Page Type:
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Route |
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Lat/Lon:
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38.84600°N / 120.057°W |
Route Type:
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Scramble |
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Time Required:
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Less than two hours |
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Difficulty:
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Class 3-5 |
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Approach
Start from the Echo Lakes parking area (see directions on the main page). Head down the hill to the boat launch and restroom area, and cross the spillway. Start down the trail for about 50 yards to the apex of the only switchback. Turn off the trail to the right before the trail heads back towards the lake. Head north along the ridge following a light use trail, staying mostly on the right side of the crest until a boxy structure is passed (a cloud-seeding generator housing). After this, try to stay on the crest or closest to it for the easiest passage. A few sections of nice slabs will be traversed, and then the route will head down to a flat saddle area below the peak and about 0.6 miles from the spillway.
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Route Description
Ascend from the saddle directly towards the peak, staying to the left side of the crest to avoid some very interesting cliff formations. Work your way up the Class 2-3 slabs to a series of ledge systems just to the left of the cliffs. Look for the easier ledges to work back to the right as they get closer to the crest.
Once the crest has been gained, move around gendarmes and pillars, again by staying on the left side most of the time. Some of the moves may get airy if desired. Once a short level section with a couple old trees on it has been reached, an exit to the right side of the ridge may be used to avoid harder climbing along the crest.
If using this exit, head down and right to easy ledges traversing towards the peak below the crest 100 feet or so. Follow these to a sandy chute below the summit, and head up to a short class 3 section just left of the top.
Reverse the route, or for a shorter descent time, head off the northwest side of the summit to a sandy saddle. Follow the southwest slope down from the saddle towards Echo Lake and catch the trail back to the parking area.
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Essential Gear
For all routes, sticky approach shoes are desirable to maintain purchase on steep slab sections. For those wishing to do difficult 5th class routes, bring a variety of backcountry pro.