Owens Peak (From Walker Pass) - 01/19/2003

Elevation: 8,453 ft.
Distance: 9.19 Miles One Way (18.4 RT)
Difficulty: Strenuous (very strenuous if snow present on trail)
Class: 2 (just a few minor class 3 spots depending upon route)
Elevation Gain: ~3,500 ft. (3,178 ft + 300 ft on return)

Owens Peak is the highest peak in the Owens Wilderness area.  It also has the best view.
From it's summit you can see Lake Isabella to the West, Olancha, Langley, and Whitney to
the North, and Telesope Peak above Death Valley to the East.  Also to the East, you can 
see the towns of Inyokern and Ridgecrest in the valley below.

Owens is usually climbed from  a trail that takes off from a dirt road that comes up
past the Five Fingers formation.  This route will shave at least 4 miles off the hike.
Owens Peak can also be reached by hiking along the Pacific Crest Trail from Walker Pass.
Because my vehicle doesn't really like dirt roads, I chose this route.  I set out from
the trailhead at about 8:30am (a little earlier would have been better).  Although it
was January, the weather forcast was for a high of 71 degrees in InyoKern.  This proved
to be very comfortable weather.  Although the weather was clear and pleasant, fairly
heavy snow was present along the PCT between Jenkins Peak and Owens Peak.  Although
not impassable, this significantly slowed my progress and made for a much more
strenuous hike.  Along this section the snow was very soft.  In most places my feet would 
sink in about 6 inches.  In a few places I would sink in up to my knees.  No one else
appeared to have been along this section for since the last snowfall.  Note that snow was not an
issue on Jenkins and Owens Peaks.  Only along the PCT on the North side of Jenkins
was it a problem.

Eventually I arrived at the Owens Peak Saddle (8.5 miles) at 12:16pm.  From here it was
only another mile to the summit.  There appears to be two routes to the summit.  One
route heads directly up toward the summit from the
Owens Peak Saddle.  The other comes up from the dirt road in the valley below.  Both
involve a lot of terrain (rocks, brush, and pine).  Since I was already at the saddle,
I chose the route that leads up from there.  This route rarely resembles a trail and
you will have to keep a close eye out for the ducks which are fairly frequent (although
perhaps not frequent enough).  Note that, on the way up, what appears to be the summit
is only a false summit.  The real summit lies behind this.  You will need to go to the
right of the false summit.  I checked the left side and it was impassable.

I finally reached the summit at 1:55pm.  The 360 degree unhindered view is incredible.  Since
it was January, the visibility was extremely good.  Olancha, Langley, and Whitney
(all capped by snow) were easily visible to the North.  Telescope Peak (above Death 
Valley) could be seen to the East and Lake Isabella to the West.  To the Northwest you
can see some of the Domeland Wilderness as well as more snow covered peaks in the
distance.  These are probably the Kaweahs and other peaks in the Sequoia
National Park.

After admiring the view, making a call on my cell phone, and taking a ton of
digital photos, I departed the peak at 1:55pm.  Judging by the time it took to 
reach the summit, I knew I would have to deal with
darkess on the way back.  I was prepared however and so this was of little concern.
I knew I would have enough time to get past the snow covered section of the PCT
and this indeed turned out to be the case.  About half way back to the trailhead
I fired up my flashlight.  I had about an hour and half of darkness and
finally arrived back at the trailhead at 7:09pm.


Log:

08:28am - Left Trailhead
10:15am - Reached the Jenkins Peak Sign
12:16pm - Reached Owens Peak Saddle (highest spot between Jenkins and Owens Peaks)
01:55pm - Reached Owens Peak Summit
02:43pm - Left Summit
03:47pm - Reached Owens Peak Saddle
05:30pm - Reached the Jenkins Peak Sign
07:09pm - Returned to Trailhead

Stats:

Time from Owens Saddle to Owens Peak: 1 hr 39 mins
Time from Owens Peak back to Owens Saddle (other route): 1 hr 4 mins
Time from trailhead to Owens Peak: 5 hrs 27 mins
Time from Owens Peak back to trailhead: 4 hrs 26 mins
Time on Summit: 48 mins
Total Trip Time: 10 hrs 41 mins

GPS Data:

Total Mileage: 20.28 miles (a more optimal route would have cut this down a bit)