Sierranator II (2019)

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Trailhead: Tuttle Creek Campground
Trailhead coordinates: 36.5669, -118.1233
Date: Saturday June 29, 2019
Start time: 3:30am
Route length (suggested route): ~20 miles
Route elevation gain (suggested route): 11,200 ft
Lowest elevation: 4,960 ft (trailhead)
Highest elevation: 14,026 ft (Mt. Langley)
Number of event listed peaks: 4
Weather forecasts: 5,210 ft    6,824 ft    8,750 ft    11,411 ft    12,700 ft    13,110 ft

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The second annual Sierranator will take place in the southern High Sierra near the town of Lone Pine, climbing Mt. Langley via its East Ridge, an obscure route starting from the desert floor. The start time has been made very early to give participants ample time to get higher up in elevation before the lower elevations heat up with the rising sun. During this time of year, Lone Pine commonly experiences triple digit temperatures while daytime highs on Mt. Langley usually range between 50-60 degrees.

SUGGESTED ROUTE
The route will begin from Tuttle Creek Campground, initially staying on a series of dirt roads for ~3.7 miles to the base of Langley's East Ridge. There is a slight chance that the selected "trailhead" may not allow parking, so you would need to park elsewhere before meeting at the start (a good idea is to simply get a campsite there). The first few thousand feet of gain on Langley's East Ridge look to be loose and sandy, dotted with scraggly desert shrubs. After the shrubs disappear up higher, the ridge becomes more bouldery all the way up to Mt. Langley. From the summit of Langley, head a short distance SE to Upper Cottonwood Cirque Highpoint. This is barely a peak- a freebie, really. The terrain gets tricky right before Then Fin, which has a near-vertical looking north side. In order to get around this, descend a chute to the SW, contour around The Fin's west side on a short section of potentially nasty sand/scree, and take a gully up the SW side of The Fin before gaining it's summit. After The Fin, a long bolder hop awaits up to Woolyback- a long broad ridge often seen from Lone Pine (and often mistaken for nearby Cirque Peak). From Woolyback, head several thousand feet down its north side to re-gain Langley's East Ridge before heading down.

summit view from Mt. Langley

suggested route (in blue)

peak summary

Peak	Elevation	Topographic Prominence	Summit Coordinates (lat/lon)
Mt. Langley	14,026 ft	1,197 ft	36.523449, -118.239526
Upper Cottonwood Cirque Highpoint	13,402 ft	135 ft	36.518087, -118.232975
The Fin	12,723 ft	289 ft	36.51619, -118.221731
Woolyback	12,838 ft	600 ft	36.511359, -118.20631