Loop Trail Walk to Fremont Peak
The hike to Fremont Peak is about a mile and involves about a 400 foot climb in elevation. Be prepared for windy conditions and heat on clear sunny days. The peak is frequently enshrouded in fog or clouds in the mornings or during inclement winter. It is recommended to check weather forecasts before traveling to the park. However, the weather is typically perfect for a day trip or camping trip throughout the year. The closest services available are in San Juan Bautista. Be aware of poison oak and uneven footing along the trail. Rattlesnakes, although rare, may be present, so watch where you step or place your hands when examining or climbing on outcrops.
Near the trailhead are displays describing the events associated with the arrival of US Army explorer, John C. Fremont, and his group of "surveyors" sent west to explore the west coast. The arrival of the crew in the central coast region in 1847 came unannounced and they were threatened with arrest if captured by troops under authority of General Commandante General of the Mexican Army, José Antonio Castro. Historical accounts describe Fremont defied orders to leave, instead Fremont's crew climbed "Gavilan Peak" (former name of Fremont Peak) and planted a United States flag and set up crude fortification. The Mexican Army troops stationed in San Juan Bautista responded, but a preliminary skirmish only involved shouting and profanities from both sides. Legend is that the wind blew down Fremont's flag, and they decided to flee instead of facing the odds of surviving a military encounter with an overwhelming force of Mexican troop. (The fact that there no water on the mountain top may have influenced their decision.) Fremont and his crew fled before the Mexican troops returned and they continued their journey to Sutter's Fort and Sacramento where they helped organize a revolt against the Mexican authority and declared the region as the Bear Flag Republic. The California Gold Rush of 1849 began a flood of non-Spanish speaking people into the region. With the overwhelming surge of immigrants, the republic became the state of California on September 9th, 1850.
Along the hiking trail examine outcrops of crystalline marble and partially metamorphosed dolomitic limestone. Blocks and small outcrops of schist, gneiss, and slate are visible along the trail. The trail passes through a col (or gap) along a ridge line along the crest of the mountain. On the north side of the ridge the mountainside is forested whereas on the south side the mountainside is grass covered and open with spectacular views encompassing the Salinas Valley and Monterey Bay region. Several small mines with mine tailings are located along the trail and are visible on the private ranch land along the ridge outside of the park. The small mines were dug to gather barite and travertine ore that was processed for paint (whitewash) for the Mexican communities in the region.
The trail loops around the mountaintop, climbs through a couple switchbacks ,and joins the paved road in the vicinity of a radio tower complex on a peak adjacent to the higher Fremont Peak. A short but rugged trail, more of a climb, is required to get to the high point near the flag pole on the peak. Use extreme caution climbing over the rugged rocks, but the sweeping 360° view at the top is worth the effort.
Following the horizon in a counterclockwise view: To the south is a view of the crest of the Gavilan Range and the rift valley of the San Andreas Fault extending south to San Benito Mountain at the south end of San Benito County. To the east is the Gavilan Range which includes the volcanic peaks of the Quien Sabe Range on the east side of Hollister Valley. To the north is the Santa Clara Valley extending northward to San Francisco Bay. To the northwest is the Santa Cruz Mountains with the high peak of Loma Prieta and Ben Lomond Mountain near Santa Cruz. To the west is a scenic view of the marble ridge (of which Fremont Peak is a part). Beyond the ridge is the coastal plain around Monterey Bay extending from Santa Cruz, Watsonville, Moss Landing (indicated by the tall power plant towers), Salinas. To the west is the Monterey Peninsula and the Santa Lucia Range on the opposite side of the Salinas Valley. The highest peaks in the coast ranges are part of the Ventana Wilderness at the south end of the Santa Lucia Range.
The core of the Gavilan Range is mostly granitic rocks with large "roof pendants" (masses of older metamorphic rock) that escaped destructive melting when the granitic magma intruded into crust in Cretaceous time (between about 80 to 90 million years ago). A large block of crust that would become the Gavilan Range was ripped off of southern California batholith (crust beneath an ancient volcanic arc) and carried northward by plate tectonic forces associated with the San Andreas Fault and older fault systems that proceeded it. The Gavilan Range is bounded on the east by the San Andreas Fault, and its south and eastern flank is blanketed by younger Tertiary-age sedimentary rocks.
The structure of the pendant block that forms the ridge line at Fremont Peak is revealed by the steeply northward dipping bands of layers of marble exposed on the south side of the ridge. Close examination of some of the marble outcrops show that in many places bedding plains are preserved, having escaped complete destruction in metamorphic phase in the formation of the marble and schist. Some of the marble outcrops display stromatolite-like texture (stromatolites are flat-layered, lumpy or mound-shaped accumulations of calcareous sediment associated with the growth of lime-secreting cyanobacteria. The possible occurrence of stromatolites and the apparent lack of shell fossils suggest that the original sediments may be latest Precambrian (Proterozoic) to Cambrian age before shell fossils became abundant in the fossil record.
In many areas the marble has been completely recrystallized into massive granular crystalline rock: marble and dolomite marble. Pods of dense, white, crystalline barite (barium sulfate) were mined around the mountain top. Fragments of barite still can be found in the historic mine tailings. Travertine (banded freshwater limestone) occur along small cavern-like fissures throughout the mountain top and can be seen near the flagpole on the peak
California Department of Parks and Recreation, , Fremont Peak State Park, official park website: http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=564
Dibblee, Thomas, W, 1979, Preliminary Geologic Map of the San Juan Bautista Quadrangle: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 79-375, scale 1:24,000. See a revised online version at: http://geologycafe.com/maps/SJBgeologicmap.html
Perazzo, P.B. and Perazzo, G., 2012, San Benito County List of Stone Quarries, Etc. Stone Quarries and Beyond website: available online at: http://quarriesandbeyond.org/states/ca/quarry_photo/ca-san_benito_photos.html
1Wagner, D.L., Green, H.G., Saucedo, G.J., and Pridmore, C.L., 2002, Geologic map of the Monterey 30'x60' Quadrangle and adjacent areas, California. California Geological Survey, Regional Geologic Map No. 1, 1:100000 scale: http://www.quake.ca.gov/gmaps/RGM/monterey/monterey.html