Fremont Peak State Park - California
Fremont Peak State Park is located in Monterey County and San Benito County, California. The park encompasses the summit of 3,169-foot (966 m) Fremont Peak in the Gabilan Range. The park features expansive views of Monterey Bay and Pacific Ocean from its hiking trails. Other vistas include the San Benito Valley, Salinas Valley, and the Santa Lucia Mountains east of Big Sur.
maps Mother Lode - Boundary Map Boundary Map of the Mother Lode BLM Field Office area in California. Published by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
brochures Fremont Peak - Brochure and Map Brochure and Map of Fremont Peak State Park (SP) in California. Published by California Department of Parks and Recreation.
https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=564
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fremont_Peak_State_Park
Fremont Peak State Park is located in Monterey County and San Benito County, California. The park encompasses the summit of 3,169-foot (966 m) Fremont Peak in the Gabilan Range. The park features expansive views of Monterey Bay and Pacific Ocean from its hiking trails. Other vistas include the San Benito Valley, Salinas Valley, and the Santa Lucia Mountains east of Big Sur.
Our Mission
Fremont Peak
State Park
The mission of California State Parks is
to provide for the health, inspiration and
education of the people of California by helping
to preserve the state’s extraordinary biological
diversity, protecting its most valued natural and
cultural resources, and creating opportunities
for high-quality outdoor recreation.
At the peak,
visitors enjoy a
360-degree view
during the day;
the night sky provides
a visual feast
California State Parks supports equal access.
Prior to arrival, visitors with disabilities who
need assistance should contact the park at
(831) 623-4526. If you need this publication in an
alternate format, contact interp@parks.ca.gov.
CALIFORNIA STATE PARKS
P.O. Box 942896
Sacramento, CA 94296-0001
For information call: (800) 777-0369
(916) 653-6995, outside the U.S.
711, TTY relay service
www.parks.ca.gov
Fremont Peak State Park
San Juan Canyon Road off Hwy. 156
San Juan Bautista, CA 95045
(831) 623-4526 • Observatory: 623-2465
Latitude 36.7602˚ Longitude -121.503˚
© 2002 California State Parks (Rev. 2017)
for stargazers.
Poison oak leaves turn red in fall.
A
t Fremont Peak State Park, spring
and fall are the most colorful seasons.
Magnificent vistas of Monterey Bay and
the Salinas and San Benito valleys are
incomparable from the 3,169-foot peak.
Also visible are the Santa Cruz, Diablo,
and Gavilan ranges, and the Santa Lucia
Mountains. On a clear day, one may spot the
Sierra Nevada Range. At night, constellations
and galaxies not visible in light-polluted city
skies dazzle the eye.
The weather here is changeable. Summer
temperatures can reach 90 degrees during
the day, and at night they can drop to as low
as 50 degrees, depending on the fog layer.
Winter conditions may include dense fog,
ice, and occasional snow.
The 159-acre park is off State Highway 156,
about 45 miles from San Jose or 11 miles
south of San Juan Bautista. San Juan Canyon
Road is paved, but it winds through canyons
and over ridges; trailers or vehicles over 25
feet in length are not recommended.
PARK HISTORY
Native People
For thousands
of years, the
Ohlone people
(also known as
“Costanoan”)
lived in this area.
Ethnographers
vary on the
number of native
people but
John C. Frémont
estimate that
there were at least 50 villages. Residents of
these villages spoke different dialects of the
Penutian language.
In 1769 the native people’s lives were
disrupted by the arrival of Spanish
missionaries and soldiers who came to
colonize the area and bring the native people
into the mission system. The next several
decades saw a drastic decline in the native
population due to food shortages, crowded
conditions, and epidemics of diseases to
which the Ohlone had no immunity. By
1850, fewer than ten percent of the Ohlone
people remained.
Today there are more than 1,600 Ohlone
people on tribal membership rolls. By
studying records of their spoken dialects,
several Ohlone groups are reviving their
traditional languages.
Why is it Called Fremont Peak?
In 1846, while California was still part of
Mexico, Army Captain John C. Frémont of
the Topographic Engineers led a small
exploratory force to California, arriving in the
Salinas Valley in March.
Suspicious of Frémont’s motives, Mexican
Commandante General José Castro ordered
him to leave the settled areas of California
immediately. Frémont, believing that
Castro had previously granted him verbal
permission to remain, refused. Sensing an
incident was coming, Frémont’s party headed
up to a nearby peak, where they built a
makeshift fort and raised a U.S. military flag.
Castro, meanwhile, assembled a group of 200
soldiers in nearby San Juan Bautista.
In Monterey, U.S. Consul Thomas O. Larkin
attempted to intervene in order to avoid a
conflict. After several days, Frémont decided
to leave his encampment as he undoubtedly
realized his precarious position. A powerful
windstorm blew down the flagpole and may
have provided Frémont further impetus to
abandon the summit.
During the Mexican-American war, Frémont
led the California Battalion, but in 1847 U.S.
General Stephen W. Kearny censured him
for his “conduct in California.” Frémont was
arrested, court-martialed, and found guilty
of mutiny, disobedience, and “conduct to
the prejudice of good order and military
discipline.” President James K. Polk later
removed the charge of mutiny, and Frémont
became a U.S. Senator representing
California’s Mariposa area. In 1856, he ran
unsuccessfully for president.
As early as 1890, the raising of the flag
by Frémont was celebrated on Fremont
Peak. The Native Sons and
Interior live
oak leaves
Daughters of the
Golden West placed
a commemorative
plaque there in 1926.
While some scholarship
places the event on another summit,
Fremont Peak has remained the
place of commemoration.
The area becamea state
park in 1936.
NATural history
The northern slopes
of Fremont Peak State
Park are covered with
Alligator lizard
manzanita, scrub oak, toyon,
and coyote brush. On southern exposures,