Kuna Crest

Kuna Crest is a mountain range near Tuolumne Meadows, in Yosemite National Park, California.

Kuna Crest
Tioga Pass meadow, lake, Kuna Crest
Highest point
Elevation	12,170 ft (3,710 m) NAVD 88[1]
Prominence	919 ft (280 m)[1]
Coordinates	37.844°N 119.257°W / 37.844; -119.257[1]
Geography
Location	Yosemite National Park, California, U.S.
Parent range	Ritter Range, Sierra Nevada
Geology
Rock age	Cretaceous
Mountain type	Kuna Crest Granodiorite
Climbing
Easiest route	Hike

Kuna Crest, and Mammoth Peak

Name

The word Kuna probably derives from a Shoshonean word meaning "fire," which appears in the Mono dialect of the area, with a meaning of firewood.^[2][3] On the summit of near-by Kuna Peak, there are many jagged pieces of rock which resemble fire themselves; see Kuna Crest Granodiorite.

Geography and geology

The Crest lies between two U-shaped glacial valleys: Lyell Canyon and the canyon of the Parker Pass Creek. Mammoth Peak lies at the northern end of the Kuna Crest. A number of lakes lie in cirques cut into the eastern edge of the Crest, including Kuna Lake, Bingaman Lake, Spillway Lake, and Helen Lake.

The Crest consists of Kuna Crest Granodiorite, which is the oldest granitic rock of the Tuolumne Intrusive Suite. It is rich in biotite and hornblende.^[4]

Rock climbing

Climbing on Kuna Crest consists of mostly of walking and scrambling; there isn't much rock climbing, on Kuna Crest proper.^[5] There is a traverse, between Mammoth Peak and Kuna Peak.^[6]