Pyramid Peak DV · Title: Pyramid Peak DV Author: Branch Whitney Subject: Death Valley Created...
Transcript of Pyramid Peak DV · Title: Pyramid Peak DV Author: Branch Whitney Subject: Death Valley Created...
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Hike: Pyramid Peak - Up and back Trailhead: Along Highway 190 - unmarkedDistance: 8 miles (up and back)Elevation gain: 3,750 feetElevation peak: 6,703 feet Time: 7 to 9 hoursDifficulty: 5Danger level: 4 (loose rock, excessive heat)Class: 3How easy to follow: 4Children: NoMap: East of Echo Canyon, CA NV See Page 6Fees: NoneWaypoints: (GPS – WGS 84) See Page 5Best Time to Hike: Early Spring – too hot during summer months
Directions: From Las Vegas Blvd. turn west on State Route 160 (Pahrump Highway). When you pass Rainbow
Boulevard, set your odometer to zero. Drive 53 miles passing through the heart of Pahrump and turn left (west)
on Bell Vista Road. (This is known as the shortcut to Death Valley.) Drive 26 miles on Bell Vista Road. At the
stop sign turn right and make a quick left (west) onto the prominently marked West 190. Drive 11.7 miles and
park along the shoulder. (Waypoint 1.) This is about 100 yards west of the second 3,000 foot elevation sign.
Photo 1 is Pyramid Peak.
Overview: The route heads
north across the desert. It
continues north up a drainage
and onto a ridge. It then climbs
a steep slope to the summit
ridge. It now travels NE to the
summit.
Comments: This is one tough
peak. It has the “Moapa look”
as you hike across the desert.
The route has the classic
twists and turns. From the summit you can see Charleston Peak, Whitney, and Death Valley… awesome! Due
to loose rock, I would limit the number of hikers to four. This is not the standard route. This route shortens
the walk across the desert by almost half. Make sure to bring plenty of water. I went through 100 ounces and
Photo 1
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the temperature never exceeded 50 degrees.
It appears the USGS topo map has errors;
however, the GPS waypoints are correct.
Watch where you place your hands; there are
lots of hidden cacti.
The Hike: From the unmarked trailhead walk
north almost two miles across the desert to
the start of a slope (Waypoint 2) that leads
to the saddle in Photo 2 – Waypoint 3. From
the saddle drop down and head north across
the desert to the drainage shown in Photo 3.
Follow the drainage several hundred yards to
an easy class 3 dry fall. (See Photo 4.)
About 100 yards past the dry fall you’ll
come to a steep headwall. Veer right into a
narrow chute (class 3) and climb to the top
(Waypoint 4) where the chute intersects a
ridge. (Watch for loose
rock.) Hike north (class
1/2) on the ridge to a
small headwall. Veer left
and climb (class 2) the
wall as shown in Photo
5. Continue veering west
(left) to avoid loose scree.
Waypoint 5. A ridge forms
to the east (right). From
here to the summit ridge
you’ll parallel this ridge
gaining over 1200 feet in
Photo 2
Photo 3
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less than a half mile. See Photo 6. (Stay about 100 feet
below Waypoint 6 and make sure to hike around a small
shoulder so you do not top out.) Continue up to the
summit ridge by staying on solid rock (class 3) as much
as you can. Go west (left) of a small wall just below
the summit ridge. See Photo 7. At the summit ridge
(Waypoint 7) drop off the north side and traverse about
75 yards to a big drop-off. A cairn and pink ribbon mark
a class 3 downclimb just before the drop-off. You can
see the rest of the route from the drop-off. (See Photo 8.)
Traverse as show in Photo 8 to the summit ridge. Follow
the ridge 0.25 miles to the summit (Waypoint 8.)
The views from the summit are incredible. You
can see Mt. Charleston to the east and Mt. Whitney
to the west. Over 14,000 feet below Mt. Whitney lies
Death Valley, which is also visible from the summit.
Make sure to sign the register.
To Descend: Retrace your steps. After you descend
the downclimb in Photo 5, you have an option to
descend a scree slope to the saddle in Photo 2. From
the downclimb head east and descend an easy class
1 slope to the scree slope. This makes for a much
faster descent. Otherwise continue retracing your
steps.
Photo 4
Photo 5
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Photo 6
Photo 7
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Photo 8
Waypoints:
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