Grand Gulch Hikers: Central Sierra Peaks

The 4000 foot north slope of Silver Peak

Freel, Jobs Sister and Jobs

BLOODY MOUNTAIN el 12500 is south of Mammoth Lakes. From Vons, go south on Old Mammoth Rd to Sherwin Creek Rd. Take that to the Laurel Lakes Rd at N37 37411, W118 54402. Drive up this rubbly 4wd road for about 4 miles to a trail at 34745, 54337 el 9800. This is a good trail to the pass at el 10700, but switchback cutters are wrecking it. From the pass, go right up the ridge on a hiker trail to the summit at 33638, 54427. 4 hours, 2700 gain. The 4wd road is the hardest part of this trip. Backpackers could set up at a lake near the TH. Go up the trail a short way to see it. The VALENTINE/LAUREL LAKES LOOP is nearby off the Sherwin road. Use the Valentine TH or the higher Sherwin Lakes TH to get to Valentine Lake el 9600 at trails end. Go left along the shore,climbing a few boulders at first, then there is a trail at waters edge. When you get to the inlet creek, climb the slope along the left side of the creek to some nice meadows. Stay along the left side of the valley on easy terrain and finally enter a talus field then climb left to a saddle in trees at 34004, 55609 el 10700. Do it right and you only have to deal with talus for a quarter mile before the saddle. Go down the valley on the other side on easy ground and keep to the right side where it's easiest. In just over half a mile from the saddle you come to a drop off where you can see Laurel Lakes. The creek emerges at the bottom of the drop off. Move to the far left and go down a game trail and stay left of the creek all the way to the first lake then cross the inlet to the road. The road goes up a little then it's 4 miles downhill to the Sherwin Rd where you should have a bike or car waiting.7 hours, 3600 gain. The Valentine TH works best if using a bike for shuttle, the Sherwin Lakes TH is best with 2 cars.
CARSON PEAK el 10900 is a craggy looking peak above June Lake. Luckily there is a wuss route up the back side. There is a cheater TH on the June Lake loop at N37 46743, W119 07767 el 7200. The real TH is a quarter mile north. It's a rocky, stinky trail to the dam at Agnew Lake. The correct trail forks left here at the sign for Clark Lake and you'll be glad to see horses don't use it. The trail goes up along the left side of the lake to a meadow at 44470, 07999 el 9900 where the trail levels off. I saw a bear here but he took off like a rocket when I showed him my fists. Hike up the left side of the meadow to 44251, 07743 where you can see the rest of the route. Aim for a main saddle at 44161,07529 el 10500 then it's an easy 3/4 mile stroll to the reg at 44865, 07460. 6 hours, 3900 gain. Only 2 or 300 feet is steep.

DEADWOOD PEAK el 9850 is the most pleasant hike around. Take the paved Blue Lakes Rd from Highway 88 for a dozen miles to a T at Blue Lakes Basin. Go right for 1.7 miles to the dam at Upper Blue Lake el 8100. Walk across the spillway on a metal bridge and make a hard left before the dam. Now you're on the trail. It soon crosses a creek with a log for a bridge. Then it goes downstream along the right side of the creek before swinging to the right. If you get lost, aim for it at N38 37630, W119 56351. It's 2 miles to Granite Lake el 8700. The trail goes left at the far end of the lake. There is a good spring at 37422, 59088 el 9200 where the trail tops out. Stay on the trail as it dips 150 feet then get off at 37434, 59640 and walk easy slopes to the reg at 37729, 59960. Take a pipe wrench to open it. 5 hours, 2200 gain. Nice flowery meadows dotted with granite boulders. Another good hike nearby starts at MEADOW LAKE. Follow the signs to the lake TH. The last 2 or 3 miles is easy 4wd and would make a good mtn bike ride. Walk an old road to the lake then go left around it. You have to get past some granite slabs then go down to the high water mark and get on a trail. The trail goes along at that level a short way then goes up into the trees and on to the dam. Some ancient machinery is here. No real trail goes beyond the dam but it's easy to walk the left side above the creek. Eventually you will be forced to drop down to a small meadow then the canyon drops to falls and cascades. The falls are about 2/3 mile past the dam. It takes an hour to get to the falls from the TH.

FREEL PEAK, JOBS SISTER and JOBS PEAK can all be climbed as a loop,mostly on trails. Take Highway 88 to 89 and go north on 89 for 1.8 miles. Turn east on FR 51 and go 3 and a half miles on easy 4wd and park right after a bridge el 8300. Hike west across the creek on a narrow road until it ends in nearly 10 minutes at N38 49732, 119 54554. Skinny motor vehicles seemed to be allowed this far. Now go up a hiking trail to Armstrong Pass. Signs here ban everything but mtn bikes, so if you got your car this far,park it here. Go east from the pass on a trail marked Star Lake. I found a spring that looked safe along here at 51214, 54893. The trail steadily climbs to a ridge el 9700. Mtn bikes stop here. A sign on the ridge points to the right for the trail up Freel el 10880. It's 2 and a half hours and 2600 gain to Freel. A hiker trail goes east from Freel to Jobs Sister el 10820. It's 3 and a half hours and 3000 gain to that peak, counting from the start. Come back from Jobs Sister a short way then head south down to the main saddle crossing over to Jobs Peak. A hiker trail angles down to the saddle el 9800. Cross the saddle and get on a trail at 51473, 52518 that goes along the left side of the ridge. If you lose it, you're likely too low. The trail goes up and connects with the main Job trail at el 10200 which is easy to find because mtn bikers use it . Go left to Jobs el 10600, but don't tell him you were on top of his sister. It's 4 and a half hours and 3800 gain to Jobs. Or you can skip Jobs and go right on the main trail, but make sure you pass right thru waypoint 51035, 52233 to be on the right trail out. The trail stays high on the south wall of the canyon. At 9000 you hit logging roads that take you back to the start. The whole loop takes 6 hours, 3800 gain. Stashing bikes at the Jobs TH would save a mile of road walking. Go past the Freel TH for 7/10 mile and go left for half a mile to a circle. This is as close to the Jobs TH as you can get on a good road. Jeeps can go back from the circle and take the first right to get right to the TH at 50515, 52837 el 8900. It's 3 hours and 1700 gain just to do Jobs. I saw a low slung Mazda at the Freel TH in 2019.

HIGHLAND PEAK and SILVER PEAK can be climbed as a loop. Spot a car at the Noble Canyon TH at mp ALP 22.8 on highway 4. This is at a switchback at N38 34983,W119 47357 el 7200. Drive up to the PCT just east of Ebbetts Pass and hike it south to Noble Lake el 8900. A hiker trail goes up from the lake to a meadow just above. Aim for a faint trail at 31814, 46220 that goes up to a saddle at 31782, 45993 el 9400. Now the ridge goes parabolic. Use a hiker trail right of center. At 10500 the trail contours right then goes up a chute between cliffs to the top of a false summit at 32216, 45523 el 10800. Now you have to cross a 300 foot deep saddle. Go down about halfway then move left of crags. Then the final push is on talus. Keep left of crags near the Highland summit el 10900+. Now drop down nearly a 1000 feet to the main saddle before Silver Peak. Decide here if you want to make the 2 hour side trip to Silver. Go up the ridge toward Silver but move right when the talus gets serious. Aim for a spot below a crag at 33840, 45588 el 10700 where you can see the peak for the first time. Now drop a little over 100 feet to cross a saddle then stroll on up el 10700+. Go back to the main saddle beween the peaks and start down a ridge at 33063, 46053 el 9600. You can go down at warp speed with no issues. Beware the ridge veers to the right around el 8500. Aim for 32865, 46871 el 8100 then it's less than a fifth mile down to the trail. It takes an hour to stroll on down to the TH. 8 hours, 4000+ gain for the whole enchilada. 6 hours, 3000+ gain just to do Highland and skip Silver. If you die on this trip it will be on the shuttle. Another worthwhile hike is to go up Noble Canyon to Noble Lake then come back some and take the trail to Ebbetts Pass. Use a bike you stashed there to coast down to your car at Noble Canyon TH.

LOST CANNON PEAK el 11100 is the last 11000 footer going north in the Sierra. Take highway 108 to mp MNO 11.1 and turn into the Marine base. Show your ID and make sure there's nothing in plain sight that looks like bombs. Hide that bowling ball. Proceed past the guard shack on the public Silver Creek Rd for a mile and a half to a main fork. Go left for another couple miles to a main fork at N38 22646, W119 32687. Go right for a mile and a half to the pass el 9300. Hike up the slope aiming for a minor saddle at 23941, 32797 el 10300. Stay in the trees all the way. Go straight up from the saddle to 24103, 32952 el 10900 where there's a route thru the rocks to get over the spine where you can walk along the left side and get to the summit crag at 24319, 32946. I had to walk on talus above scrub trees. The summit crag is class 3 plus one 8 foot crack .Walk around to the notch on the north side. Go up exposed class 3 until you are stopped by the last block.Then go right on a wide ledge then go up a little to the 8 foot high crack, too narrow to chimney. One person could boost another up. I read later on the web that I should have crossed over from the crack to the east side then go north then up, but that looked more exposed than what I had already done. A 20 foot handline with ibis hook might come in handy. There is a north summit above 11000 that is easy to climb. 3 or 4 hours, 2000 gain. The Marines had a reg between the summits but that's all I saw. I didn't attempt the 8 foot crack. It's best to go on Sunday when the Marines are off. The name refers to a cannon that John Fremont left behind in the mid 1800s. Details here

http://www.longcamp.com/how.html

MOUNT AGGIE el 11500+ is a wuss hike if you have a jeep or OHV. Turn off 395 at the sign for Mount Morrison Rd. Go a short way then turn left at the cemetery to get on the powerline road. Go south less than a mile then the road gets close to 395 then swings up a canyon. Go up the canyon but don't take a steep left fork. Soon it opens up and you'll see the switchbacks. It's not steep to the top but it gets loose at 9400. After that it levels off then stay right at forks to the end where the road is blocked at a fork el 10300. Mt Mcgee is an easy stroll to the left. Use the right fork for Aggie. The road fades in half a mile on the ridge top. Follow the easy ridge to where it steepens. Then angle right thru trees to a game trail at 33155, 50508 that angles up to the summit ridge. Now it's a short stroll to the summit at 32746, 50575 . 3 hrs and 1300 gain.Stunning views of Morrison's brilliant south face. The main reason for this hike is to play with your jeep.

MOUNT CONNESS el 12590 is the highest peak in the range north of Tioga Pass. Drive east from the pass and turn at the sign for Saddlebag Lake. Go a mile and a half on bumpy 2wd dirt to the walk-in Sawmill Campground. Walk an old road to the pay station and get on a trail that shortcuts thru the campground and merges with the old road you started on. Soon the road crosses the main creek then there is a fork. Keep right and go on to a research station then on to a stream with some little falls on the right at N37 57689, W119 17786 el 10200. This stream is coming down from Alpine Lake. Go up the steep open slope to the right of the stream. I never saw a good hiker trail so pick your own route. Aim for Alpine Lake at 57747, 18167 el 11000. Walk along the right side of the lake staying near the water to get to the valley behind the lake. Go up the valley a short way then start climbing easy bedrock up to the left to get to where you top out at 58029, 18545 el 11800. Now there is an obvious ridge to climb. Go up along the left side of the ridge.There are a million hiker trails to choose from. This ridge tops out on the summit ridge at 57933, 18865 el 12300. Now go right nearly half a mile to the top, but you have to cross a long narrow neck. I didn't find it scary or unsafe in good weather,but a fear of heights will stop some. 6 hours, 3000 gain. A prettier hike than Mt Dana.
MAMMOTH CREST makes a fine loop hike. Take the Lake Mary Rd at the west end of Mammoth Lakes. Go about 4 miles from the last light and turn left at the sign for Lake George Campground. Near the campground is the Crystal Lake TH at N37 36212, W119 00672 el 9000. Go up it and keep right at a signed fork about half an air mile from the start. The trail goes up to 11200 then drops 600 ft to a basin containing DEER LAKES. There seems to be more than one trail to a lake at the upper end of the basin. At the far end of that lake is a talus slope. Stay low along the base of it and you hit a hiker trail that goes up into the saddle. Be on the trail by N37 33558, W118 58838. There's a peak 600 ft up to the right from the saddle with good views. Go thru the saddle on the trail as it heads for Duck Pass. The trail fades out in the flats,but just aim for a gully near the pass at N37 33518, W119 57823 (keep right of brush when you're a fifth mile from the gully) where you drop down and pick up a main trail to the TH at the upper end of Coldwater Campground. This trail is the roughest part of the hike.It takes 5 hours and nearly 3000 gain to go from TH to TH. To get back to Crystal Lake TH, go down a road on the left edge of the campground to a T. Go left at the T then follow the GPS back. It takes half an hour to walk back.

MOUNT DANA el 13050 has a steep hiker trail to the top. Start at the Tioga Pass entry booth and head south on a good trail thru the trees. At el 12000 the trail gets splintered. Be attentive and stay on the main trail. Be on it at N37 54062, W119 13463 el 12500. 4 hrs, 3100 gain.It's the second highest peak in the park.

MOUNT WARREN looms above Mono Lake. Use the signed 4wd Log Cabin Mine Rd across from the ranger offices on 120 not far west of 395. The steep road tops out then goes left thru a camp.area. Keep going for about 3 miles on rougher road and park near the north ridge where you go up at N38 00180, W119 11552 el 10000. Follow the easy ridge to a ridge left of the peak. When it steepens go left to another ridge then on to the top at N37 59393, W119 13410 el 12340. 3 hrs, 2400 gain. The easiest 12er I ever did. Lots of good camps along the road in.

PICKETT PEAK el 9100 is south of Freel Peak. Turn south off Highway 88 across from where 89 goes north. Follow this 2WD Burnside Lake Road for about 3 miles and go left at N38 44710, W119 54862 on easy 4wd. When it tops out at a 3 way fork in nearly 2 and a half miles, take the middle fork and go nearly a quarter mile to a faint road at 45501, 53782 el 8500+. Walk the road to the east saddle at 45350,54037. Climb right to the top up 300 feet of talus. 1 hr, 600 gain. HAWKINS PEAK is nearby at 44324, 52350 el 10000. Stay on the Burnside Rd then take a left that leads to a closed road at 43449, 53474. I never saw a sign banning mtn bikes on this road. Walk the road to where it levels off on the spine and turns toward the peak. Soon a fork is reached. Take the right one which is lower. At the base of the peak, I prefer to walk the road left around to the end el 9650 on the north side where it's easier to get to the summit. 3 hrs, 1600 gain.

RAYMOND PEAK el 10000 is accessed using the Blue Lakes Rd from Highway 88. Turn on the road to Tamarack Lake just before Lower Blue Lake. Go to its end keeping left at Indian Valley. The last mile is easy 4wd. Park at the Wet Meadow TH at N38 36625, W119 51588. Walk the trail for 500 feet to the PCT then go right and right again on an old road at 36774, 51377. Follow that to 36296, 50947 then 36250, 50807 then 36283, 50705 at the creek.Stay right of the creek passing good springs at 36080, 50618 then head for a wide chute at 36134, 50145 on the peak. From there go up to a saddle then right to another saddle then left to the top at 36224, 50002 el 10000. I filled up at the springs. 4 hrs,2000 gain. Mosquitoes at the start. The Raymond Lake jct is about an hour further on the PCT at 37011, 49902. That hike just to the lake is a 4 hour roundtrip with nearly 2000 gain because the trail loses 5 or 600 ft. There is a hikers route down from the peak to the lake but returning that way is longer.

RED LAKE PEAK and STEVENS PEAK can be climbed from Crater Lake. Go nearly 2 miles west of Blue Lakes Rd on Highway 88 to N38 43614, W119 57249. Turn right and follow the bumpy county road for nearly a mile and a half to its end at a fork where you go left on 4wd to Crater Lake at 43346, 58429. There is camping here and on the road in. Cross the dam and go up the ridge to the main ridge. After gaining 500 feet I veered right into a canyon and filled up at a spring at 43736, 58729 el 9000 then went up on the right side of the canyon. Once on the main ridge, go right to Stevens at 44030, 59081 el 10000. Then go back down and use a trail that goes right around a long bump. Then head up to Red Lake Peak at 42749, 59236 el 10000. Return down a steep ridge 42982, 58756. 3 and a half hrs, 2000 gain. Another way to do it is to start at Carson Pass and go up the peaks then come down to the lake and walk the road out. No 4wd needed.

REVERSED PEAK el 9400 overlooks June Lake. Use the southbound lanes of 395 to get to an easy 4wd road at N37 50474, W119 04662. The nearest crossover is a mile and a half north on 395. Go west on the 4wd road and stay right at forks until you reach a T at a powerline. This is nearly half a mile from 395. Go right at the T then stay left at forks thereafter until the end of the road at 48521, 05618 el 8400, nearly 4 and a half miles in from 395. Go up the steep slope thru the trees to the reg at 48281, 05960. 1 and a half hours, 1000 gain. Some light brush at the top. Mtn bikes are feasible.The last half of the road is firmer and shady. Many shady camps. The peak is so named because it's downhill all the way to the summit, and uphill all the way back. Exactly the reverse of all other peaks. I've never seen anything like it. It's simply amazing!

ROUND TOP el 10370 is near Carson Pass. Hike the trail south from the pass to Winnemucca Lake then on to Round Top Lake. Walk along the left side of the lake to a trail that goes up the left side of a gully. Take that to the main saddle then go left to a crag. The route goes left around the crag then follow the beaten paths to the first summit. Walk toward the east summit, then at a gap,drop down to the right to cross the gap. Go up a short class 3 chute to get to the top at N38 39817, W120 00061. 5 hrs, about 2000 gain. There is a parking fee at the pass.

STANISLAUS PEAK el 11200 is the northernmost 11000 footer on the Sierra crest. Use the St. Mary TH el 9400 about 3/4 mile west of Sonora Pass. The trail goes up to a pass at 10400 about an air mile from the TH then levels off. It stays near this level all the way to the peak. I filled up along the trail at gushing springs at N38 21719, W119 38952. The south ridge at 22742,39934 is the standard route up. Stay on the trail until you're a third mile from the south ridge. Then cross a shallow valley to get on the ridge. Now you can turn out the lights 'cause the party's over. The ridge goes parabolic for 1000 feet to the top.Stay left of crags and aim for an easy chute at 22978, 40059 el 11000. Then it's a short way to the top. No reg in 2012. 4 and a half hours, 2000+ gain

TRYON PEAK el 9970 has an old road up the west side to 9000 feet. Take highway 4 to the sign for the paved Highland Lakes Rd. This is nearly a mile and a half west of Ebbetts Pass. Go 5 miles on the Highland road then turn left a short way to the Gardner Meadow TH. The last 4 miles is bumpy dirt road. Hike the trail less than a fifth mile then veer left to the old road at N38 29919, W119 47550. Stay on it thru 30111, 47331 then cross the main creek and pick it up on the other side at 30340, 47081. Hike the road on up to the 9000 foot level where it fades.You can go straight up the ridge or wuss out like I did and use a trail on the right at 30893, 47083. This trail connects to the PCT at the pass. From the pass, I went up a little then contoured right under the talus. I filled up at a spring at 31230, 47019 el 9400. Get at it from the right side. Keep going below the talus then you come to a ridge to go up. The reg is at 31317, 47277. 4 hours,2000 gain. It would take 2 hours longer to use the PCT from Ebbetts Pass.
WADE BENCHMARK el 9367 is about 3 miles south of Jobs Peak. The Horsethief Canyon Trail is the standard route but not shown exactly on the topo. Take highway 88 to the TH el 6650 at about a mile down from Sorensens. The trail goes up steep along a roaring creek then levels off at el 7700 and soon meets a logging road. It follows that to the right then up to el 8600 where I left it and walked to N38 49104, W119 51934 then to 49109, 51831 then 49167, 51710 where a passage led me down a stairway into a gorgeous forest with easy walking. The forest is really the main attraction. I went up to 48854, 51231 el 9150 then curved left to the BM at 49000, 50550. It sits on top of a brushy talus pile, but I walked left along the base to get around to the east side for easy passage.The reg goes back to the 80s. Then I went SW to peak 9390 at 48581, 51344 but found nothing so it must not be on a list. From there, I returned to the stairway and retraced back out. That took 6 hours, 45 minutes with a little over 3000 gain. I hauled long pants but never used them. New signs had been installed and trees cleared on the trail. The first good camp with a stream is at 47351, 52803 el 7750 and the last water I had is a stream at 48006, 52421 el 7950. Posted July, 2019.
WATERHOUSE PEAK el 9497 is SW of Luther Pass on highway 89. I parked at the pass then walked a paved trail for 450 feet to a signed bike trail that goes to Scotts Lake. I followed that for half a mile to N38 46827, W119 56782 el 7700 then went up to 46819, 56861 el 7850 where I angled up to the left on a game route. I zigzagged up thru a gorgeous forest to the reg at 46568, 57906. That route kept me out of brush but not mosqitoes. 3 hours, 1800 gain, not steep. Posted 2019.

WHITE WING PEAK el 10000 is north of Mammoth Lakes. Turn west off 395 at the sign for the graded Deadman RD. Go just over 6 miles to the TH at the end of the road. The correct trail has a bridge across the creek. Follow the trail and it becomes overgrown. I was able to follow it to N37 43164, W119 04572 where it emerges from the scrub trees. Weave around brush to get to the ridge top. Then walk in the forest on the left side of the ridge to pass a bump and get to a saddle at 43390, 03564 el 9400. Then go up the ridge and angle right to some rocks then go on up to the reg at 43520, 02784. I went down the south ridge with no issues. 3 hours, 1700 gain

Monday, August 13, 2012

Central Sierra Peaks