The Nipple

[Vaca Russ]

A close examination of this mountain will show you how it was named.

Many things in these parts have been given unusual names. The picture above is a morning shot of the mountain from the east in “Border Ruffian Flat”. This is the mountain I climbed the previous weekend.

Here is my attempt at rumor mongering: This peak was named after the Radical Republican Congressman Thaddeus Stevens.

This is a shot of the Nipple from the summit of Markleeville.

The long but less steep way to summit this peak is to start at the PCT junction with Blue Lakes Road. The trail, Blue Lakes Road and Pleasant Creek all intersect at the same spot. There is a turnout for parking on the southeast side of the road.

The summit comes into view once you climb above the tree line.

The PCT will take you to about 500 vertical feet below the nipple. From there you can just scramble to the top.

There are some “Whitney Window” type features along the ridge.

This is one of the sloppiest summit registers I have ever seen. What a mess!

One must search around for a bare area of paper to sign.

This is a shot looking down the easy climb of the summit block or the nipple.

There is a great view of the Mokelumne Wilderness from this peak

40 Oguls down, 23 to go!

Thanks for reading my post!

-Russ

[maverick]

Thanks Russ for the TR and pictures, really like the views in the last shot, looks like the snow has be melting away in that area fairly quickly.

[Tom_H]

Thanks Russ, This reminds me of Maggie's Peaks. I never did quite get it until we rode the big paddleboat from SLT to Emerald Bay. There's a certain location where the perspective comes into perfect bilateral symmetry and then the reason for the name becomes fully apparent.

[rlown]

A very nice report, Russ. The girlz didn't get to go?

[cefire]

Nice one!