For the second outing of the weekend, Shannon and I had chosen a pair of SPS peaks along the Sierra crest just south of the Evolution Group: Mount Johnson and Mount Gilbert. We were slightly more interested in the higher and technically easier Mount Gilbert, but hoped that time would allow us to climb the north ridge of Mount Johnson as well. We weren’t sure we’d gain either summit, though, as we’d first have to negotiate Treasure Col which Secor describes as “ice ax required.” We knew from satellite images that the col was free of snow and ice at this time, so we hoped we could find another crossing of the crest nearby that would work. I had read of a few routes, but nothing too helpful. Another complicating factor was that the weather forecast called for a 40% chance of thunderstorms today.

We got up not too early, packed everything into our car as we had to check out of our AirBnB today, and drove south to the Bishop Pass Trailhead, arriving and setting off on our way at about 8 AM.

Mount Johnson (with snowfield) and Gilbert (in full sun) from the lowest reaches of the Bishop Pass Trail. From this angle, Treasure Col appears to be a sheer cliff.

We headed up, not finding the trail too busy, and following the signs to the Treasure Lakes.

The first, and largest Treasure Lake with some impressive cliffs rising above.

First Treasure Lake again. We followed a fading trail between the lowest two lakes and then up a rib next to a creek before it headed directly into some thick, tall willows. Here we found a tunnel for a couple of hundred feet through the willows that ended when the terrain turned to talus. We continued up and up, now hopping over rocks until we passed a very green lake just below 11,320’. The travel here was not easy, with lots of large rocks and undulating terrain. It took a lot of time and effort to reach the moraine and what remained of the glacier on the north face of Mount Johnson.

First views of Treasure Col and the cliffs between Mount Johnson and Mount Gilbert. Treasure Col is the sandy slope on the left side that ends at a notch. It was much steeper and sandier than we hoped.

Treasure Col. When we got closer, we realized that there was still ice and snow on the route up the col, but it was completely covered with sand and talus. Not the best terrain for a steep ascent. Additionally, as the underlying ice and snow melted under the hot sun, the rocks and sand on top of the snow would periodically slide and fall, sometimes great distances. The col was quite literally falling apart before our eyes. We didn’t even bother debating how this mess would hold up to the weight of two humans and started searching for another route instead.

Just north of the col, I spied some not-too-steep seeming broken cliffs. It looked like the kind of thing that one couldn’t climb head-on, but might contain traversing cracks that one could use to climb across and up to the crest. If nothing else at least it wasn’t actively falling down as we looked at it. We started heading up this way.

Shannon climbing towards “North Treasure Col.” Sure enough, we found a break in the rocks that ran down and across the cliffs. It was about 5 feet wide and solidly class 3 near the top, but rock solid.

Mount Johnson from the crest just north of Treasure Col. We reached the crest just before noon and took a short rest to enjoy the views. Then we headed down some class 3 rocks, across a small drainage, and up the sandy southeast slope of Mount Gilbert. There was nothing difficult here, just a long, sandy grind.

Mount Johnson from higher up on the slope of Mount Gilbert.

To the west, the Black Divide loomed across the impressively deep LeConte Canyon.

To the south again, with the Palisades rising seemingly higher and higher as we climbed. Around 1 o’clock we reached the summit. The view didn’t open up too much farther and was most impressive to the south, but there was some fun stuff to see to the north too.

Mount Humphreys beyond Thompson Ridge to the north.

Directly north, the large plateau of Mount Thompson blocked a view of the Evolution Group.

Mount Goddard to the northeast.

The Black Divide to the west.

LeConte Canyon and some of the unnamed peaks near the Dumbbell Lakes to the south.

The Palisades (and Mount Goode) to the south.

And finally, looking west back at South Lake, which was very low this year due to the drought.

I read through the summit register a bit, noting that it was one of the older ones I’d found on an SPS peak. Dating back to 1972 it was almost 50 years old! We enjoyed a nice long rest on the summit, noting the thunderstorms didn’t appear to threaten us as they built far north over the desert, and that we surely wouldn’t be climbing Mount Johnson as well when we could just as easily go back to Mammoth and enjoy a lovely Sunday evening. Soon we headed back down.

Shannon heading down the sand slopes of Mount Gilbert. It was exactly the kind of terrain that is very fast and easy to descend, so we made good time on the slope.

A hawk soaring high overhead.

One more shot of the Palisades before they disappeared from view.

Mount Johnson.

Mount Johnson again, from closer to where we crossed the crest. The north ridge route supposedly climbs the ridge quite directly and is a very fun class 3 scramble. Next time!

One last view of the Black Divide before dropping back to Treasure Lakes. We didn’t have any trouble finding the small notch where we wanted to cross, but I was paying very close attention. It would have been easy to miss, so if you do take this route, pay attention.

Shannon negotiating some trickiness descending from “North Treasure Col.”

Off the tricky business and getting ready for the talus again. Here you can see the route we followed up to the crest. It really wasn’t too bad, though a bit of a climb at the top.

Mount Johnson again, from the other side of the crest though.

<img>31.jpg</img>One more photo of the cliffs north of Treasure Pass. We did not climb the obvious chute at the left of the photo, thinking that it ended in cliffs, but a much fainter one in the right quarter of the photo that has some reddish rocks on both sides.

Once back on the moraine we slowed down again, hopping from rock to rock, and testing the scary looking ones before trusting them.

Sierra Monkeyflower. Before too long we were off the talus and headed through the willow tunnel again.

Tunneling through the willows before regaining the use trail to the Treasure Lakes.

Cliffs above the lowest Treasure Lake. We passed a few parties settling in for a lovely summer afternoon camping at these lakes. We continued on down the trail, getting a bit tired by this point, but with not too much farther to go.

Lupine near the crossing of the South Fork of Bishop Creek. There was a lovely field of wildflowers growing in the riparian area here.

The same view of Mount Johnson and Gilbert as from the first photo, but with the sun behind the mountains now.

We reached the car and took a break for the usual post-hike niceties: snacks, water, sandals, before piling in and heading back to Mammoth.

When we reached our new AirBnB we checked in and unloaded. I went out and picked up some food, but before long we realized we were going to have some problems. Our neighbors in the unit next to us were making a terrible racket. There were three kids yelling and jumping, a dog barking, and a lot of doors slamming. I went over and talked to them one time and then quieted down a bit, but the walls in some of those rental condos in Mammoth are pretty thin. We went to sleep that night a bit worried about the two weeks we had paid to stay in this unit, hoping our neighbor’s trip would end as soon as possible.