Minarets
Minarets rises to 3,654 m in California. Mount Ritter stands 4,007 m to the north-northwest, 2.2 miles off. The nearest named place is Rice Minaret, a peak less than a tenth of a mile away. Tioga Road/Big Oak Flat Road passes 16 miles off.
The story
The Minarets are a series of jagged peaks located in the Ritter Range, a sub-range of the Sierra Nevada in the state of California. They are easily viewed from Minaret Summit, which is accessible by auto. Collectively, they form an arête, and are a prominent feature in the Ansel Adams Wilderness which was known as the Minaret Wilderness until it was renamed in honor of Ansel Adams in 1984. The peaks were named in 1868 by the California Geographical Survey, which reported: "To the south of Mount Ritter are some grand pinnacles of granite, very lofty and apparently inaccessible, to which we gave the name of 'the Minarets.'" Seventeen of the Minarets have been given unofficial names, including Michael Minaret, Adams Minaret, Leonard Minaret, and Clyde Minaret. Clyde Minaret, named after Norman Clyde, is the tallest of the spires. The Southeast Face Route of Clyde Minaret is a technical rock climb featured in Fifty Classic Climbs of North America. The area is notable for two fatalities:
Walter A. Starr, Jr., author of Starr’s Guide to the John Muir Trail and the High Sierra Region, fell to his death while solo-climbing the northwest face of Michael Minaret in 1933. Steve Fossett, an American aviator and adventurer, died in a plane crash near the Minarets in 2007.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wikidata Q2412852, referenced by the OpenStreetMap record.
What the record says
- Elevation
- 3,654 m
How to reach it
- 15.9 mi off the Tioga Road/Big Oak Flat Road, National
Overlooks nearby
- Disappearing Meadows · 16 mi
- Lembert Dome · 18 mi
- Tioga Lake Overlook Info Site · 18 mi
- View on Tenaya Lake · 20 mi
Named places within 25 miles
- Rice Minaret: 0.0 mi
- Eichorn Minaret: 0.1 mi
- Bedayan Minaret: 0.1 mi
- Dawson Minaret: 0.1 mi
- Michael Minaret: 0.1 mi
- Minarets Falls: 5.1 mi
- Rainbow Falls: 6.6 mi
- Lower Rainbow Falls: 6.7 mi
- Horsetail Falls: 7.4 mi
- Twin Falls: 9.8 mi
- Chetwood Cabin: 6.2 mi
- Mill City Mine: 10.4 mi
- Julia E. Townsend Memorial: 10.6 mi
- Assay Office: 11.4 mi
- Mahan Cabin: 11.4 mi
- Reds Meadow Hot Springs: 6.4 mi
- Hartley Springs: 10.5 mi
- Iva Bell Hot Springs: 12.3 mi
- Big Springs: 14.3 mi
- Antelope Spring: 16.5 mi
- The Buttresses: 6.1 mi
- Junction Bluffs: 9.6 mi
- Bunnell Cliff: 16.8 mi
- The Alcove: 16.9 mi
- The Wave: 16.9 mi
- Gull Lake Park: 9.6 mi
- Valentine Reserve Ecological Study Area: 10.2 mi
- Community Center Park: 10.7 mi
- Mammoth Creek Park West: 11.7 mi
- Trails End Park: 12.6 mi
- Mammoth Museum: 11.9 mi
- Mono Basin Historical Society: 20.8 mi
- Nature Center at Happy Isles: 21.4 mi
- Yosemite Conservation Heritage Center: 22.6 mi
- Ansel Adams residence: 23.1 mi
- Devils Postpile: 5.7 mi
- Perched Boulder: 10.2 mi
- Upside-Down House: 20.8 mi
- South Tufa Area: 21.1 mi
- Navy Beach: 21.1 mi
- Minaret Vista Picnic: 6.4 mi
- Gull Lake Picnic Area: 9.3 mi
- Aerie Crag Picnic Area: 10.4 mi
- Mono Creek Picnic Site: 23.2 mi
- Swinging Bridge Picnic Area: 23.6 mi
- free natural hot pool: 6.5 mi
- Iva Bell Hot Springs: 12.3 mi
- Little Creek Hot Springs: 18.5 mi
- Hot Creek Geological Site: 19.1 mi
- Shepherd Hot Springs: 20.5 mi
- June Lake Beach: 11.0 mi
- Navy Beach: 21.1 mi
- Danburg Beach: 24.5 mi
- Bennettville: 19.6 mi
- Mono Mills: 19.6 mi
- Crestview Rest Area: 12.4 mi
- Arch Rock: 16.0 mi
- Yosemite National Park: 23.4 mi
Other summits around it
The highest named summits within 10.2 miles of Minarets. Elevation from each summit’s own record; bearing measured between the two coordinates.
| Summit | Bearing | Elevation | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Ritter | NNW 328° | 4,007 m | 2.2 mi |
| Mount Lyell | NW 316° | 3,993 m | 7.4 mi |
| Rodgers Peak | NW 315° | 3,956 m | 6.1 mi |
| Banner Peak | NNW 339° | 3,940 m | 2.6 mi |
| Mount Maclure | NW 315° | 3,933 m | 7.9 mi |
| Blacktop Peak | N 354° | 3,881 m | 9.2 mi |
| Mount Wood | N 4° | 3,858 m | 10.2 mi |
| Mount Florence | NW 306° | 3,823 m | 9.3 mi |
When to go
Light through the year
| Date | Sunrise | Golden hour | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 07:01 | 18:34 | 19:09 |
| June solstice | 05:36 | 19:43 | 20:22 |
| September equinox | 06:45 | 18:21 | 18:55 |
| December solstice | 07:09 | 16:01 | 16:42 |
Local time (America/Los_Angeles).
Climate normals
Months averaging 50–80 °F: Jun–Sep.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg °F | 29 | 29 | 34 | 39 | 47 | 56 | 63 | 62 | 56 | 46 | 36 | 29 |
| Precip in | 4.2 | 3.8 | 3.3 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 1.4 | 2.0 | 4.1 |
1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, NOAA NCEI — Mammoth Lakes RS, 12 mi away.
Where this comes from
Location and category confirmed against OpenStreetMap.
OpenStreetMapWikidataOpenStreetMap element node/358770817
Day trips start here
- Yosemite National Park · 21 mi
- Sierra Nevada · 22 mi
- Mono Lake · 26 mi
Take the scenic way to Minarets.
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