Mount Baldwin
Ascent of Mount Baldwin (West Slope, class 2), October 7, 2016.
Timeline:
I left the trailhead at Convict Lake at 7:48 and hiked up Convict Canyon at a good pace. I reached the washed out bridge at 9:17, having crossed the creek on a log a couple hundred feet before the bridge. I reached Mildred Lake at 10:00 and hiked up the beautiful valley at the base of Red Slate Mountain. I found a use trail that led practically all the way to the summit of Mount Baldwin, along its Western aspect (for this route the description on Harv Galic’s website was particularly helpful).
I reached the calcite mine at 12:10 and the summit at 12:53. I stayed on the summit for over 40 minutes. The views were outstanding and I had a nice lunch on top, taking my time. At 13:34, I started to retrace my steps down to Mildred Lake, an uneventful hike. As already mentioned, most of the climb was on a use trail (steep at times) and I only encountered one class 2 spot, when leaving the calcite mine area. The rest is a walk, but a beautiful one.
I was back at Mildred Lake at 15:22, and at the washed-out bridge at 15:55. This time I crossed the creek north of the bridge, which involved first crossing Convict Creek and then Genevieve Creek (both were easy as it was late in a fairly dry season – your mileage may vary…). I hiked down without stopping and reached my car at 17:04. (a 9:16 hour day, 5,000 feet of elevation gain and 13.3 miles roundtrip).
Overall this was my favorite Mammoth area peak (of the ones I have climbed so far). The scenery is ever changing, the views in all directions from the summit are outstanding, and the geology of the place is completely wild (see the photo album above). In fact the trip made me wish I knew more geology. This is one to repeat – with a geology textbook in hand.