Owens Peak is the highest point in the southern Sierra Nevada Mountains at more than 8,400 feet. The peak stands near the center of the Owens Peak Wilderness

Owens Peak Wilderness

The Owens Peak Wilderness is a wilderness area comprising the rugged eastern face of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Owens Peak is the high point...

  which was designated by United States Congress in 1994, and it now has a total of 74060 acres (299.7 km²). The eastern watershed of Owens Peak is composed of three main canyons; Grapevine Canyon, Short Canyon and Indian Wells Canyon (north to south respectively). The Sierra Nevada meets the Great Basin

Great Basin

The Great Basin is the largest area of contiguous endorheic watersheds in North America and is noted for its arid conditions and Basin and Range topography that varies from the North American low point at Badwater Basin to the highest point of the contiguous United States, less than away at the...

 and the Mojave Desert

Mojave Desert

The Mojave Desert occupies a significant portion of southeastern California and smaller parts of central California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah and northwestern Arizona, in the United States...

 here, creating an unusual ecosystem

Ecosystem

An ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving , physical components of the environment with which the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight....

.

Owens Peak is located in Kern County

Kern County, California

Spreading across the southern end of the California Central Valley, Kern County is the fifth-largest county by population in California. Its economy is heavily linked to agriculture and to petroleum extraction, and there is a strong aviation and space presence. Politically, it has generally...

, about 12 miles west-northwest of Inyokern

Inyokern, California

Inyokern is a census-designated place in Kern County, California, United States. Inyokern is located west of Ridgecrest, at an elevation of 2434 feet . Located in the Indian Wells Valley. The population was 1,099 at the 2010 census, up from 984 at the 2000 census...

, 159 miles from Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...

.

History

Owens Peak is named after Richard Owens

Richard Owens

Richard Owens is a former professional football player. He played tight end for the Minnesota Vikings, who acquired him as an undrafted free agent in 2004. He played college football at Louisville....

 (1812–1902), an Ohio

Ohio

Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

 born explorer (aka "Owings"), who accompanied John C. Fremont

John C. Frémont

John Charles Frémont , was an American military officer, explorer, and the first candidate of the anti-slavery Republican Party for the office of President of the United States. During the 1840s, that era's penny press accorded Frémont the sobriquet The Pathfinder...

 on his third expedition to California (1845–1946). Fremont also named a valley, river and lake for Owens, whom he considered "cool, brave and of good judgment".
Owens served as Captain in Fremont's California Battalion during the Mexican-American War, and was California's Secretary of State

California Secretary of State

The Secretary of State of California is the chief elections officer of that U.S. state. The Secretary of State is also responsible for the California State Archives, as well as chartering corporations. The Secretary of State is elected to four year terms, concurrent with the other constitutional...

 during Fremont's brief tenure as Governor (1847).