Northern California Prominence Peaks, June 2015

I spent four days in June driving and hiking prominence peaks near Klamath Falls in Southern Oregon and Northern California. The weather was unsettled but I had the peaks to myself and saw a black bear and wild horses.

Swan Lake Point, Stukel Mountain, Hamaker Mountain, and Yainax Butte each have at least 2000 feet of prominence and are located near Klamath Falls in Southern Oregon. On June 1 I visited Swan Lake Point, Stukel Mountain, and Hamaker Mountain summits on my drive towards Northern California. I expect most people passing through the area give these peaks little notice. Forest roads lead to or near these summits from which one can get good views of this volcanic part of Oregon.

I especially enjoyed the forested solitude of Swan Lake Point and viewed the region to the south from a quite different perspective than I was familiar with. The steep gravel road up to near the summit of Stukel Mountain was fun to drive in my jeep. The actual summit was a very short walk from where I parked. By the time I drove to the summit of Hamaker Mountain the weather was gusty and raining heavily. I quickly found what I thought was the highest point just outside a fenced area containing a radar installation, then headed down the mountain and on to Weed, California, for the night.

South Yolla Bolly Mountain has 4814 feet of prominence and is the 63rd most prominent peak in the 48 Contiguous US States. It lies west of Corning, California, and is the highest point in the Mendocino National Forest in the Northern Coast Range of California. The coast range rises suddenly as you drive west shortly after passing through the tiny town of Paskenta.

I drove from Weed to Corning and Paskenta and eventually arrived at the Ides Cove Trailhead providing access to the Yolla Bolly – Middle Eel Wilderness the morning of June 2. From the trailhead I hiked up the East Ridge of South Yolla Bolly Mountain through open country to reach the summit. North Yolla Bolly Mountain was hidden in clouds, but I was impressed with the size of the wilderness. Although these mountains are visible to the west from I-5, which I have driven many times, this was my first visit there.

Mount Eddy has 5105 feet of prominence (an “Ultra Prominence Peak”) and is the 56th most prominent peak in the 48 Contiguous US States. It lies in the Trinity Mountains of Northern California just west of Mount Shasta and the City of Weed.

I arrived at the Deadfall Lakes Trailhead in the Shasta – Trinity National Forest late afternoon June 2 and spent the night camped there. The next morning I hiked the Deadfall Lakes and Sisson Calahan Trails past several of the Deadfall Lakes to reach the southwest ridge of Mount Eddy.

I followed the Mount Eddy Trail up the southwest ridge and south slopes to the summit ridge. From the Mount Eddy summit Mount Shasta occasionally appeared from behind clouds to the east. While descending the Deadfall Lakes Trail through a meadow I spooked a black bear in the distance near trees. It quickly ran into the nearby forest.

The afternoon of June 3 I drove north and followed instructions to find the summit road to Yainax Butte near Beatty, Oregon. I used my jeep’s GPS tracking feature so as to help me reverse my route through the many intersections on my exit. At one point after I passed a meadow wild horses ran across the forest road in front of me. I suspect their previous owners had set them loose in the forest and they seemed quite healthy and well adapted to the forested country. I camped along the summit road and enjoyed a pleasant evening and night, then hiked the remaining few miles to and from the summit lookout the next morning. It was fun identifying the many peaks around me that I had previously visited and those I still planned to visit in the future.