Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Mt Irvine/Mallory suggestions?

I would like to solicit some wisdom on the best route to attempt Irvine and Mallory from Meysan canyon. I'll be there Aug 9-10. I understand the northeast ridge of Irvine is fun and not too daunting. I don't really want to get into anything above fairly easy class 3. Example, I just completed the north rib of Tyndall last week and understand that was primarily class 2 with a possible 3-ish move here and there (which I think I had to pull off a few times). OR do I go up the chute from Meysan Lake? I have read on this board that the scree is tiresome. True? Experience, the day after Tyndall I tried to scramble up the scree slope/chute cutting across on the south face of Mt Keith and gave up about 30 yards from the top of the chute. Too much movement. One step up, slide two back for about an hour dislodging an occasional larger amount of scree and a talus blocks which was particularly nerve racking being that I was up there solo and just getting comfortable with this sort of scrambling. At least I got to practice my scree skiing on the way back down. I don't want to repeat that sort of scramble if the chute up to the plateau between Mallory and Irvine is as tedious. Seems to me, putting together evidence from this board, that to approach Irvine from the the northeast ridge and descend the chute to Meysan Lake is preferable. Any opinions/advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

I’ve been up and down the NE ridge of Irvine a few times, the most recent being a year ago.

And I’ve been up the chute from Meysan Lake to the Mallory-Irvine bowl twice, but never down. There is a very steep and loose section from the top of this chute (bottom of the Mallory-Irvine bowl) over to Mallory—so be careful on this.

There is also the option of going up to the Mallory-LeConte plateau from Meysan Lake, but it is very, very, tedious without snow.

I have quite a few pictures of those climbs, but they’re not uploaded. (Actually, I do have one album on Winkflash, but I really haven't figured out how to use it. Try four years ago. You may have to register with Yahoo.)

So my take is: (1) The NE ridge of Irvine is really fun, going up or down. Class 2, and easy 3 in just a few sections. (2) I didn’t think the chute to the Mallory-Irvine bowl was that bad. A little loose in the lower chute, but the part I most disliked was negotiating the giant boulders at the bottom of it. Once above that little waterfall (the only class 3 move on this route) it was good going. (3) I would avoid going up to the Mallory-LeConte plateau this late in the season.

Bottom line: The way you propose is fine, but in my opinion, the reverse is equally good. Just be careful on the traverse to/from Mallory.

You can do Irvine/Mallory in one day, but its real nice to stay a night at the upper Meysan Lake (in the bowl)- great light effects on the water if the afternoon/early evening light stikes it correctly.

Yes, the scree slope south of the lake can be tedious. However, it provides easy access. If you're going to do both Irvine and Mallory, I'd suggest doing Irvine 1st, then traversing over to Mallory; its easy to see where you're going, whereas the reverse means you'll do a 'blind' downclimb on the west side of Mallory. Also, when at the lake, take a good look at the routes up through the rocks below the Mallory/LeConte plateau. Lots of easy-to-see ways to get down, but lots of rock bands there too that could cause trouble if you're not careful.

LeConte's there for the taking, too. Can be somewhat tricky: I thought it was a class 3 going up and a class 4 coming down. Lone Pine Peak is also accessable from the lower lakes (scree climb) and provides a great view of the Owens Valley and Inyo Mtns

One of my favorite 'basin' areas of the Sierra Nevada. HAve fun and enjoy.

Thanks to both for the advice/opinions/info. I've checked out those photos before Bob (year ago). They're definitely helpful in getting an idea of the look of the ridge. Your trip reports and photos are always great. And yes, phydeux, I'll be there at least one night, maybe two. I get to do these hikes only once or twice a year (family, kids, etc). So I make sure I savor the Sierra by staying overnight.

I will be on group backpack this weekend, packing in 8/8 and climbing 8/9. The plan is to climb Irvine via the NE ridge and then traverse to Mallory with LeConte optional. In an effort to check current conditions, I dayhiked Irvine yesterday from the Meysan Lake trailhead. I went up the NE ridge and tried to take a few pictures for information. The pictures are here. Hope this helps--Steve

Maybe I'll see you up there. I'll be hiking in on Friday afternoon and climbing Sat. as well. I'll be the guy by myself looking almost confident about where I'm going. This will not be the first time up Meysan canyon, but it will be the first trying to climb up and out of it to bag a peak. If you see me and are so inclined, feel free to shout "DUDE, this way, not that way!" Thanks for the recent pics.

Thanks for posting those pics, Bob! After Club Photo went down, I wasn't sure I'd ever see them again. Great memories of a great weekend!