W6/NE-113

I climbed this peak after coming down from Payne Peak. To get to the trailhead, take County Road 58 (paved) to 58B (gravel). In my little sedan, I only drove as far as the sharp turn just inside the NF boundary. A high clearance, 4WD car could go much farther. There was plenty of parking space here.

My parking space. No shade, sadly.

Take the road over the small hill. At the intersection at the bottom, turn right, onto 42N50, towards Lower Dry Creek Basin. After this intersection the road gets much rougher, but no problem for my feet. I took the road up to an intersection in the basin, where I left it to go cross country.

The road was generally well shaded, with dense forest on either side.

Stepping off the road, the forest was somewhat dense, but quickly thinned out. I had no trouble going up, but I did have to weave around the fallen trees and brambles. The slope is steep in places, but no problems getting up. There are some cliffs below the summit, but there are plenty of ways to go around them.

The summit.

I came up onto the ridge in-between the summit and a peak that is nearly as high. There were some great views here, and I was in the activation zone, but I decided to head over the real summit. I followed the ridge over, and found the high point. The location given on SotaMaps appears to be higher. Unsurprisingly, I didn't find a register or benchmark. I setup in the shade of a tree.

The rocky summit, looking over to Warren and Squaw.

Again, I had great service, and was able to spot myself. I quickly got a pileup on 20 meters, which I worked through. 30 and 40 didn't get as many contacts. After finishing I headed down. I drifted a bit far south, and had to work my way over a small ridge to get back to the face of the mountain I wanted to be on. Back at the road I followed it down and out to the car, where I went back into Alturas before heading up to Buck Mountain.

Operating position under the tree.

Trailhead: End of County Road 58B, at the sharp bend just inside the NF boundary

Website: SOTA Site.

Maps: AA6XA SOTA Hikes map.

Route: Take 42N50 up to the intersection in the Dry Creek Basin. Go cross country up to the summit.

Red Tape: None.

Typical view from the off-trail section.

W6/NE-046 Payne Peak

Day three of my trip to the Warner Mountains. After climbing Warren Peak and Squaw Peak the previous day, I had three summits planned for today, Payne, 6620, and Buck. First up was Payne Peak, an easy hike. I drove up the nice gravel road to where it makes a sharp turn and Forest Road 42N43 turns off to the left.

I parked on the main road.

This road climbs gently up to the summit. There are a few roads that leave on the left, so stay on the main road. The road passes through some meadows, and just below the summit starts a switchback to the top.

Summit in the early morning sun.

This peak must not get many visitors, since there is no fence surrounding the tower and building on top. There is also a large solar array. Following N6JFD's advice, I walked out to the cross to the north to set up. I strapped my pole to the cross, and strung out my antenna, and was on the air.

At the cross, looking back at the high point.

Like the other peaks in the region, I had great cell service on top. I put out a spot and got the usual pileup of chasers. After working all three bands I had, I packed up. I had more peaks to visit, and didn't want to run out of time or daylight.

Looking north to Cedar Peak, a destination for the next day.

It took me about 30 minutes to get up, and a bit less to get back to the car.

Trailhead: Intersection of Forest Roads 42N31 and 42N43. High clearance cars could drive to the summit.

Website: SOTA Site.

Maps: AA6XA SOTA Hikes map.

Route: Walk up 42N43 to the summit.

Red Tape: None.

W6/NE-290 Squaw Peak

After rejoining the trail after climbing Warren Peak, I continued along the Summit Trail until I reached the base of the ridge running up to the summit. I didn't see any use trails, so I just went up. The ground was very soft in places, but there were enough shrubs that slipping wasn't an issue.

The summit from the base of the ridge.

It was a hot climb, but fairly short. The very top of the peak is a class 2 climb up some talus. On top I signed the register and had a snack, then got setup. Again, I had good service from the summit. After spotting I quickly got a bunch of contacts.

All my stuff.

I followed the other ridge back to the trail. Neither one seemed easier or harder than the other. Back on the trail it was an easy hike back to the campground, where I was able to kick back and relax. In the evening some deer wandered in, and I watched them for a while.

Pepperdine Campground.

 The next day I had some more summits planned, starting with Payne Peak.

One of the deer.

Trailhead: Patterson Campground. Day use lot just before the CG, after the equestrian CG. 

Website: SOTA Site.

Maps: AA6XA SOTA Hikes map.

Route: Take the Summit Trail to the ridge. Follow the ridge up to the summit.

Red Tape: None.

W6/NE-002 Warren Peak

This was the first peak on day two of my Warner Mountain expedition. I had spent the night at Pepperdine Campground, at the north end of the South Warner Wilderness. After scaring a few deer away when I got up, I had breakfast and got on the trail.

Heading up the trail in the wilderness.

The trail starts out climbing, and goes up about 1000' before leveling off a bit. The trail gets a lot of use, and was easy to follow. I enjoyed the views to the west, which were hazy but generally smoke free.

Squaw Peak.

On the south side of Squaw Peak the ridge levels out, and traverses and exposed section. This was the first point I had views in all directions. At the end of the cliffs, the trail drops a bit, then starts climbing up to Cottonwood Lake.

One of the pleasant shaded sections.

After passing the small lake, there is more climbing up to Patterson Lake. This is a very pretty lake, and seems to be a popular spot for camping. I said hi to some, as I continued up to the ridge on the other side.

Patterson Lake and Warren Peak. The peak is just to the right of the outcropping.

At the high point I left the trail. Others on Peakbagger had described a route around the back of the peak from this ridge, and I followed their suggestions. There were some steep, class 3, slopes to traverse and ascend, but I made good time. I passed a small group of people also making their way to the summit. The top had spectacular views.

Looking south towards Eagle Peak. Emerson and Hat Mountain might be visible.

I opened one log canister, and found it wet, so I set it out to dry some. When the others arrived, they had a tool to open the paint can, and we all signed the log in that one. We took each other's pictures, and while they snacked, I got on the air.

On the summit with Patterson Lake. Squaw Peak on the right.

My Verizon phone had great service on the summit, and I put out my spot, and got a few contacts. Rex, KE6MT, was able to get a summit-to-summit with me just before he had to leave his summit. Overall I got fewer contacts than I had expected, but plenty to activate the summit.

Cliffs surrounding Patterson Lake.

Before I had left, Jamie, N6JFD, had suggested that a better route to the summit might be along the top of the cliffs. I decided to try this route for the descent. I was a little hesitant because the forest looked very thick at the summit, but I quickly found that it was open if I stayed a few yards away from the edge. This route turned out to be very pleasant, and I enjoyed my walk down the woods.

Looking back at the summit.

Cottonwood Lake.

The line of cliffs ends at the trail, at a point I had noticed on the way up. Either way to the summit is good, but if you don't like heights or steep slopes, following the cliffs through the woods is probably the better route. Back on the trail I headed back to get Squaw Peak.

Trailhead: Patterson Campground. Day use lot just before the CG, after the equestrian CG. 

Website: SOTA Site.

Maps: AA6XA SOTA Hikes map.

Route: Take the Summit Trail to the ridge past Patterson Lake. Stay to the left of the cliffs and follow them to the summit (class 3). Alternatively, where the cliffs end at the trail, follow them up to the summit through the woods.

Red Tape: None.

First view of the summits on the way up.

W6/NE-200 Bald Mountain

I had a long weekend for Labor Day, so I decided to spend it up in the Warner Range in Modoc County. This is a long ways away from the Bay Area, so I looked for a peak part way up that I could stop and climb to break up the drive. Bald Mountain is an easy peak near Standish, CA, along US 395 north of Reno.

Setting off.

I parked near the height of land on Byers Pass Road. This is a gravel road, but well maintained and easy for my car. There is a road junction here, and a cattle guard and gate just up the hill. This side of the road is BLM land, and I saw no signs indicating use restrictions. I set off cross country up the hill, and quickly started climbing the steep hillside.

Typical desert terrain.

I drifted around the side of the mountain a bit on my way up to avoid going over the sub-peak. While contouring around I came across a trail. It wasn't heading in the direction I wanted to go, so I crossed it and kept going. In the col below the summit I found a trail junction with a sign. Turns out there are maintained trails up the peak.

Trail map I found halfway up.

I followed the switchbacks up the slope, but then the trail started meandering around. I got tired of this, so just went straight up to the summit. It was fairly hazy, with lots of smoke in the air, but the quality didn't seem too bad. At the summit I used the post to support my pole, and got on the air.

On the air on Bald Mountain.

The bands didn't seem to be in great condition, but I didn't have trouble getting enough contacts. I didn't spent too long on top since it was hot, and I still had a few more hours to drive to the campsite. On my way back I didn't even try to follow the trail, I just went the most direct route. This was much more pleasant than using the pointless switchbacks. After dropping back down to the car, I continued on my way up 395 to Alturas and the Warner Mountains.

Looking down at my car.

Trailhead: Height of land, Byers Pass Road. There is an official trailhead, but I'm not sure where.

Website: SOTA Site. BLM Site

Maps: AA6XA SOTA Hikes map.

Route: Go up to the summit. There is a trail, but it has too many switchbacks for my taste.

Red Tape: None.