Gabilan Range
The Gabilan Range or Gabilán Range (Spanish for "sparrow hawk") are a mountain range in the inner California Coast Ranges System, located in Monterey County and San Benito County of central California. Pinnacles National Park is located in the southern section of the range. Geography. The Gabilan Range trends in a northwest–southeast direction along the Monterey County and San Benito County line. It is bordered on the east by the Diablo Range, the San Andreas Fault, and State Route 25; and on the west by the Salinas Valley, Santa Lucia Range, and U.S. Route 101. The northern  limit of the Gabilan Range lies just south of Pinecate Peak and San Juan Bautista, California. Fremont Peak, at in elevation, is the range's highest point. There are several other peaks also over in the range. History. In Spanish, "gavilán" (gabilan is an older alternate rendering) means "sparrow hawk". Hawks, especially the red-tailed hawk, are common in the range. The Gabilan Mountains and other nearby places are mentioned in several novels by John Steinbeck, such as "Of Mice and Men" and "East of Eden". In "The Red Pony" notably, the main character (Jody Tiflin) names his pony "Gabilan  after the mountain range. Fremont Peak was named for John C. Frémont, an American explorer and a Captain in the U.S. Army Corps of Topographical Engineers who assessed the military value of the peak in 1846, posing a threat to the Mexican authorities. It is now a California State Park.<ref>