The first name given to the mountain is Winuba, meaning "Standing Tall" in Owens Valley Paiute (Nüümü).[8] The mountain is currently named for Thomas Clark, a resident of the pioneer town of Owensville, who is credited with being the first white settler to ascend the peak in the 1860s.[6] Mount Tom and Mount Morgan were part of the Pine Creek mining operation which was important producer of tungsten for much of the 20th century although the scheelite ore deposits are now largely depleted and mines have closed.
Climbingedit
The Owens Valley, at the base of Mt. Tom, is a little over 4,000 feet, and the summit of Mt. Tom is 13,658, for almost 10,000 feet of relief. The common routes up Mount Tom are not technically difficult, most are class 2–3, but they are all strenuous and long.[9] Summiting Mount Tom is possible in a single day, but should only be attempted by those in very good physical condition.
Horton Creek Canyon is a common out and back hiking route and 14 mile[10] out and back trail with 5,652 feet of elevation gain.[10] The trailhead at Horton Creek Canyon is 8000 feet in elevation, it is 3.6 miles hike with about 2000 feet of elevation gain to reach Horton Lake. There campers may, with an overnight wilderness permit, choose to spend the night. From Horton Lake hikers head up the southern ridge of Mount Tom to the summit with 1,750 feet of off trail class 2 scrambling.[10]
There are multiple technical climbing routes on Mount Tom including:
East Face Chimney Route, class IV, 5.9, First Ascent on August 18, 1988, by Galen Rowell and Kevin Worral.[11]
Golden Thread Arete, class IV, 5.9, First Ascent on September 5, 1999, by Stuart Polack and Walt Vennum. This is a 14 pitch route on the north face of Mount Tom.[11]
Skiingedit
Mount Tom is a popular back-country ski descent in the Spring years when there is enough snow. Elderberry canyon is the most popular ski descent. It is 7000 vertical feet of skiing and is steeper towards to summit.[11]
On March 26, 2005, five skiers in Elderberry Canyon on Mount Tom were caught in two separate avalanches caused by the same party. One skier was injured, two skiers were buried and killed.[12]
Mount Tom from the East. Elderberry Canyon is the clearly visible S-shaped canyon.
mount, california, mount, large, prominent, peak, near, city, bishop, inyo, county, eastern, california, sierra, nevada, east, sierra, crest, mountain, also, john, muir, wilderness, mount, tommount, from, northeasthighest, pointelevation13, navd, prominence1, . Mount Tom is a large and prominent peak near the city of Bishop in Inyo County of eastern California It is in the Sierra Nevada and east of the Sierra Crest The mountain is also in the John Muir Wilderness Mount TomMount Tom from the northeastHighest pointElevation13 658 ft 4 163 m NAVD 88 1 Prominence1 972 ft 601 m 1 Parent peakMount Humphreys 2 ListingNorth America highest peaks 85thUS highest major peaks 68thCalifornia highest major peaks 12thSierra Peaks Section 3 Western States Climbers Star peak 4 Coordinates37 20 19 N 118 39 30 W 37 3385441 N 118 6584507 W 37 3385441 118 6584507 5 GeographyMount TomLocation in CaliforniaShow map of CaliforniaMount TomMount Tom the United States Show map of the United StatesLocationInyo County California U S Parent rangeSierra NevadaTopo mapUSGS Mount TomClimbingFirst ascent1860s Thomas Clark 6 Easiest routeScramble class 2 7 Along with its neighbor to the south Basin Mountain it dominates the western skyline from the upper Owens Valley Contents 1 History 2 Climbing 3 Skiing 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksHistory editThe first name given to the mountain is Winuba meaning Standing Tall in Owens Valley Paiute Nuumu 8 The mountain is currently named for Thomas Clark a resident of the pioneer town of Owensville who is credited with being the first white settler to ascend the peak in the 1860s 6 Mount Tom and Mount Morgan were part of the Pine Creek mining operation which was important producer of tungsten for much of the 20th century although the scheelite ore deposits are now largely depleted and mines have closed Climbing editThe Owens Valley at the base of Mt Tom is a little over 4 000 feet and the summit of Mt Tom is 13 658 for almost 10 000 feet of relief The common routes up Mount Tom are not technically difficult most are class 2 3 but they are all strenuous and long 9 Summiting Mount Tom is possible in a single day but should only be attempted by those in very good physical condition Horton Creek Canyon is a common out and back hiking route and 14 mile 10 out and back trail with 5 652 feet of elevation gain 10 The trailhead at Horton Creek Canyon is 8000 feet in elevation it is 3 6 miles hike with about 2000 feet of elevation gain to reach Horton Lake There campers may with an overnight wilderness permit choose to spend the night From Horton Lake hikers head up the southern ridge of Mount Tom to the summit with 1 750 feet of off trail class 2 scrambling 10 There are multiple technical climbing routes on Mount Tom including East Face Chimney Route class IV 5 9 First Ascent on August 18 1988 by Galen Rowell and Kevin Worral 11 Golden Thread Arete class IV 5 9 First Ascent on September 5 1999 by Stuart Polack and Walt Vennum This is a 14 pitch route on the north face of Mount Tom 11 Skiing editMount Tom is a popular back country ski descent in the Spring years when there is enough snow Elderberry canyon is the most popular ski descent It is 7000 vertical feet of skiing and is steeper towards to summit 11 On March 26 2005 five skiers in Elderberry Canyon on Mount Tom were caught in two separate avalanches caused by the same party One skier was injured two skiers were buried and killed 12 nbsp Mount Tom from the East Elderberry Canyon is the clearly visible S shaped canyon See also editList of mountain peaks of CaliforniaReferences edit a b Mount Tom California Peakbagger com Retrieved 2009 12 30 Mount Tom ListsOfJohn com Retrieved 2012 04 01 Sierra Peaks Section List PDF Angeles Chapter Sierra Club Retrieved 2016 03 24 Western States Climbers Qualifying Peak List Climber org Retrieved 2016 03 24 Mount Tom Geographic Names Information System United States Geological Survey United States Department of the Interior Retrieved 2009 12 30 a b Farquhar Francis P 1926 Place Names of the High Sierra San Francisco Sierra Club Retrieved 2009 12 30 Roper Steve 1976 The Climber s Guide to the High Sierra San Francisco Sierra Club Books p 141 ISBN 978 0871561473 Nelson Jr Glenn Owens Valley Paiute Dictionary Bishop CA Nuumu Yadoha Language Program Mount Tom Climbing Hiking amp Mountaineering SummitPost www summitpost org Retrieved 2016 04 11 a b c Mount Tom from Horton Lake AllTrails com Retrieved 2016 04 11 a b c Secor R J 2009 The High Sierra Peaks Passes Trails Mountaineers Books 3rd edition p 326 ISBN 0898869714 Avalanche org Detailed Accident Report www avalanche org Archived from the original on 2016 04 19 Retrieved 2016 04 11 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mount Tom Mount Tom SummitPost org Retrieved 2011 06 01 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Mount Tom California amp oldid 1195611445, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
