Basin Mountain / Mount Dade
Ascents of Basin Mountain (East Couloir, class 4) and Mount Dade (Hourglass Couloir, class 2), with Ronald Kleber, June 15-16, 2023.
Timeline:
June 12-14, 2023. Our plan for this trip was to go over Lamarck Col on skis and climb various peaks in the Evolution Range. Alas, this was not to happen, due to weather and snow conditions. This being one of the biggest snow years in California on record, we had planned to approach the peaks on skis. But on June 12, the challenges started right at the beginning, with North Lake road closed, adding 1.5 miles to our approach. Then, the lower portion of the Lamarck Lakes trail was not skinnable, because of discontinuous snow cover, debris fields, and other obstacles. We painfully carried our heavy packs and skis to the junction with the Grass Lake trail when it started to rain. We set up the tent and spent several hours huddled up and playing cards, waiting for a lull in the weather. This came around 16:00. We started up again, but the lull was short-lived, and the rain started again as we reached a small tarn just below Lower Lamarck Lake. We set up the tent again on a small flat area, our gear quickly getting damp in the process. It rained on and off all night. On June 13, we woke up to cloudy skies. We started again on our way up, skinning toward the broad valley that is below Lamarck Col. But we did not make it even onto the steep slope that leads to that low-angled valley. The weather was threatening again, so we called an end to the attempt, and skied back to Lower Lamarck Lake. There, wanting to spend another night in this beautiful area, we set up camp again – this time a more comfortable and spacious one. In the evening, with improving weather, we hiked up a chute that led to a small notch with a superb view of Mount Emerson and the Piute Crags. The next day, on June 14, we hiked back to the car, at the junction of Hwy 168 and North Lake Road. Our plan for the remaining two days of Ronald's stay was to day hike two big mountains with famous snow climbs: Basin Mountain and Mount Dade. These choices seemed appropriate given the conditions. We went back to Mammoth, showered and rested a bit, threw more gear in my 4Runner, and drove to the Horton Lakes trailhead along a very bumpy Buttermilk Road. There was a nice camp area about 0.3 miles from the end of the road, at 7,777 feet of elevation, and we set up a palatial base camp there. The evening was comfortable, but I slept only four hours that night. (Three day stats: 15:43 hours, 10:34 hours moving, 9.33 miles, 2,512 feet of elevation gain).
June 15, 2023. Ascent of Basin Mountain. We left camp at 6:14, initially following the old mining road that leads up to an abandoned mine at about 10,600 feet of elevation. The snow conditions were perfect and I was able to hike up in approach shoes without getting them too wet. Ronald helpfully kicked steps for both of us up the entire couloir. We reached the saddle at the top of the East Couloir at 12:38, and looked for Secor's 3rd class variation up to the summit. This was easy enough, with one short rappel at a location that had a rap station. From there a scree and talus chute took us to a blocky ridge and the summit of Basin Mountain (13:45). We enjoyed the outstanding views in all directions and then started down Norman Clyde's North Slope route. We alternated glissading and walking, and on the lower portion started a small wet slide avalanche while on a glissade. But we were faster than the slide. We reached Horton Lake at about 16:15, and refilled our empty water containers. From there it was a quick hike back, though beautiful meadows and spring flowers. We were back at the car at 18:36, quickly packed up, and drove to Rock Creek Lake. All the campgrounds were closed, but it was easy enough to camp at the Palisade Group campground, as the road closure was near enough to the tent sites and picnic tables. So it was another comfortable base camp. We tried to hurry to get some hours of sleep before the long day ahead. I slept better this night. (A 12:22 hour day, 10:28 hours moving, 10.44 miles, 5,460 feet of elevation gain).
June 16, 2023. Ascent of Mount Dade. We woke up early and hurriedly packed up camp. The road to Mosquito Flat was still closed at the Rock Creek Lakes Resort, adding 1.5 miles to the dayhike. We set out on the snowy road at 7:09, carrying both approach boots and ski gear. Snow became more or less continuous after Mosquito Flat, but skinning was slow due to debris fields, occasional breaks in the snow cover, and other obstacles. We were wasting time putting skis on and taking them off to go past obstacles. At Marsh Lake we gave up on a ski approach, put on our approach shoes and continued on foot. This might have been a mistake because the conditions improved after this, and we would have been able to skin well past Treasure Lakes. At any rate, this would have to be a conventional ascent. We stopped for lunch on some dry rocks at the base of the Hourglass Couloir, wondering about the numerous avalanches we could spot on the lower portion of the couloir. We assumed that the avalanche paths themselves would be stable enough, and decided to hike up a line in the middle of the couloir, but following an existing boot trace not too far from an avalanche path. The idea was that if a new avalanche were to start in the middle of the couloir, we would have time to move to more stable terrain. At least that was the theory. With Ronald again in the lead in the couloir, we reached the saddle at its apex at 13:24. Much to our surprise, the southeast slope of Mount Dade still held plenty of snow, and the ascent to the summit involved a mix of snow and class 2 rock. We reached the summit at 14:52, and spent a bit of time enjoying the outstanding views in all directions. The return was relatively quick, as we were able to glissade the entire lower portion of the Hourglass. At Treasure Lakes we met a group that was learning mountain skills, led by a guide from International Alpine Guides. Our feet now thoroughly wet and cold, we did not dither, and looked forward to finding our ski boots. The return seemed interminable, and we were now quite fatigued. We reached the car at 20:04, and went back to Mammoth. Ronald drove home that evening. (A 13:01 hour day, 11:37 hours moving, 11.83 miles, 3,800 feet of elevation gain).
Trip totals: 41.07 total hours, 32:39 moving hours, 31.6 miles, 11,772 feet of elevation gain.