Merriam Peak is a 13,103-foot summit in the Sierra Nevada of northern California, within the John Muir Wilderness and managed by Sierra National Forest. Rising about 3,000 feet above French Canyon in a mile, it has notably steep relief and ranks as California’s 129th highest summit. Its alpine setting channels runoff south into tributaries of the South Fork San Joaquin River. Named in 1929 and officially adopted in 1930, it honors zoologist and naturalist Dr. Clinton Hart Merriam, who served on the U.S. Board on Geographic Names. The first recorded ascent was made on July 14, 1933, by three Sierra Club members, and the peak remains known for scrambling and its North Buttress climbing route.