SummitPost.org

http://www.snwburd.com/bob/trip_reports ... son_3.html

driving directions: http://climber.org/DrivingDirections/Ge ... tml#george
you can get very close to the TH with a 2wd passenger car. you'll have to drive across Bair's creek. it looks scary because of the deep water but we did it in a 2wd passenger car.

been up that way twice. bushwhacking isn't as bad as people make it out to be. do wear long sleeve and pants if you don't like to bleed.

Remember that 2007 was a low-snow year for Williamson.

Although technically easier and maybe shorter then Shepherd's Pass, the route is a physical grind. The use trail sucks. The creek requires several crossings, none of them are easy, and let’s not forget the bushwhacking. Add a couple route finding problems and you’ve got a real nightmare.

We left the trailhead with 9 in our party (our first mistake), four of them bailed before gaining 2000’. I soo.. wanted to bail with them. The route does get better past about 9000’ but it’s still painful. The only good reason to use George Creek to summit Williamson is because you have an irrational fear of class 3 climbing.

Williamson is a hard mountain. If you’re looking for an easier route George Creek is not the answer

MoapaPk wrote:Remember that 2007 was a low-snow year for Williamson.

April 28, 2007:

April 25, 2010:

April 28, 2007:

April 25, 2010:

I've been up George Creek to Trojan Peak. The bushwacking isn't that bad, if you take the time to try to stay on the use trail where there isn't snow coverage. You have to look carefully for the right places to cross the creek to stay on the use trail. The five creek crossings were hard for me because I hate log crossings. Overall, it is a pretty tough haul, but not because of the bushwacking - it's the combination of the creek crossings, rough trail, a bit of bushwacking, heavy pack (if you're backpacking), hot temperatures, and side-hilling in the snow where there is snow coverage that makes the first part of the journey difficult.

We camped at about 9500' and were tired when we got there. From 9500' to Trojan, the route is wide open and travel is relatively easy. I really enjoyed the second day of our trip up George Creek. The route over to Williamson doesn't look to be much more difficult than the route up to Trojan and Barnard.

Anyway, it's beautiful up there. I was going to head back up this year, but the high winds got in the way last week; so now it'll have to wait until another year.

Here's some pictures from our trip a couple years ago:

http://kathywing.smugmug.com/California-Hiking-Scrambling/Sierra-Nevada-Hiking/Trojan-Peak-13947-via-George/4925637_HuWam#294296460_cyXge

It was 7 miles with 8000' elevation gain from the trailhead to the summit of Trojan Peak (one-way). You'd have to add about 400 or 500' elevation gain for Williamson, but the mileage would be similar.

I would be tempted to try it as a day trip, except that would require me to cross the creek those 5 times in the dark either on the way up or on the way down and I'm not willing to do that. If you're fast, you might be able to do the entire trip in a day without spending time in the dark.

The lower part of George Creek by night is a lot of fun. Where is your sense for adventure? I did it twice and Bob even more often. Bushwhacking is not as bad as some people make it seem. Just try not to lose the use trail. I believe this is the easiest way to dayhike Williamson. If you want to go overnight, Shepards Pass is probably better.

dynamokiev98 wrote: but as I understand Shepherd's pass is closed now...

What is this about closing Shepard's pass?

I don't think the route via Shepherd Pass to Williamson would be easier than the route via George Creek right now.

V.

who are you going over there with?

b.

V.

who are you going over there with?

b.

dynamokiev98 wrote:My partner been on George Creek route before so we will take that one.

Having someone with you who has been up the route before will help a lot.. Good Luck!

I would be a bit concerned with the ammount and consistency of snow above cc. 7500'. The approach via lower George Creek goes through a burned out area and that section is a bit rough. Higher up, the going is ok. One must cross the creek several times, that can be the crux in some years.I climbed Williamson three times, all in winter, skied up and down. It is a long trip to the summit, almost 10k feet of gain from the TH. Don't underestimate the length of the route. As a backcountry ski tour, the George creek is among the longest ski runs in the High Sierra. If the snow stays soft, this could be a humdinger..

This is a beautiful area with Trojan and Barnard being on my tick list for a long time. Williamson is defintely a place to remember regardless of the way to choose to approach climbing it.

dynamokiev98: Great job! Also, thanks for the pics because it's always nice to see what it looks like out there.

dynamokiev98 wrote:THANK YOU ALL for tips and information about this route. I had a great time on top and hell on the approach through George creek..I would only reccomend it to people who are really into BDSM Kind of sucks knowing I need to go through this when I put together a trip to mt. Carl Heller.

DK98,
Thanks for sharing the images. Now that you've done George Creek, would you recommend it? By the way, what's that pyramid shaped peak on the right side of the first photo?
Judging by your user ID you must be really sad that Shakhtar won the league
Vlad.