Mount Hale
East aspect, from Mt. Whitney
Highest point
Elevation	13,494 ft (4,113 m)[1]
Prominence	633 ft (193 m)[1]
Parent peak	Mt. Randy Morgenson (13,927 ft)[2]
Isolation	0.85 mi (1.37 km)[2]
Listing	Sierra Peaks Section
Coordinates	36°35′17″N 118°18′53″W / 36.5880375°N 118.3146535°W / 36.5880375; -118.3146535[3]
Naming
Etymology	George Ellery Hale
Geography
Mount Hale Location in California Show map of California Mount Hale Mount Hale (the United States) Show map of the United States
Location	Sequoia National Park Tulare County California, U.S.
Parent range	Sierra Nevada
Topo map	USGS Mount Whitney
Geology
Age of rock	Cretaceous
Mountain type	Fault block
Type of rock	granite
Climbing
First ascent	1934
Easiest route	class 2[2] South slope

Mount Hale is a 13,494-foot-elevation (4,113-meter) mountain summit located west of the crest of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in Tulare County, California.^[3] It is situated in Sequoia National Park, 1.4 mile northwest of Mount Whitney, one mile northeast of Mount Young, and 0.85 mile west-southwest of Mount Randy Morgenson, the nearest higher neighbor. The John Muir Trail traverses below the south aspect of the mountain, providing approach access. Mt. Hale ranks as the 63rd-highest summit in California.^[2] Topographic relief is significant as the north aspect rises 1,770 feet (540 meters) above Wales Lake in approximately one-quarter mile.

History

This mountain's name was proposed by the Sierra Club and officially adopted in 1940 by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names to honor the eminent American astronomer George Ellery Hale (1868–1938), best known for his discovery of magnetic fields in sunspots, and founder of the Mount Wilson Observatory.^[3] The immediate area has other geographical features named after astronomers, including Mount Newcomb, Mount Langley, Mount Young, Mount Pickering, and Mount Barnard.

The first ascent of the summit was made July 24, 1934, by J. H. Czock and Mildred Czock via the south slope.^[4]

Climate

Mount Hale has an alpine climate.^[5] Most weather fronts originate in the Pacific Ocean, and travel east toward the Sierra Nevada mountains. As fronts approach, they are forced upward by the peaks, causing them to drop their moisture in the form of rain or snowfall onto the range (orographic lift). Precipitation runoff from this mountain drains west to the Kern River via Wallace and Whitney Creeks.