Silver Peak
Ascent of Silver Peak (Northwest Ridge, class 2), with Jean Imbs, July 19-21, 2022.
Timeline:
July 19, 2022. Silver Peak is usually approached from the West side of the Sierra, but being based in Mammoth, I had long planned to climb it from the East. Some sources pegged the trip at 24 miles and 9,000 feet of vertical gain when starting at Lake Mary, but the distance would actually prove much greater (at almost 36 miles). At any rate, I found myself with a few spare days in the mountains and my friend Jean would join me for our first mountain trip together since 2001. We started from the Emerald Lake trailhead at 9:53 and settled into a slow pace that would take us through the day's 16 miles. Our plan was to hike as far as we could toward Beetlebug Lake, just East of the summit of Silver Peak, and somehow improvise our way up the peak the next day (few route descriptions exist for this side of the mountain). It took about two hours to reach Duck Pass, another two hours to get to Purple Lake, and it was close to 16:00 when we were done crossing Fish Creek, in Cascade Valley. We went up the switchbacks along Minnow Creek toward Marsh Lake, intending to stop near there for the night, but we were greeted by swarms of mosquitos. This caused us to push ever higher into Long Canyon, in search of a higher elevation and fewer bugs. On the way I saw a large bear who quickly disappeared in the forest. Our quest to escape mosquitos would prove largely fruitless, though a westerly breeze at Beetlebug Lake kept some of the swarms at bay for part of the evening. We reached our basecamp at the lake at 18:55, had dinner and retired to the tent early to escape the mosquitos. (A 9:05 hour day, 7:56 hours moving, 15.95 miles, 3,462 feet of elevation gain).
July 20, 2022. I had a restless night and got up early. A morning breeze kept the mosquitos at bay and I enjoyed the beautiful morning at the lake. Jean soon got up and after breakfast we started up on our climb. We left camp at 8:16. My plan was to head northwest to a lake basin located North of Silver Peak, look for a nice route, and improvise my way up it. The forest thinned out as we approached Scarab Lake, and easy terrain gave way to a talus field, which we crossed toward Sand Lake (9:30). There, an obvious talus chute led to a V-shaped notch in the Northwest Ridge of Silver Peak. We headed up that way, staying to the right of a steeper tower rising southwest of Sand Lake. This was a class 2 hike over solid talus. Once at the notch we had a nice view of the summit of Silver Peak, and proceeded up the ridge. There are dense pines growing on the Western side of the ridge, so it is best to stay close to the ridgeline, with any difficulties passed on the (climber's) right. The ridge was a nice climb, with deep clefts opening periodically to our left, showing the very steep northeast aspect of the peak. It was 11:15 when I reached the summit of Silver Peak, with Jean following a few minutes later. We spent a good amount of time taking in the views – NW toward Ritter and Banner, N toward Mammoth Mountain, NE toward Mammoth area peaks (Bloody Mountain, Red Slate Mountain, Red and White Mountain…) and SE toward the Mono Divide and, beyond, Seven Gables. We also looked through the three register books that we found, the oldest dating back to 1974, finding the names of many Sierra luminaries. We departed at 11:52. My plan was to descend to the East to complete a traverse of the mountain. I was hoping to rejoin a tarn located East of the summit, and then find a way around the steep cliffs that surround Beetlebug Lake on its southern shores. We stopped for a nice lunch at the tarn, dipping our tired feet in the water and taking in the views. We then turned northeast and followed a series of benches that took us back to the forest. We were back in camp at 14:39. It was very hot, so I went for a very refreshing dip in the lake. We packed up camp and set out for the first part of our return at 16:05. We would hike five miles, to Fish Creek, before calling it a day – a decent head start on the return journey. Our camp was roomy, complete with fire rings and numerous downed logs we could use as benches. Mosquitos were present but mostly under control, so we had a peaceful evening. But a pack train was camped nearby, and one of the horses had a noisy bell that we could hear. Mule droppings would line the trail that we followed the next day, a persistent nuisance that really has me riled up against packers: they should be obligated to pick up after their animals. (An 8:52 hour day, 7:01 hours moving, 8.47 miles, 2,429 feet of elevation gain).
July 21, 2022. I again experienced poor sleep – my current struggle with arrhythmia not being helpful in this regard. After breakfast, we packed up camp and were on our way at 9:04. Eleven miles of hiking remained, and we had planned for a lavish dinner at the Mammoth Tavern, so there was no time to waste. It took almost two hours to hike up the 1,500 vertical feet back to Purple Lake, where we took our first break. On the way we enjoyed the numerous wildflowers seen in this season – crimson columbines, leopard lilies, Indian paintbrush, showy penstemon, and other wonders. We then continued along the John Muir Trail toward the outlet of Duck Lake, where we stopped for lunch at 12:55 in the shade of a thicket of whitebark pines. Then on to Duck Pass, and down back to the trailhead near Coldwater campground (16:10), where we ended our great journey to the Silver Divide. The lavish dinner at Mammoth Tavern did not disappoint. (A 7:08 hour day, 5:44 hours moving, 11.17 miles, 2,839 feet of elevation gain).
Trip totals: 25:05 total hours, 20:40 moving hours, 35.59 miles, 8,730 feet of elevation gain.