TR: Mt. Langley attempt from Owens Valley, Oct. 2017
Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2018 9:51 pm
MY CURRENT PROJECT is climbing Mt. Langley from Owens Valley thru the John Muir Wilderness, without a trail. Below is a selection of photos from the 100 on this photo-sharing website:
https://josiah.piwigo.com/index?/catego ... y_oct_2017
For the past few years, I've been looking for a route that avoids using the Tuttle Creek Trail:
https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/inyo/re ... ecid=20724
There seems to be two options that utilize the ridges inbetween Tuttle Creek and Diaz Creek:
(1.) The Tuttle Creek ridge: Turn off Granite View Road onto Forest Service Road 16S01 and park next to Tuttle Creek and ascend the south side of the ridge to the south of Tuttle Creek;
(2.) The Diaz Creek ridge: Park near the end of Granite View Road and head south onto a low slope that gradually climbs up along the north side of Diaz Creek.
I know option (1.) will work the whole way with only Class 2 and 3. I haven't gotten very far with option (2.) and expect that there is some class 4 or 5 in the middle.
Back in October 2017, I started at night. This shows how steep the southern side of the ridge to the south of Tuttle Creek can get: I found a "saddle" and saw this view looking East in the morning: The trees are definitely sculpted and twisted by the harsh environment: The drainage up to a "glacier" which was there at the end of summer 2017 but melted away by the end of summer 2018: The drainage has an underground spring that pops up out of the earth at the blue dot on the 7.5" Mt. Langley topo map labelled "Spring" -- here's the glacier that used to feed the spring: A gentle giant of old... ...and another one standing on one leg... Close-up of the granite... ...and a shot of the cliff I considered for a "short-cut" but going around the left side of the glacier was easier... "Tree line" is a bunch of dwarf pines nestled in the rocks with some Class 4 fun... I camped a second night in the foxtail pine forest which characteristically occur in very fine bands at certain elevations... The view towards Langley opens up...
https://josiah.piwigo.com/index?/catego ... y_oct_2017
For the past few years, I've been looking for a route that avoids using the Tuttle Creek Trail:
https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/inyo/re ... ecid=20724
There seems to be two options that utilize the ridges inbetween Tuttle Creek and Diaz Creek:
(1.) The Tuttle Creek ridge: Turn off Granite View Road onto Forest Service Road 16S01 and park next to Tuttle Creek and ascend the south side of the ridge to the south of Tuttle Creek;
(2.) The Diaz Creek ridge: Park near the end of Granite View Road and head south onto a low slope that gradually climbs up along the north side of Diaz Creek.
I know option (1.) will work the whole way with only Class 2 and 3. I haven't gotten very far with option (2.) and expect that there is some class 4 or 5 in the middle.
Back in October 2017, I started at night. This shows how steep the southern side of the ridge to the south of Tuttle Creek can get: I found a "saddle" and saw this view looking East in the morning: The trees are definitely sculpted and twisted by the harsh environment: The drainage up to a "glacier" which was there at the end of summer 2017 but melted away by the end of summer 2018: The drainage has an underground spring that pops up out of the earth at the blue dot on the 7.5" Mt. Langley topo map labelled "Spring" -- here's the glacier that used to feed the spring: A gentle giant of old... ...and another one standing on one leg... Close-up of the granite... ...and a shot of the cliff I considered for a "short-cut" but going around the left side of the glacier was easier... "Tree line" is a bunch of dwarf pines nestled in the rocks with some Class 4 fun... I camped a second night in the foxtail pine forest which characteristically occur in very fine bands at certain elevations... The view towards Langley opens up...