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Joined: Mar 2006
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Does anyone have a list of the easiest to hardest to climb california 14'ers? I know the easiest is White, then Langley, Whitney, Muir?, etc.

thanks,

Joined: Dec 2002
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If you are talking Class 1 or 2, I'd have to go with White. It's on a road. You just put in on cruise control and go.

In my book there are no easy 14'ers.

BTW, I had the most awful AMS experience I ever had on White after acclimatizing for two days above 10,000'.

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JPR
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After about four years, I finally finished climbing all the fourteers this summer. Below is my list of what I felt was the easiest to hardest fourteeners.

1. White Mountain, hands down. You can take a mountain bike to the top and have a fun ride down. This mountain is a good way to get introduced to altitude. For a beginner I’d suggest spending one day at or around the bristlecone pine forest first. Camp somewhere around 11,000 to 12,000 and start at a decent time on the second day. I threw up once on the way to the top… (2x - Summer and Spring)

2. Langley is a long walk, but you do not gain much altitude along the way since the trailhead is so high. If you are in shape, it is pretty easy. The camp spots by the last lake are real nice! (1x - Summer)

3. Split Mountain seemed pretty easy to me. There are some spots with no real clear trail and a tad bit of exposure, but nothing too frightening. The hardest part was getting to the trailhead. (1x - Summer)

4. Mt. Whitney (Main Trail/Mountaineers Route/East Face) – in the summer, after getting through the mess called the permit system, this is a pretty easy hike. Just walk up the trail. The Mountaineers route is a good bit harder but more fun. Snow makes everything much harder. (4x – Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter)

5. Mt. Tyndall has a bit of exposure pretty much the entire way (above 12,000), but since I rock climb I was comfortable with it. Also, it is a damn long walk up the Shepard’s pass trailhead – that was probably the hardest part. Really pretty area though! (1x - Summer)

6. Mt. Muir is easy to miss on the way up to Whitney, but it is a fun little peak. I think for most people, it would be easier than Tyndall, but I did it in January and it was very cold with somewhat icy conditions. (1x - Winter)

7. Mt. Russell was one of my favorite fourteeners. I did the 3rd/4th class East Ridge route and it really was fantastic. There is some incredible exposure along the way, but the route felt quite secure. After climbing Russell, we had day light to spare, so we ran up the Mountaineer’s Route on Whitney for fun. (1x - Summer)

8. Polemonium Peak – I climbed this from the West Side via Bishop Pass (U-Notch) on the way up to North Palisades. It was not real difficult, but not real easy to get to either. Any peak in the Palisades involves true climbing. (1x - Summer)

9. Mt. Shasta was lots of fun for me because I am a backcountry skier. On the way down, I was able to ski from about 13,000 to the car. It was so much fun flying past all the snowshoers struggling in the wet snow wink Shasta in the winter is not technical, but one MUST know how to use an ice axe and crampons. Two people slid down the same route I went up on the day I summated because they didn’t know what they were doing. I personally saw one slide by me. A second person ended up with a broken ankle from the crampon catching on the ice. It shouldn’t have happened… (1x - Winter)

10. North Palisades was a lot of fun. I did this on the same trip as Polemonium. If I remember right, it involved two roped pitches and some scrambling on top. It wasn’t overly hard, but there is no way around the 5th class section. (1x - Summer)

11. Mt. Sill – I climbed this peak via the Swiss Arete, a climb rated 5.6. It was pretty easy and in fact, my friend and I accidentally free-soloed a good share of the climb before we realized it and ended up doing only three pitches. The hardest part was again getting to the base of the climb (and the descent after the climb). You get to cross a glacier and go through a messy gully. But, once on the mountain, it is really nice. (1x - Summer)

12. Middle Palisades is evidentially not too hard for those who do it in the summer after the snow in the chute melts, but I had to go try it in the early spring. We had lots of new snow, waist deep in many places almost the whole way up. We ended up climbing through 5th class sections unroped to stay out of the deep wet snow. On the way down I was very happy to have packed a 50 meter 8 mm half rope and a bunch of hand tied slings. There were some frightening moments! (1x – Spring)

13. Thunderbolt Peak getting almost to the top of Thunderbolt peak isn’t too hard. You walk 8 miles from Bishop Pass, head up a long gully full of lose stones and boulders then you go through a small 5th class section to get to the summit block. That is when things get interesting. (1x – Summer)

14. Starlight Peak is very similar to Thunderbolt. First, walk 8 miles from Bishop Pass to the Thunderbolt pass area. During this walk, we post-holed our way through over one mile of miserable spring snow. Once at the base of the climb, head up a long gully full of lose stones and boulders until you get to the summit block. It is called the Milk Bottle. On the top, you will experience significant exposure. You will probably be scared. (1x – Summer)

15. Williamson was my hardest climb. I attempted it three times before I summated it via the South Fork of Bair’s creek. On that route there are a few sections that travel up a snow chute that are quite steep and exposed. My first attempt was spent in the nastiest brush choked valley/gully that I had ever seen. Some German guy who was too cheap to buy a map recommended it to a friend as a good route. We later learned that he was lost and meant the South Fork of Bair’s creek. Make sure you do your homework, especially on a mountain like this that really doesn’t have any trails. (1x – Spring)

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Wow, that is a fascinating account of your hikes/climbs. I was intimidated by snownymph's pics of Mount Russell and that is only #7 on your list. Well, thanks for sharing your experiences.

Joined: Feb 2003
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Your welcome. Yes, there becomes a big difference between the mountains around #7, when you graduate from the hikes to the climbs.

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Here's a quick list of what I found in the CA 14'rs book by Porcella and Burns, with elevation gain and mileage added in where I know too. I'd be interested in hearing people comments on the harder peaks, as well as mileages, elevation gain, and time for some of the harder 14'rs in the Palisade Region.

1. White Mountain - 14 miles RT - Class 1 - ~2000+ feet elevation gain

2. Mt. Langley - ~21 miles RT - Class 1 - ~4000+ feet elevation gain

3. Mt. Whitney - 22 miles RT - Class 1 - ~6000+ feet Elevation gain

4. Mt. Muir - 20 miles RT - Class 3 (from the Main Mt. Whitney Trail) - ~6,000 feet elevation gain

5. Split Mountain - ? miles RT - Class 2/3 - ? elevation gain - North Ridge Route via Red Lake

6. Mt. Russel - ~15miles RT - Class3/4 - ~5500 feet elevation gain - East Ridge Route

7. Mt. Tyndall - ~25 miles RT - Class 2 ~8500 feet elevation gain

8. Mt. Williamson - ~27 miles RT - Class 2 w/ 1 short section of Class 3 - ~8500 elevation gain NOT INCLUDING the ups and downs of the Williamson Bowl - West Face

9. Middle Palisade - ? miles RT - Class 3 - ? Elevation Gain - East Face

10. Mt. Sill - ? miles RT - Class 3 - ? Elevation Gain - East Couliour

11. Thunderbolt Peak - ? miles RT - Class 3 - ? Elevation Gain - SW Chute #1

12. Polemonium Peak - ? miles round trip - Class 3/4 - ? Elevation Gain - Southeast Ridge - (I think this might be the rating on the traverse f/ Mt. Sill??? Have to check)

13. Starlight Peak - ? miles RT - Class 4 - ? elevation gain - Starlight Buttress - True summit has the infamous "Milk Bottle," which is rated 5.4 - also done as a traverse f/ North Pal

14. North Palisade - ?miles RT - Class 4 - ? elevation gain - U Notch Southwest Side - I've talked with people who've done North Palisade and said they wouldn't take a rope the next time they'd do it, but I wouldn't touch any route on that monster without a climbing rope and a small rack!

15. Mt. Shasta - 14 miles RT - Class 3 - 7000 feet elevation gain - Avalanche Gulch - Although I've read somewhere that Shasta has easier routes, I've included Avi Gulch because it seems to be the most popular route to the top. I don't think Shasta is the hardest fourteener, but it's really in a class by itself because it's the only mandatory snow climb, whereas all other 14'rs have rock alternatives.

I'm curious to hear what others' experiences have been on the Palisade Region 14'rs as I don't have any experience on those just yet. Time frames, benefits to starting/camping spots, best to do in a day, etc.

Lastly, it's a bit difficult to put them in order from "easiest to hardest" because it depends on what you're talking about as far as difficulty. If you're talking about Class ratings, then I guess Starlight or North Pal would take the cake. If we're talking about overall distance and elevation gain, then Williamson would probably have it.

Gusto

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Thank you for all of this excellent information, this is exactly what I was looking for.

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JPR
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The most important lesson I learned from climbing these peaks is the difficulty for each summit varies greatly depending on season, weather, climbers condition and climbers experience. So, long story short, learn rock climbing skills.

For the Palisades, I would recommend just assuming that you will be dealing with 5th class terrain and take a rope and some gear. Unless you are a solid 5.10+ trad leader, you will be putting yourself through unnecessary risk without the gear. Also, downclimbing 4th and 5th class terrain is a real drag in my book.


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