour | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 07:10 | 18:44 | 19:18 |
| June solstice | 05:50 | 19:49 | 20:27 |
| September equinox | 06:54 | 18:30 | 19:04 |
| December solstice | 07:14 | 16:16 | 16:55 |
Local time (America/Los_Angeles).
Climate normals
Months averaging 50–80 °F: Jan–Nov.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg °F | 51 | 53 | 56 | 59 | 63 | 67 | 69 | 69 | 68 | 63 | 55 | 50 |
| Precip in | 2.4 | 2.5 | 2.0 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 2.1 |
1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, NOAA NCEI — King City, 16 mi away.
Where this comes from
Location and category confirmed against OpenStreetMap.
OpenStreetMapWikidata- USGS Geographic Names Information System feature 271844 — Junipero Serra Peak, Monterey County, California.
OpenStreetMap element node/358801535
Day trips start here
- King City · 17 mi
- Monterey County · 18 mi
- Soledad · 20 mi
- Pinnacles National Park · 27 mi
- Carmel Valley · 29 mi
Take the scenic way to Junipero Serra Peak.
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