Mount Sill
ELEVATION 14,162
ROUTE leaving on the north side Lake 11,672 we traveled east, then north to the Polomonium Glacier, then east up the main chute to the summit
BEAUTY 9/10 (According to ME! 9 because of all those BOULDERS)
FUN FACTS (more info the better) Mt. Sill is one of the fourteen Fourteeners (peaks over 14,000 feet) in California. It is tucked neatly in the Palisade group in the John Muir Wilderness.
I had long read in many famous journals and books about the views from the top of Mount Sill. Words like finest, grandeur, ominous, and breathtaking have been used to describe the experience. Last summer while backpacking the first section of The Sierra High Route we climbed this famous peak. The Sierra High Route by Steve Roper is a challenging epic journey and is divided into 6 sections that starts at Copper Creek Trailhead in Kings Canyon National Park and travels on and off trail north and ends at Twin Lakes above Yosemite National Park.
Our ascent of Mount Sill started early on a very cold, WINDY August morning from Lake 11, 672 north of Cirque Pass. We had read that the route was mostly class 2, but the climb was more difficult than we anticipated. We encountered endless boulder fields, snow travel, and the main chute to the summit ended at an exposed ledge that had to be strattled and reached.
When we summited, high winds that accompanied us all day grew exponentially and was very unpleasant and dangerous. We all enjoyed great views from the top and QUICKLY found a better route down.