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Drove down from the Bay Area Friday afternoon/evening, and slept in my car
outside Shoshone. Very cold, several degrees below freezing on the drive in!
Met Courtney along Hwy 178 early Sat morning (5.45am), and drove a mile or two
into Chicago Valley before giving up on the road. Went up the DPS Route A
Variation for Nopah Range, and came back down the regular route. A bit of fun
scrambling (class 3) in the wash on the route A variation, and an optional
and spicy fourth class gully/chimney above that, but not enough to
really recommend the peak. Chossy rock, the most friable limestone I've ever
encountered. Very hazy day, and no summit views whatsoever. Had hoped
to tag Stewart Pt. in the afternoon, but it looked pretty boring. I have
to question the selectivity of the DPS list sometimes. Went and
tagged Jubilee Mtn. from Jubilee Pass instead--short, but good (if hazy)
views. Ate at the Crowbar Cafe in Shoshone (amazing food for the middle of
nowhere), and slept in my car again near Death Valley Junction.
Sunday, drove out to Travertine Point along Hwy 190 (15.3mi west of Death
Valley Junction) to tackle Pyramid Peak. The west ridge had been described as
being "not for the squeamish," and probably class 3 or 4. Turned out to be a
long slog, mostly class 1 or 2, with only one short mandatory bit of third
class. A bit disappointing, but the scenery to the north was fantastic--at
least what I could make out through the clouds. Came back down the standard
southeast route for variety... even less interesting than the west ridge, and
views weren't as good either. Glad I didn't go up that way. Saw one or two
register entries mentioning a class 3 route from the south (up a prominent
gully south of the peak?), so if I come back, I might try that. The
"complete" west ridge (including the west ridge of Point 6060) looks
intimidating--some very steep cliffs en route. Can't decide from a distance
if it's even climbable... I'm a bit skeptical--but it's limestone and
probably pretty fractured, so maybe it would go as class 3 or 4. Maybe.
Might have to take a look at this too some time (on a nice day), even if just
to have an excuse to eat at the Crowbar again.
A few GPS waypoints for the west/southwest ridge on Pyramid Peak, and
the southeast ridge descent:
TOPO! GPS Data Format Deg NAD83 ElevFeet UTC-Time
TH,36.37056,-116.66196,NA,12/29/2005,12:39:27,
WASH,36.37295,-116.65193,NA,12/29/2005,12:39:27,
GULLY,36.37312,-116.64971,NA,12/29/2005,12:39:27,
RIDGE,36.37585,-116.64532,NA,12/29/2005,12:39:27,
RIDGE1,36.37688,-116.63628,NA,12/29/2005,12:39:27,
RIDGE2,36.37926,-116.63232,NA,12/29/2005,12:39:27,
PT6060,36.38772,-116.62779,NA,12/29/2005,12:39:27,
SERIDG,36.38799,-116.61007,NA,12/29/2005,12:39:27,
SCREE,36.38719,-116.60312,NA,12/29/2005,12:39:27,
TRLJNC,36.38523,-116.60071,NA,12/29/2005,12:39:27,CAIRN/TRAIL JUNCTION?
SADDLE,36.38405,-116.59450,NA,12/29/2005,12:39:27,
SEWASH,36.37592,-116.59224,NA,12/29/2005,12:39:27,
HWY190,36.35068,-116.63399,NA,12/29/2005,12:39:27,
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