McDonald Peak
Alamo Mountain
San Rafael Peak
Thorn Point
Escapula Peak

Sat, Jun 13, 2009

With: Tom Becht
Matthew Holliman

 Etymology
McDonald Peak
Alamo Mountain
San Rafael Peak
Thorn Point
Escapula Peak
 Story Photos / Slideshow Maps: 1 2 3 4 Profiles: 1 2

Thorn Point (6,935 ft.)

"Named derived from nearby Thorn Meadows, which Ventura historian Jim Blakely believes were named for W, H. Thorne (n.d.), a surveyor who worked in the north-central Ventura backcountry (ca. 1880). However, Erwin Gudde in his California Place Names imagines that Thorn Point was "probably named for its shape". Notwithstanding Gudde's guess, likely based on the obvious spirelike qualities of the surrounding ridge, the meadows were named first and such place names customarily were given to early homesteaders.

The USFS constructed a fire lookout on the summit consisting of a 20' H-B type open brace steel tower with a 14' by 14' cab (1938). Near to this a wood AWS ground observer cabin once existed (1938-1945). Both are abandoned but still standing.

Variant name no longer in use: White Granite Peak (Wheeler 1878).

Thorne Meadows first appears on the BLM Santa Barbara National Forest, (east half) map (1918).

Name first appears on USFS Los Padres National Forest map (1937).

Peak was on the original 1946 HPS Peak List."

- HPS Summit Signatures

More of Bob's Trip Reports

For more information see these SummitPost pages: Alamo Mountain

This page last updated: Sun Jun 14 14:26:13 2009
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