TR: Mt Rixford, April 4-5th

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ExploreABitMore
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TR: Mt Rixford, April 4-5th

Post by ExploreABitMore »

Back in March a buddy of mine said he went to Kearsarge Pass and encountered very little slow. I found it a bit hard to believe, but the following weekend another friend and I headed up there to check it out. He wasn't lying and from the pass I also noticed that the route up Rixford looked mostly snow-free. So the following weekend of April 4th I went back yet again with my wife to climb Rixford and spend a night at Flower Lake. It was very cold and windy, but so clear and beautiful. Bummer about the drought, but it really did feel amazing to be in the Sierra this time of year with such easy access and amazing vistas.

Crisp, cold morning at Flower Lake

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Almost to the Pass and nice views of Big Pothole Lake and Nameless Pyramid

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Dropping down the West Side of the Pass and enjoying views of Kearsarge Pinnacles

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My wife making her way up Rixford's South Slopes

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Incredible Summit Views!!!

Looking North First ...

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And Looking South ....

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Heading Home ...

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And a pretty good sign it was a windy day

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Until next time!
Sierra Nevada, Mojave Desert, Night Sky Photography: http://www.evanthomasphoto.com/
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gary c.
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Re: TR: Mt Rixford, April 4-5th

Post by gary c. »

Beautiful pictures :thumbsup:
"On this proud and beautiful mountain we have lived hours of fraternal, warm and exalting nobility. Here for a few days we have ceased to be slaves and have really been men. It is hard to return to servitude."
-- Lionel Terray
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seanr
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Re: TR: Mt Rixford, April 4-5th

Post by seanr »

It was hard to bypass the opportunity to visit Onion Valley and Kearsarge Pass area while in Independence last weekend. I had to substitute with views from afar and Norman Clyde's photos at the Eastern California Museum until I saw your post. :) Anyone heading to that great place this Saturday can take part in his birthday celebration,....

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...but the images make me want to be over that pass.
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Re: TR: Mt Rixford, April 4-5th

Post by ExploreABitMore »

Thanks Gary C! Seanr, thanks for the heads up on Norman Clyde event, didn't realize it was this weekend and I think we're going to be up that way. Probably too busy hiking, but at least we know about it if we got a chance!
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MN2CAPisco
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Re: TR: Mt Rixford, April 4-5th

Post by MN2CAPisco »

I made my way up Rixford a few weeks later than you on the 18th, and based on the register I erroneously thought I was the first summit this year. Silly me.

I didn't know about Norman Clyde's birthday bash going in, though a fellow traveler did mention it at the trailhead...given my peakbagging plans I figured Mr. Clyde would likely skip out on his own celebration for a nice summit run as well so I didn't feel too bad making my way up Rixford instead. I had a great day up there as well with remarkably little snow through the route. Wonder with some of the recent weather up there if it's looking about the same now. Below are some panoramas I captured through the trip:

https://www.360cities.net/image/mount-r ... california
https://www.360cities.net/image/leaving ... california
https://www.360cities.net/image/sunset- ... california
https://www.360cities.net/image/dsc0018 ... a-panorama
https://www.360cities.net/image/campsit ... california
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ExploreABitMore
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Re: TR: Mt Rixford, April 4-5th

Post by ExploreABitMore »

Hi MN2CAPisco,

Those 360 degree photos are really neat, thanks for sharing! Hadn't heard of that site before, just might have to look into trying that out.

Interesting to see it looked like a little less snow to the North then when I was there, but almost looked like more to the South on your visit.

Yeah, I don't look too hard for registers these days with so many gone missing. Looked for a little for Rixford's but gave up quick - figured it was either under snow, or gone altogether. Sad how you can't depend on them anymore. Always enjoyed looking back to see old entries from prior visits, etc.
Sierra Nevada, Mojave Desert, Night Sky Photography: http://www.evanthomasphoto.com/
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Re: TR: Mt Rixford, April 4-5th

Post by MN2CAPisco »

Thankfully I was able to find the register, though I'm still looking for the elusive one that has entries much farther back than 2010 or so. This one was marked with a small cairn near the snowy section, so wouldn't be surprised if it was buried when you were there. It was in an metal can with the top held on by friction, I grabbed it from the top and the bottom slid out, thankfully it didn't careen off the side of the mountain and I learned to handle it with a bit more care. :)

There was quite a bit less snow up north, likely due to the south-facing slopes getting more sun than the north-facing. I was particularly drawn to the east ridge of Mt. Brewer with some plans to stand on that summit sometime this season. From the look of it I might be able to attempt that soon without dragging crampons and ice axe up with me. Also from the look of it I'm wondering if the approach from Kearsarge might be a better option than the traditional Road's End starting point, the elevation gain would certainly be more palatable on the way and I'm not sure mileage would be much more significant.

Glad you enjoyed the 360s! I got into those after seeing the layer in Google Earth and have been honing my technique, there's quite a bit that goes into them. In reality it may just be my lack of artistic vision to properly compose a photo, with the 360's you just capture everything.
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Re: TR: Mt Rixford, April 4-5th

Post by ExploreABitMore »

Mt Brewer is one I would also definitely like to do this year at some point. It's one of those I can't believe I haven't done yet considering how long and how high it has been on my radar. If you do go kinda soon, please post a TR of your trip ;-)

I noticed on your one 360 that you could even pan up and down quite a ways (90 degrees at least, maybe?), so I was guessing they're probably not real easy to pull off. But, definitely looks like something fun to try!
Sierra Nevada, Mojave Desert, Night Sky Photography: http://www.evanthomasphoto.com/
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