Mount Cotter, a 12,719-foot peak in Kings Canyon National Park in California’s Sierra Nevada, rises in a lake-and-basin backcountry that exemplifies the park’s alpine landscape. It was named for packer Dick Cotter, who worked with the California Geological Survey in 1864 and also made the first ascent of Mount Tyndall with Clarence King, tying the mountain to an important era of Sierra exploration and surveying. Though relatively accessible from Gardiner Basin by Sierra standards, Mount Cotter also presents harder routes on its north and east sides, culminating in a technical summit block. The surrounding wilderness is managed with permits, camping restrictions, and bear-canister requirements.