Made it a leisurely 3-day/2-night trip. Camped about 1/4-mi from Dollar Lake. Easier to find summit if you stay on the ridge. Great weather and beautiful views.
marciamallow - May 26, 2018 1:54 pm Date Climbed: Sep 15, 2016
HP #33
What a beautiful hike! We had rain snow/hail on first day attempt and retreated to camp, next day was much better. That said...be prepared for anything at this altitude. The rock fields from the saddle to the summit were very difficult to cross, wouldn't want to be on them when slick. Saw chicks in shorts freezing their ass off and people in chintzy rain parkas...again...be prepared!
First real hike, great first experience at altitude.
Took "the chute" down. 100% would do again
Jsteez - Jan 18, 2018 4:00 am Date Climbed: Sep 14, 2004
11 hours
Went up the traditional route and then high-tailed it up Anderson Pass. Spent 30 minutes at the summit, and then got back down to the car at almost sun down. Great time. I need to do it again.
jrlang45 - Nov 7, 2017 3:19 pm Date Climbed: Aug 14, 2015
Great Hike
Left a full trip report, solo day hike from Henry's Fork. A unique region and a gorgeous mountain.
seth@LOKI - Aug 17, 2017 12:52 am Date Climbed: Jul 29, 2017
Wide Open Basins!
We were impressed by the vast basins in contrast to many ranges. It's a gorgeous setting well worth the trip. We descended the Henry the 8th Couloir. We wouldn't recommmend ascent, like the former King, it's too loose.
BKiser90 - Aug 6, 2017 1:25 am Date Climbed: Aug 4, 2017
Kings-1st State High Point, 1st Peak Bagged in Uintas
Headed up the day before and camped south of Dollar Lake with my wife and in-laws. Tons of Boy Scout troops around but we still found seclusion. Headed up toward Gunsight in the morning around eight. Contoured around West Gunsight then up toward Anderson Pass. Hit the ridge and started feeling short of breath so we took it slow. Bagged the peak with thirty of our closest friends right as a thunderstorm pummeled Henrys Fork to the North. Feeling a bit brazen we continued onto South Kings, bagged it, then came back up to Kings. We then descended down the ridge to the chute. Slid down the chute only to be greeted by a deafening thunder clap from a lightning bolt that was probably a quarter mile away. Fortunately that was the last of our major excitement for the day as we made our way back to camp. Back to the trailhead today (Aug. 5th).
Liberator16 - Jul 31, 2017 10:24 am Date Climbed: Sep 6, 2015
Scramble
Typical hike up from Henry's Fork Trailhead. Scrambled up the east face directly instead of the north ridge from Anderson Pass, which was a fun variation and took not too long at all. No one else on this route, but saw some people on the summit. Mt. Lovenia beckons...
We climbed Kings Peak via the popular Henry's Fork Trail. A lot has been written on this subject, but I'll add a few thoughts that should be helpful to first timers. After reading the route description on the main page, we were concerned about crowds. Despite hiking on July 4th weekend, there were far less hikers on the trail than on any other of the 25 state high points we have hiked, except perhaps Borah Peak in Idaho. The reason is obvious: hiking Kings is a long slog requiring backpacking and overnighting at least one night.
Although we did the trip in two days, an extra day would have made the hike more pleasant. Most trip reports recommend camping at Dollar Lake or Henry's Fork Lake, on the near side of Gunsight Pass. That would work OK for a 3-day trip, but you really need to hike farther on Day One if you plan to complete Kings in 2 days. We climbed over Gunsight Pass and down into the upper Painters Basin to establish our camp. There, we were treated to the spectacular scenery (which is reminiscent of the interior of Iceland) and only one neighbor, whose tent was barely visible. Take note of the weather. In our case, we barely set up camp before a huge thunderstorm rolled through, lasting at least 90 minutes.
One important consideration when hiking Kings is that the length of the trail means you will be exposed to high elevations (between 9400 and 13500 feet) for days, not just hours. This means that lowlanders like me who haven't acclimatized to the high altitude may suffer altitude sickness even if they don't typcially on high point day hikes in the Rockies. (Altitude sickness is not just a function of height above sea level but also the length of exposure, with the onset of symptoms often delayed.)
Another obvious issue that I unfortunately minimized in my planning was how much carrying a 30 lb. backpack adds to the difficulty of the hike versus the typical day pack. This argues in favor of making Kings a 3-day hike rather than a 2-day hike, both because you can shorten the required hike each day and because you can leave your tent and other heavy belongings on the south side of Gunsight pass rather than lugging them up and over into Painter's Basin (and back) as we did. This is no minor consideration when fighting altitude sickness, as each of our party did at various points on the hike.
Hikers should beware that the trail signage on Kings is minimal and paint blazes non-existent. Rock cairns exist in certain areas, but it is quite easy to lose the trail once you exit the meadows of Henry's Fork Basin and head up Gunsight Pass. Generally, the direction you want to head is obvious, so you can usually relocate the trail in fairly short order. However, in certain places, such as the descent back into Painter's Basin, it is very easy to make a wrong turn and end up too far South and at the very bottom of the basin. Once there, you either must scramble through heavy brush and swamps or reverse course entirely and hike back up towards Anderson Pass to find where you made the wrong turn (an unwelcome prospect after just completing the difficult bolder hopping scramble up the summit).
One of the nice things about the Henry's Fork approach, other than the absolutely gorgeous scenery, is that water is plentiful along the trail. Even in early July, there were ample snowfields feeding streams all over the mountain. We filtered the water and used iodine tablets to be safe. If you do this, also bring absorbed acid neutralizer tablets, which eliminate the taste of the iodine (but wait 30 minutes for the iodine to do its work).
One last word of caution: if you don't have a GPS navigation system, take careful note of how you get to Henry's Fork Campground so you know what turns to make on the way out. The campground is on a dirt service road well out of cell phone range. If you finish at dark and try to feel your way back to I-80, you will end up navigating a maze of nameless dirt roads in the pitch black of the Utah/Wyoming wilderness with nothing more than your I-phone compass to guide you. (Spoken from experience!)
SageMcCann - Jan 2, 2017 12:25 pm Date Climbed: Sep 13, 2016
King's peak with dog
Summit gained around 1pm. I was chased down the mountain by snow. I took my Golden Retriever with me to the top - he was a real trooper. There was one spot where I had to help him up, same story on the way down. A smaller dog might have more trouble. I camped at Dollar lake the night before, and hiked straight out to Henry's Fork trailhead after summiting. Having to hike over gunsight pass on the way in and out made for a tiring summit day. A lot of fun, great views, and plenty of water along the way to dog hydrated, there is a small stream on the approach towards the summit ridge.
ZeeJay - Nov 20, 2016 7:17 pm Date Climbed: Oct 1, 2016
Kings
10/1/2016 Snowing, raining, and windy.
3/28/2015 WMC ski trip. Too mushy on the way down but otherwise nice.
3/29/2014 WMC one day ski trip. Super windy with blowing snow. 9 people made the summit.
3/30/2013 WMC one day ski trip. The conditions were as good as they get for the way back. Other than an occasional step here and there, glided or double poled the whole way back. 13:40 RT
3/31/2012 WMC one day ski trip. Nice hard crust on the way up and way too soft snow on the way down. Windy, but very warm. 14:53 RT. Skied through grass, mud, and small streams and over collapsing snow bridges.
3/26/2011 WMC one day ski trip. 0 degrees at the start. My food fell out of my sleeping bag and froze so I had to put it on the dash with the defroster on to thaw it. My breakfast was pretty crunchy. 9:25 up and 15:10 RT. Four of us made the summit. The most open water on the route that I have seen to date.
7/15/2010 Started at HF TH. Climbed Kings, S Kings, Painter Peak, Trail Rider Peak, Roberts Peak, N Emmons, Emmons, S Emmons, Owl, Lost BM, and Flat Top BM and exited via Dry Gulch in one long 21 hour day.
3/27/2010 The best conditions I've seen yet for this WMC one day ski event. 9 hrs to the summit and 14:40 RT. It was so nice to not have to ski back in the dark.
9/4/2009 With Scott Wesemann. We were lucky and just missed some really bad weather.
7/19/2009 Day hike from Henrys Fork TH. Expected a zoo, but saw almost no one.
7/7/2009 In one long 17 hour, 28+ mile day starting from the Henrys Fork TH, I did Kings Peak, S Kings Peak, Painter Peak (13387), and Trail Rider Peak (13247). Then descended into Painter Basin, back over Gunsight Pass, and back to the start. The weather was perfect.
3/28/2009
Annual WMC ski trip. Grueling, but fun day and beautiful weather. Over a foot of new snow. 10 people made the summit. 16:45 round trip.
3/29/2008
Annual WMC ski trip. Skied 14 miles, almost to the top of Gunsight Pass and then booted another 2 to the top of Kings Peak for 32 miles round trip. Left at 5:20 am (last person out of camp) and got back to the car at 9:20 pm for a total of 16 hours. I got to Gunsight Pass at 11:55 am, Kings at 3:05 pm, and back to Gunsight at 5:10 pm. Started at Henry's Fork winter parking which is another 7 miles round trip from the summer trailhead. Truly the hardest thing I've ever done. The weather was cloudy and it was flurrying off and on for the first 5 hours. Then it gradually cleared up but was incredibly windy from Elkhorn Crossing on. Fortunately, it was relatively warm (in the 20's). The skiing part was easy (at least for those of us who had been on skis more than once), the rest of it was not. The hardest part was traversing across the steep slope at the base of 13103 on the way to the base of Kings Peak. I got blown over once on the way over and slipped once on the way back, but fortunately brought an ice axe and managed two successful self arrests. Twelve people made it to the summit including MOCKBA and Moogie737 who had only been on x-country skis once before.
9/11/1999
11 hour, 24 mile day hike from the Henrys Fork Summer TH with MM.
Early 1990's
A leisurely 5 day backpack with lesdubois. Started at China Meadows and went up Smiths Fork over Smiths Fork Pass, up to Andersons Pass, up to Kings, down to Painter Basin, over Gunsight Pass, across Henrys Fork Basin, over the lower part of the Flattop/Powell ridge and back to the start.
A cold day after the season's first snow -- scenic, but slow going. Trip report.
Diesel - Sep 4, 2016 9:53 pm Date Climbed: Aug 30, 2016
Day Hike via Henrys Fork TH
Easy (non-technical) day hike on a mostly sunny day. None of my fears became real: the trail is impossible to miss, the shortcut from Gunsight Pass is very defined, easy to see and very easy to follow. The "scramble" to the summit from Anderson Pass is no scramble at all; all of the rocks on this mountain are almost glued together. There was no lighting or rain, although lots of clouds gathered greatly above the mountain starting at 11:30 AM. I came down the toilet bowl chute and that was an easy descent, cutting 1.25 miles and an hour of hiking. The one thing I did not worry about was the altitude sickness, and that hit me hard once I got in bed that evening. In a nutshell: 25 miles in 10 hours and 41 minutes total time, with a 9 hours and 47 minutes of an actual hiking time. 5:50 AM to 4:30 PM. Not to shabby. I will probably write a trip report about this in a couple of mounts.
bricewilson - Aug 31, 2016 1:17 pm Date Climbed: Aug 18, 2016
Day trip from Henry's Fork
Also tagged West Gunsight on the way. Was hoping to get a few more after King's, but lightning, thunder and hail started right at noon and lasted for a few hours.
swenspud - Aug 25, 2016 9:52 pm Date Climbed: Aug 16, 2016
Quick Backpack Trip
Climbed via Henrys Fork. Decided to camp up over Gunsight Pass and into Painters Basin. Storms seemed to be circling all around, but we got lucky and only got hit with a little hail storm and some rain coming over Gunsight. The rest of the evening, after setting up camp, we enjoyed good weather. No rain over night, and at 4 AM in the morning we had stars and clear skies. Perfect for making our way to the summit. It was an incredible time. Packed out that same day, surprised at all the storms we saw around us, yet never getting hit by any. Didn't hear a single clap of thunder or see a single flash of lightning.
IagosGhost - Aug 1, 2016 10:37 am Date Climbed: Jul 24, 2016
Long Haul
We climbed via Henry's Fork. We had a great climb and be some very nice people along the way. The views were amazing and make the toil worth it. We considered going down the chute to save some time, but we decided against it.
Climbed King's peak in one day.. 16 hour round trip. I started at the Henry fork trailhead at 5:30am made it back at 9:30pm.. I would not recommend a 1 day hike for the weak willed.
48 hours round trip from SLC. Excellent conditions and weather. Epic sunset in upper basin.
PanamaRed - Jun 21, 2016 11:44 pm Date Climbed: Jun 10, 2016
Snowy Early June Ascent
Did a 5 day trip out into the Uintas and Kings Peak from June 8-12. There was TONS of snow and water near Dollar Lake, and I ended up camping on an "island" of bare dry ground, surrounded by swampy vegetation. The water was 2-3 ft deep in some areas of the swamp. I spent 2 nights in this area waiting for a weather window. On June 10, it was somewhat cloudy, but I took a chance and went for it. From Dollar lake on the snow was very deep, and I was constantly punching through the snow up to my knees and sometimes waist. From Gunsight Pass I traversed along the eastern flank of West Gunsight Peak trying not to loose to much elevation. I ended up ascending a VERY steep couloir which I mistook as the proper way to reach the saddle between Kings and West Gunsight. It took me to the right spot thankfully. The North Ridge of Kings was a wall of quite steep snow(im sure when it is dry it does not look as steep). I was glad I had my ice axe with me. I made it too the summit around 5pm(My cell phone had no service and thus I had no alarm. I woke up a little late that morning). The descent proved to be a breeze up to the point when the sun set. I spent 3 hours slogging my way through the waist deep lower elevation snow, and the knee deep swamps. I finally stumbled back to my tent at around midnight. I took a rest day the next day which proved to be a mistake. The weather came back with a vengance, and I spent most of the afternoon huddled in my tent while lightning exploded all around me. Several strikes where withing 100ft of my tent. The next day I packed up and headed for my truck, only to be pelted with quite large hailstones and lightning bolts. I was very glad to reach my car. All in all its was a great trip. I was the only person out in the valley beneath kings, which was quite cool.
did this a couple times as a boy scout in 1998 and 1999, multiday backpack from Henry's fork. Mini loop around sawmill and bear lakes, up the "shortcut" gully above lake 11208, then down past dollar lakes.
MissH - Jul 3, 2018 2:34 pm Date Climbed: Jul 1, 2018
Stay on the ridge :)Made it a leisurely 3-day/2-night trip. Camped about 1/4-mi from Dollar Lake. Easier to find summit if you stay on the ridge. Great weather and beautiful views.
marciamallow - May 26, 2018 1:54 pm Date Climbed: Sep 15, 2016
HP #33What a beautiful hike! We had rain snow/hail on first day attempt and retreated to camp, next day was much better. That said...be prepared for anything at this altitude. The rock fields from the saddle to the summit were very difficult to cross, wouldn't want to be on them when slick. Saw chicks in shorts freezing their ass off and people in chintzy rain parkas...again...be prepared!
tac1422 - Apr 23, 2018 6:08 pm Date Climbed: Jul 26, 2015
KingsFirst real hike, great first experience at altitude.
Took "the chute" down. 100% would do again
Jsteez - Jan 18, 2018 4:00 am Date Climbed: Sep 14, 2004
11 hoursWent up the traditional route and then high-tailed it up Anderson Pass. Spent 30 minutes at the summit, and then got back down to the car at almost sun down. Great time. I need to do it again.
jrlang45 - Nov 7, 2017 3:19 pm Date Climbed: Aug 14, 2015
Great HikeLeft a full trip report, solo day hike from Henry's Fork. A unique region and a gorgeous mountain.
seth@LOKI - Aug 17, 2017 12:52 am Date Climbed: Jul 29, 2017
Wide Open Basins!We were impressed by the vast basins in contrast to many ranges. It's a gorgeous setting well worth the trip. We descended the Henry the 8th Couloir. We wouldn't recommmend ascent, like the former King, it's too loose.
BKiser90 - Aug 6, 2017 1:25 am Date Climbed: Aug 4, 2017
Kings-1st State High Point, 1st Peak Bagged in UintasHeaded up the day before and camped south of Dollar Lake with my wife and in-laws. Tons of Boy Scout troops around but we still found seclusion. Headed up toward Gunsight in the morning around eight. Contoured around West Gunsight then up toward Anderson Pass. Hit the ridge and started feeling short of breath so we took it slow. Bagged the peak with thirty of our closest friends right as a thunderstorm pummeled Henrys Fork to the North. Feeling a bit brazen we continued onto South Kings, bagged it, then came back up to Kings. We then descended down the ridge to the chute. Slid down the chute only to be greeted by a deafening thunder clap from a lightning bolt that was probably a quarter mile away. Fortunately that was the last of our major excitement for the day as we made our way back to camp. Back to the trailhead today (Aug. 5th).
Liberator16 - Jul 31, 2017 10:24 am Date Climbed: Sep 6, 2015
ScrambleTypical hike up from Henry's Fork Trailhead. Scrambled up the east face directly instead of the north ridge from Anderson Pass, which was a fun variation and took not too long at all. No one else on this route, but saw some people on the summit. Mt. Lovenia beckons...
rb1960 - Jul 5, 2017 9:46 pm Date Climbed: Jul 3, 2017
Thoughts for first timersWe climbed Kings Peak via the popular Henry's Fork Trail. A lot has been written on this subject, but I'll add a few thoughts that should be helpful to first timers. After reading the route description on the main page, we were concerned about crowds. Despite hiking on July 4th weekend, there were far less hikers on the trail than on any other of the 25 state high points we have hiked, except perhaps Borah Peak in Idaho. The reason is obvious: hiking Kings is a long slog requiring backpacking and overnighting at least one night.
Although we did the trip in two days, an extra day would have made the hike more pleasant. Most trip reports recommend camping at Dollar Lake or Henry's Fork Lake, on the near side of Gunsight Pass. That would work OK for a 3-day trip, but you really need to hike farther on Day One if you plan to complete Kings in 2 days. We climbed over Gunsight Pass and down into the upper Painters Basin to establish our camp. There, we were treated to the spectacular scenery (which is reminiscent of the interior of Iceland) and only one neighbor, whose tent was barely visible. Take note of the weather. In our case, we barely set up camp before a huge thunderstorm rolled through, lasting at least 90 minutes.
One important consideration when hiking Kings is that the length of the trail means you will be exposed to high elevations (between 9400 and 13500 feet) for days, not just hours. This means that lowlanders like me who haven't acclimatized to the high altitude may suffer altitude sickness even if they don't typcially on high point day hikes in the Rockies. (Altitude sickness is not just a function of height above sea level but also the length of exposure, with the onset of symptoms often delayed.)
Another obvious issue that I unfortunately minimized in my planning was how much carrying a 30 lb. backpack adds to the difficulty of the hike versus the typical day pack. This argues in favor of making Kings a 3-day hike rather than a 2-day hike, both because you can shorten the required hike each day and because you can leave your tent and other heavy belongings on the south side of Gunsight pass rather than lugging them up and over into Painter's Basin (and back) as we did. This is no minor consideration when fighting altitude sickness, as each of our party did at various points on the hike.
Hikers should beware that the trail signage on Kings is minimal and paint blazes non-existent. Rock cairns exist in certain areas, but it is quite easy to lose the trail once you exit the meadows of Henry's Fork Basin and head up Gunsight Pass. Generally, the direction you want to head is obvious, so you can usually relocate the trail in fairly short order. However, in certain places, such as the descent back into Painter's Basin, it is very easy to make a wrong turn and end up too far South and at the very bottom of the basin. Once there, you either must scramble through heavy brush and swamps or reverse course entirely and hike back up towards Anderson Pass to find where you made the wrong turn (an unwelcome prospect after just completing the difficult bolder hopping scramble up the summit).
One of the nice things about the Henry's Fork approach, other than the absolutely gorgeous scenery, is that water is plentiful along the trail. Even in early July, there were ample snowfields feeding streams all over the mountain. We filtered the water and used iodine tablets to be safe. If you do this, also bring absorbed acid neutralizer tablets, which eliminate the taste of the iodine (but wait 30 minutes for the iodine to do its work).
One last word of caution: if you don't have a GPS navigation system, take careful note of how you get to Henry's Fork Campground so you know what turns to make on the way out. The campground is on a dirt service road well out of cell phone range. If you finish at dark and try to feel your way back to I-80, you will end up navigating a maze of nameless dirt roads in the pitch black of the Utah/Wyoming wilderness with nothing more than your I-phone compass to guide you. (Spoken from experience!)
SageMcCann - Jan 2, 2017 12:25 pm Date Climbed: Sep 13, 2016
King's peak with dogSummit gained around 1pm. I was chased down the mountain by snow. I took my Golden Retriever with me to the top - he was a real trooper. There was one spot where I had to help him up, same story on the way down. A smaller dog might have more trouble. I camped at Dollar lake the night before, and hiked straight out to Henry's Fork trailhead after summiting. Having to hike over gunsight pass on the way in and out made for a tiring summit day. A lot of fun, great views, and plenty of water along the way to dog hydrated, there is a small stream on the approach towards the summit ridge.
ZeeJay - Nov 20, 2016 7:17 pm Date Climbed: Oct 1, 2016
Kings10/1/2016 Snowing, raining, and windy.
3/28/2015 WMC ski trip. Too mushy on the way down but otherwise nice.
3/29/2014 WMC one day ski trip. Super windy with blowing snow. 9 people made the summit.
3/30/2013 WMC one day ski trip. The conditions were as good as they get for the way back. Other than an occasional step here and there, glided or double poled the whole way back. 13:40 RT
3/31/2012 WMC one day ski trip. Nice hard crust on the way up and way too soft snow on the way down. Windy, but very warm. 14:53 RT. Skied through grass, mud, and small streams and over collapsing snow bridges.
3/26/2011 WMC one day ski trip. 0 degrees at the start. My food fell out of my sleeping bag and froze so I had to put it on the dash with the defroster on to thaw it. My breakfast was pretty crunchy. 9:25 up and 15:10 RT. Four of us made the summit. The most open water on the route that I have seen to date.
7/15/2010 Started at HF TH. Climbed Kings, S Kings, Painter Peak, Trail Rider Peak, Roberts Peak, N Emmons, Emmons, S Emmons, Owl, Lost BM, and Flat Top BM and exited via Dry Gulch in one long 21 hour day.
3/27/2010 The best conditions I've seen yet for this WMC one day ski event. 9 hrs to the summit and 14:40 RT. It was so nice to not have to ski back in the dark.
9/4/2009 With Scott Wesemann. We were lucky and just missed some really bad weather.
7/19/2009 Day hike from Henrys Fork TH. Expected a zoo, but saw almost no one.
7/7/2009 In one long 17 hour, 28+ mile day starting from the Henrys Fork TH, I did Kings Peak, S Kings Peak, Painter Peak (13387), and Trail Rider Peak (13247). Then descended into Painter Basin, back over Gunsight Pass, and back to the start. The weather was perfect.
3/28/2009
Annual WMC ski trip. Grueling, but fun day and beautiful weather. Over a foot of new snow. 10 people made the summit. 16:45 round trip.
3/29/2008
Annual WMC ski trip. Skied 14 miles, almost to the top of Gunsight Pass and then booted another 2 to the top of Kings Peak for 32 miles round trip. Left at 5:20 am (last person out of camp) and got back to the car at 9:20 pm for a total of 16 hours. I got to Gunsight Pass at 11:55 am, Kings at 3:05 pm, and back to Gunsight at 5:10 pm. Started at Henry's Fork winter parking which is another 7 miles round trip from the summer trailhead. Truly the hardest thing I've ever done. The weather was cloudy and it was flurrying off and on for the first 5 hours. Then it gradually cleared up but was incredibly windy from Elkhorn Crossing on. Fortunately, it was relatively warm (in the 20's). The skiing part was easy (at least for those of us who had been on skis more than once), the rest of it was not. The hardest part was traversing across the steep slope at the base of 13103 on the way to the base of Kings Peak. I got blown over once on the way over and slipped once on the way back, but fortunately brought an ice axe and managed two successful self arrests. Twelve people made it to the summit including MOCKBA and Moogie737 who had only been on x-country skis once before.
9/11/1999
11 hour, 24 mile day hike from the Henrys Fork Summer TH with MM.
Early 1990's
A leisurely 5 day backpack with lesdubois. Started at China Meadows and went up Smiths Fork over Smiths Fork Pass, up to Andersons Pass, up to Kings, down to Painter Basin, over Gunsight Pass, across Henrys Fork Basin, over the lower part of the Flattop/Powell ridge and back to the start.
seano - Sep 16, 2016 4:36 pm Date Climbed: Sep 14, 2016
Standard routeA cold day after the season's first snow -- scenic, but slow going. Trip report.
Diesel - Sep 4, 2016 9:53 pm Date Climbed: Aug 30, 2016
Day Hike via Henrys Fork THEasy (non-technical) day hike on a mostly sunny day. None of my fears became real: the trail is impossible to miss, the shortcut from Gunsight Pass is very defined, easy to see and very easy to follow. The "scramble" to the summit from Anderson Pass is no scramble at all; all of the rocks on this mountain are almost glued together. There was no lighting or rain, although lots of clouds gathered greatly above the mountain starting at 11:30 AM. I came down the toilet bowl chute and that was an easy descent, cutting 1.25 miles and an hour of hiking. The one thing I did not worry about was the altitude sickness, and that hit me hard once I got in bed that evening. In a nutshell: 25 miles in 10 hours and 41 minutes total time, with a 9 hours and 47 minutes of an actual hiking time. 5:50 AM to 4:30 PM. Not to shabby. I will probably write a trip report about this in a couple of mounts.
bricewilson - Aug 31, 2016 1:17 pm Date Climbed: Aug 18, 2016
Day trip from Henry's ForkAlso tagged West Gunsight on the way. Was hoping to get a few more after King's, but lightning, thunder and hail started right at noon and lasted for a few hours.
swenspud - Aug 25, 2016 9:52 pm Date Climbed: Aug 16, 2016
Quick Backpack TripClimbed via Henrys Fork. Decided to camp up over Gunsight Pass and into Painters Basin. Storms seemed to be circling all around, but we got lucky and only got hit with a little hail storm and some rain coming over Gunsight. The rest of the evening, after setting up camp, we enjoyed good weather. No rain over night, and at 4 AM in the morning we had stars and clear skies. Perfect for making our way to the summit. It was an incredible time. Packed out that same day, surprised at all the storms we saw around us, yet never getting hit by any. Didn't hear a single clap of thunder or see a single flash of lightning.
IagosGhost - Aug 1, 2016 10:37 am Date Climbed: Jul 24, 2016
Long HaulWe climbed via Henry's Fork. We had a great climb and be some very nice people along the way. The views were amazing and make the toil worth it. We considered going down the chute to save some time, but we decided against it.
Zlpeeps86 - Jul 29, 2016 8:38 pm Date Climbed: Jul 28, 2016
1 dayClimbed King's peak in one day.. 16 hour round trip. I started at the Henry fork trailhead at 5:30am made it back at 9:30pm.. I would not recommend a 1 day hike for the weak willed.
x4wheeling - Jul 16, 2016 7:51 pm Date Climbed: Jul 15, 2016
48 hours of awesome48 hours round trip from SLC. Excellent conditions and weather. Epic sunset in upper basin.
PanamaRed - Jun 21, 2016 11:44 pm Date Climbed: Jun 10, 2016
Snowy Early June AscentDid a 5 day trip out into the Uintas and Kings Peak from June 8-12. There was TONS of snow and water near Dollar Lake, and I ended up camping on an "island" of bare dry ground, surrounded by swampy vegetation. The water was 2-3 ft deep in some areas of the swamp. I spent 2 nights in this area waiting for a weather window. On June 10, it was somewhat cloudy, but I took a chance and went for it. From Dollar lake on the snow was very deep, and I was constantly punching through the snow up to my knees and sometimes waist. From Gunsight Pass I traversed along the eastern flank of West Gunsight Peak trying not to loose to much elevation. I ended up ascending a VERY steep couloir which I mistook as the proper way to reach the saddle between Kings and West Gunsight. It took me to the right spot thankfully. The North Ridge of Kings was a wall of quite steep snow(im sure when it is dry it does not look as steep). I was glad I had my ice axe with me. I made it too the summit around 5pm(My cell phone had no service and thus I had no alarm. I woke up a little late that morning). The descent proved to be a breeze up to the point when the sun set. I spent 3 hours slogging my way through the waist deep lower elevation snow, and the knee deep swamps. I finally stumbled back to my tent at around midnight. I took a rest day the next day which proved to be a mistake. The weather came back with a vengance, and I spent most of the afternoon huddled in my tent while lightning exploded all around me. Several strikes where withing 100ft of my tent. The next day I packed up and headed for my truck, only to be pelted with quite large hailstones and lightning bolts. I was very glad to reach my car. All in all its was a great trip. I was the only person out in the valley beneath kings, which was quite cool.
evant - Feb 22, 2016 1:02 am
boy scout routedid this a couple times as a boy scout in 1998 and 1999, multiday backpack from Henry's fork. Mini loop around sawmill and bear lakes, up the "shortcut" gully above lake 11208, then down past dollar lakes.