eli.boardman - Jun 30, 2023 4:47 pm - Hasn't voted
True High Point: West vs. East Summit?
On the question of whether the true high point is the eastern or western summit:
Upon reaching the apparent top of this peak, where the LoJ and Peakbagger markers are located and where the map marks the summit, there is a small cairn of white rocks. Across a ~50 ft. gap to the west, there is a second summit of almost identical height. The eastern summit is class 4 via the route described on Summitpost, but traversing to the western summit requires down-climbing and re-ascending through the notch, which is low 5th-class on both sides and rather sketchy given the very loose breccia and significant exposure.
I climbed both summits on 6/30/23 and sight-leveled with a SitePro 2.5x hand level from both summits. The results were indeterminate, but I can confidently say that the east and west summits are within 1 ft. of each other vertically. The eastern summit has a cairn that is about 6-8 inches tall, and neglecting the artificial arrangement of these rocks, I am pretty sure that the highest rock on the western summit wins out by a couple inches. If you count the cairn rock as the high point, then the eastern summit might be a couple inches higher.
This peak is situated exactly in a tiny gap between existing USGS 3DEP LiDAR surveys, so LiDAR data are not yet available.
Personally, I'd want to climb both the eastern and western summits to claim a definitive ascent, at least until someone drags survey equipment up there haha.
Thanks for sharing this, Eli. It was 14 years ago that I climbed this peak, and I don't remember having any doubts that I was on the highpoint, but then again, it was 14 years ago.
I'll be back out there in about a week and plan to reclimb the peak after all these years, and I'll go with your observations in mind and will probably tag both summits.
eli.boardman - May 20, 2024 1:18 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: True High Point: West vs. East Summit?
Lidar data recently became available for Two Ocean Mountain. The results are very close between the east and west summits, but the west summit (harder point separated by a gap) is probably higher.
The highest returns from the western summit (Class 5, separated by gap) are located around (43.740953° N, -110.0864705° E) with an elevation of 3271.34 m, and there are several returns with identical height. The highest single return from the eastern summit (Class 4, as described on SP) is located at (43.7410867° N, -110.0861247° E) with an elevation of 3271.25 m.
Thus, based on lidar, the harder western summit is around 9 cm (3.5 inches) higher. However, the point density is too sparse to pick up on individual rocks that are sitting on top of both summits, so it remains inconclusive which summit is higher. I'm pretty sure the harder western summit is the true highpoint, because the lidar data show that the overall ground surface is higher over there, and there were several larger cobbles sitting on top, whereas the eastern summit is flattish with an artificial cairn.
I actually did go back this past summer, and I made sure to get on both summits. From each summit, the other looked slightly higher when I lay flat. I'll have to update this page to reflect the uncertainty.
eli.boardman - Jun 30, 2023 4:47 pm - Hasn't voted
True High Point: West vs. East Summit?On the question of whether the true high point is the eastern or western summit:
Upon reaching the apparent top of this peak, where the LoJ and Peakbagger markers are located and where the map marks the summit, there is a small cairn of white rocks. Across a ~50 ft. gap to the west, there is a second summit of almost identical height. The eastern summit is class 4 via the route described on Summitpost, but traversing to the western summit requires down-climbing and re-ascending through the notch, which is low 5th-class on both sides and rather sketchy given the very loose breccia and significant exposure.
I climbed both summits on 6/30/23 and sight-leveled with a SitePro 2.5x hand level from both summits. The results were indeterminate, but I can confidently say that the east and west summits are within 1 ft. of each other vertically. The eastern summit has a cairn that is about 6-8 inches tall, and neglecting the artificial arrangement of these rocks, I am pretty sure that the highest rock on the western summit wins out by a couple inches. If you count the cairn rock as the high point, then the eastern summit might be a couple inches higher.
This peak is situated exactly in a tiny gap between existing USGS 3DEP LiDAR surveys, so LiDAR data are not yet available.
Personally, I'd want to climb both the eastern and western summits to claim a definitive ascent, at least until someone drags survey equipment up there haha.
Bob Sihler - Jun 30, 2023 5:53 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: True High Point: West vs. East Summit?Thanks for sharing this, Eli. It was 14 years ago that I climbed this peak, and I don't remember having any doubts that I was on the highpoint, but then again, it was 14 years ago.
I'll be back out there in about a week and plan to reclimb the peak after all these years, and I'll go with your observations in mind and will probably tag both summits.
eli.boardman - May 20, 2024 1:18 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: True High Point: West vs. East Summit?Lidar data recently became available for Two Ocean Mountain. The results are very close between the east and west summits, but the west summit (harder point separated by a gap) is probably higher.
The highest returns from the western summit (Class 5, separated by gap) are located around (43.740953° N, -110.0864705° E) with an elevation of 3271.34 m, and there are several returns with identical height. The highest single return from the eastern summit (Class 4, as described on SP) is located at (43.7410867° N, -110.0861247° E) with an elevation of 3271.25 m.
Thus, based on lidar, the harder western summit is around 9 cm (3.5 inches) higher. However, the point density is too sparse to pick up on individual rocks that are sitting on top of both summits, so it remains inconclusive which summit is higher. I'm pretty sure the harder western summit is the true highpoint, because the lidar data show that the overall ground surface is higher over there, and there were several larger cobbles sitting on top, whereas the eastern summit is flattish with an artificial cairn.
Bob Sihler - May 20, 2024 2:31 pm - Hasn't voted
Re: True High Point: West vs. East Summit?I actually did go back this past summer, and I made sure to get on both summits. From each summit, the other looked slightly higher when I lay flat. I'll have to update this page to reflect the uncertainty.