Mount Harrington / Moses Mountain
Ascents of Mount Harrington (North Ridge, class 3) and Moses Mountain (East Slope, Class 3), July 12-13, 2025
Timeline:
July 11, 2025. Drive to Kings Canyon. After a hiatus from climbing to visit family in France, and right before a trip to Boston for a conference, I found myself with a free weekend. I had two straggler SPS peaks to climb in the Western Sierra - in April I had climbed North Maggie Mountain but this was a very long day due to road closures, affording no time to climb Moses Mountain. And just a few weeks prior, in mid-June, I had climbed Kennedy Mountain on a trip to the Cirque Crest and Monarch Divide, but had run out of time to climb Mount Harrington. These would be my two objectives for the weekend. I decided to start with Mount Harrington as it was going to be a much longer day, and I needed to be back in LA early enough on Sunday to perform my editorial duties. I left LA on Friday afternoon after lunch, and drove to Kings Canyon stopping for a nice dinner of soup and a burger at the Grant Grove Restaurant. After dinner there was another hour of driving. I parked at the Lewis Creek trailhead and settled in the back of my 4Runner for a comfortable night.
July 12, 2025. Ascent of Mount Harrington. This was going to be a big day, with over 20 miles of hiking and over 7,000 feet of elevation gain. So I got up at 5:00, had breakfast and coffee, and set out on the Lewis Creek trail at 5:52. My pace was quite brisk to Frypan Meadow (8:27) but slowed down considerably on the supposed trail to Grizzly Lakes. I did not see much of a trail at all, although the remnants of one can perhaps be found with enough time and effort. I had a bit of trouble gaining the base of the North Ridge of Mount Harrington, as I stayed too close to its East Face. As I would discover on the descent, the easiest (but not the shortest) way to the base of the climb is to go almost all the way to Harrington Pass and then turn left to gain the ridge that leads to the base of the 3rd class climbing. At any rate, I was soon at the base. While I had read that there was a way to avoid the initial 3rd class steep portion by moving right of the ridge, where's the fun in that? I stuck to the crest and enjoyed the nice moves. It was a short, steep climb to the summit, which I reached at 12:47. One could see the White Divide, Mount Goddard and the Black Divide to the northeast, the Brewer Group, the Great Western Divide and the Kaweah Range to the southeast, and the Palisades to the west. The summit register dates back to 1966, with the first entry featuring Andy Smatko and a long list of other SPS climbers (another, newer register was placed in 1987 - I signed both). On the descent I followed the ridge to Harrington Pass, wanting to stare down the Gorge of Despair and perhaps catch a glimpse of Tehipite Dome, which I had climbed the year before. I managed to see both. I then retraced my steps down the tedious terrain back to Frypan Meadow (16:17), where I regained a good trail. There I met two men who were just back from climbing Kennedy Mountain and were planning to climb Mount Harrington the following day. They asked about the trail and I said there wasn't a trail. They did not seem up for much talking, and me neither, so I departed rather abruptly after eating a snack. The remaining miles went by monotonously as I made my way down to Kings Canyon. I was back at the car at 18:30 and drove back to Grant Grove for dinner. Then I had about four hours of driving to Mountain Home State Forest. Despite the darkness I had no trouble navigating my way to Hidden Falls campground, which I reached around midnight. I settled down for a short but comfortable night in the campground parking lot. (12:39 hours elapsed, 11:31 hours moving, 20.43 miles, 7,249 feet of elevation gain)
July 13, 2025. Ascent of Moses Mountain. I set out at 7:13 on the trail that follows the Tule River, initially on its eastern side. I soon came at the crossing that I had done in April, but the water level was now much lower, and I did not have to take off my shoes. I soon gained the Sequoia-covered cross-country slopes that rise from the river. This took me through forest, through some thick brush, through a talus field, and finally to a gully that rises diagonally northward toward the summit ridge of Moses Mountain. I was led to expect 3rd class terrain but found very little of that, the gully being very mellow. A couple of steeper steps were encountered closer to the ridge, but nothing too serious. From the crest, it was an easy and short hike south along the summit ridge, to the summit proper. I was on top at 11:00, and enjoyed views northeast toward the peaks of Mineral King. I could even see the Kaweahs in the very far distance. On the summit there was a fly infestation, so after signing the register I did not linger, and descended a short way to find shade and eat my lunch (brie and prosciutto sandwich, what else?). I then retraced my steps down to the gully, across some steep slopes, across the brush and the talus field, and into the Sequoia forest. I was back in view of the trail at 13:44 and back at the car at 14:24. Quite a few people were assembled there on this Sunday afternoon, bathing in the Tule River. I too was in great need of a bath, so I found a quiet spot some distance downstream, and plunged my weary bones in the river. This had the most refreshing effect, and the drive back to LA went by smoothly. (7:11 hours elapsed, 6:16 hours moving, 5.59 miles, 3,419 feet of elevation gain)
Trip Totals: 19:50 hours elapsed, 17:47 hours moving, 26.02 miles, 10,668 feet of elevation gain.