Harrison Pass

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Mike M.
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Harrison Pass

Post by Mike M. »

Does anybody have pictures of the north side of Harrison Pass you can post here? I'm trying to gauge how steep it is. I would be there in late August/early September, when (presumably) the snowfield will not be its usual treacherous self. I have not been able to find any decent photos on the web.

Thanks --

Mike
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Re: Harrison Pass

Post by LMBSGV »

I don’t need a goal destination. I need a destination that meets my goals.

http://laurencebrauer.com
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Mike M.
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Re: Harrison Pass

Post by Mike M. »

Thank you -- I have not seen that first photo before, but have seen the Finch images. There are two other decent images on the web that can be found here:

http://www.turula.com/3/index.html

I'm looking for a shot from the perspective of about 1/2 up from the lake basin, about half way up the north side of the pass. Anyone have a photo in their private collection?

In terms of difficulty, Finch ranks the Kern Divide passes as follows, from easiest to hardest:

1. Milly's
2. Little Joe
3. Harrison
4. Thunder Col

I'm guessing he left out Lucy's Foot Pass because he has never been over that route -- he has commented several times on trip reports that the route down looked too steep for his blood. Little Joe Pass is a route he discovered many years back when he was out on a day hike; it lies between Milly's and Lucy's and involves climbing the shoulder of the mountain above Lake Reflection, I think. It would be great to learn more about this route.

Many other posters on the web have commented about the steep and cruddy conditions on Harrison, which is why I wanted to see a few good photos of it and judge whether I would be comfortable on it.

I've seen photos on the web of Milly's and it looks like a nice route too. How steep and exposed is the last 100 feet? Anybody have their own photos from up there, particularly from just below the crest?

Mike
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Re: Harrison Pass

Post by quentinc »

That's interesting that he ranks Milly's as the easiest -- it's listed as Class 3. I've never done it for that reason, since Lucy's (which I have done) is generally listed as only Class 2. And Lucy has got one nasty foot! It's not so much the steepness as the fantastically loose rock.

As I mentioned elsewhere, I found Harrison to be a relative breeze. Maybe it had snow cover in just the right places that summer.
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