Page Type:
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Mountain/Rock |
|---|---|
Lat/Lon:
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37.13600°N / 118.6828°W |
County:
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Fresno |
Activities:
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Mountaineering, Scrambling |
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Elevation:
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13086 ft / 3989 m |
|
Overview
Mt. Huxley stands above the John Muir trail in the Evolution Basin, just northwest of Mt. Warlow. The summit register contains some interesting Creationist drivel which has engendered a measure of vitriolic backlash (including a dagger thrust into a Christ fish!)The Northeast Ridge is a lovely class 3 climb, but beware the traverse to/from Mt. Warlow. Although Secor rates this class 3, the consensus appears to be that the Huxley side of this ridge is class 4. (I consider myself fairly bold, and I was terrified during my solo traverse, despite a large time investment route finding and descending off both sides of the ridgecrest.)
Getting There
Unless you’re already on the John Muir Trail, the easiest access will be from Lake Sabrina. Take 395 to Bishop, then 168 (Lake Sabrina Road) west to the end of the road. There are two options to cross the Sierra crest and reach the basin northeast of Mt. Huxley: “Wallace Col” and “Haeckel-Wallace Col”. I prefer the latter, because it gives good access to both of those peaks on your way to Mt. Huxley:From Lake Sabrina (9040'+), go up the left fork of the Sabrina Basin Trail to Moonlight Lake (11,071'), then around between Mt. Wallace and Picture Peak, through the cirque between Wallace and Mt. Haeckel and down to the basin just northeast of Mt. Huxley.
By staying in the cirque, it’s fairly easy to bag Mts. Hackel, Wallace and Fiske on your way to a camp in this basin. From here, the northeast ridge of Mt. Huxley is well within reach.
I highly recommend R. J. Secor’s The High Sierra, Peaks Passes & Trails (now in its third edition). This is the definitive climbing guide to the Sierra and was the source for many of the details on my SummitPost pages.
Red Tape
Like most places in the Sierra, you need a Wilderness Permit for overnight camping in the summer. The Lake Sabrina basin is a fairly popular area, so book your permit early.Detailed information on permits, regulations and trailhead access can be found on Matthew Holliman’s excellent Eastern Sierra logistics page.
1 Routes
Bob Burd - Jul 19, 2009 11:14 pm - Hasn't voted
Route over the crestWallace Col, just south of Mt. Wallace, is an easier route to cross the crest than the col between Wallace and Haeckel.
schmed - Aug 1, 2009 12:47 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: Route over the crestI have read this, but it certainly didn't appear that way to me as I passed below it. More importantly (at least for peakbaggers like us), the Hackel-Wallace Col provides easy access to Mts. Haeckel, Wallace and Fiske. Since most of the pages I've added to SummitPost describe relatively minor (often unnamed) summits, I tend to target my content to those intent on climbing multiple mountains. I've added a note about the Wallace Col option to the page, though. Thanks for the feedback.