Ascent of Wheeler Peak in July 2019

 I wanted to get some more high elevation acclimatization to prepare for my mountain marathon. And I just wanted to climb Wheeler Peak, the second tallest peak in Nevada and the capstone of Great Basin National Park in eastern Nevada.

I've climbed the peak many times before (for example, 2008 in July,  2013 in August for GLORIA, June 1, 2014, with kids in June 2015, February 2016 Part 1 and Part 2, and with kids in June 2017). Generally July is a good time to go to see lots of wildflowers. But in 2019, a year of high snow pack and a cool and wet spring, the road up to the Wheeler Peak summit trailhead only opened the end of June. I wasn't sure what conditions I would encounter.

It wasn't far above Stella Lake that I started getting into some big snow banks. Fortunately the Nevada Conservation Corps (NCC) crew had been up there and flagged the trail up through the treeline, which helped a lot! I was trying to run hill intervals, but it wasn't working so great through the snow. Fortunately the snow eventually stopped.

And then there were flowers! All sorts of flowers, like this bright sky pilot (Polemonium viscosum), which later starts smelling like skunk.

I did a little happy dance when I saw this spiky phlox (Phlox pulvinata). I'm used to seeing it when it's past its prime, so it was so neat to see it in bloom!

I was up to the ridge with the big windbreaks. This ridge is kind of flat. Keeping in mind that you're climbing 3,000 feet in 4.1 miles. I took a quick break, but since I was trying to make this a fast trip up the peak, didn't stop for long.

This sight stopped me in my tracks--moss campion (Silene acaulis), a beautiful patch of it with Wheeler in the background.

To the west was Spring Valley, with the green pivot-irrigated fields really standing out. The horizon was not very clear, I think because of smoke.

I also enjoyed big patches of yellow Ross' aven (Geum rossi).

 

 The trail was blocked by snow in a couple more places as I climbed higher. This part was a few hundred feet below the summit. Obviously no one had tried to stay on the trail, as it was too steep. So I headed up the rocks, trying not to trample the delicate alpine plants.

And then I was there! I walked out onto some snow, postholing up to my thigh. Yikes! Then it was time to get some selfies. Here's the rest of the South Snake Range stretching to the south. The North Fork Baker sure has a lot of snow left in it!

I checked the trail register, and it was stuffed full of molding papers. I sorted through some of them and found two nice notebooks that I left in a ziploc bag.

I took the older registers to the Cultural Resources manager for the park.

 

Then I grabbed a snack and headed out along the summit ridge, glad to have hiking poles to help with the deep snow.

I also had to put on two jackets, a balaclava, and gloves. It might be 95 degrees in the valley, but it was feeling like winter up on top! Here's a view looking west towards the summit.

And looking east to the newly renamed Doso Doyabi (formerly Jeff Davis Peak). Here's info on the name change and the approval on June 19, 2019.

 

On my way back, I saw lots of green bugs (Hemiptera) on the snow. I was able to use iNaturalist to look up what it was, Say's stink bug.

I couldn't help but take a lot of photos while I was up there. Here's looking north, with Stella and Teresa Lakes if you look hard. Bald Mountain is the nearest peak.

As I was heading off the mountain, I went to the west side and looked back at the peak. Wow, what a snow cornice! And I had been standing on it! If you head up there, be careful.

On my way down, I found this bright flower (maybe a Draba?) way above the other flowers. The bright pink Parry's primrose (Primula parryi) still has a ways to go until it's blooming.

Views of heading down. 

 And then looking back up from the mid-way ridge. (It's about mid-way in time for going up, but for distance it's over half way.)

I kept going crazy over the amazing wildflowers. Here they were, hiding out above the snow level!

And a few more flowers, just because. I didn't manage to get a photo of the people in flip flops coming up the mountain. Fifteen people were heading up as I was coming down, many dressed in shorts and t-shirts. Hopefully they had some extra layers in their packs, as the wind was getting stronger. 

If you want to hike Wheeler Peak now, I recommend sturdy boots you don't mind getting wet, hiking poles (especially helpful for coming down the snowy parts), and several layers. Bring more water than you think you'll need, and plenty of snacks. A good hiker without many stops can make it to the top in 3-4 hours, and back down in 2-3 hours. We did it with kids one year, and it was 9 hours round trip with lots of snack breaks. On this day, it was much faster because I jogged some of it, and even with flower and photo stops, it was about 4.5 hours. Overall, about 20% of the trail is covered with snow, although with more warm days ahead, I'd expect the trail to be snow free in a couple weeks.

Thanks for looking!

Snowy Hike to Stella Lake, Great Basin National Park

 On June 23, 2019, we took a family hike to Stella Lake. Even though it was late June, about three-quarters of the trail was covered with snow!

Hiking poles really helped us out.

The aspens only had the tiniest leaves on them. 

This slope nearly has lots of flowers at this time--not this year!

Even with hiking poles we had some falls on the slippery snow.

But the kids did enjoy the snow, especially for an impromptu snowball fight!

Then we arrived at the lake. Some of the surface had melted and refrozen.

 

The kids went to the edge for a photo--and Emma fell through the ice! She flooded her boot and wasn't too happy.

We got a family photo with the snowy scene.

Then my husband and our kids sat down and took a nap!

On the way back, Desert Girl couldn't resist sledding.


I always enjoy these curved aspen trees. The bottoms are curved due to the weight of the snow pushing against them.

Through the tunnel of aspens--except it's not much of a tunnel yet!

 We didn't see many people on the trail, but the parking lot was packed!

Snow-Covered Wheeler Peak Area in June 2019

 On June 18, 2019, I wanted to go take a look at the Wheeler Peak area--the campground, lakes, and bristlecones in Great Basin National Park. The only problem was that the Wheeler Peak Scenic Drive was still closed due to a big snowpack and wet and cool May and June. That meant I had to start my hike at Upper Lehman Creek Campground and take the 3.4-mile steep trail up to the campground. I found that about a half mile of the trail was under water (see photo above for an example).

About half way up the trail is this beautiful meadow. I got there just after sunrise.

Farther up, the stream had taken over the trail again.

In a little less than two hours, I reached the Wheeler Peak Campground. The Lehman Creek trail had very little snow on it.

The campground was like another world, with snowbanks and little snow buttercups emerging.

Some campsites looked like this:

 

While others were all melted out.

The kiosk was rather snowy.

So was the trailhead. I started following tracks that led generally in the direction to Teresa Lake.

With some modifications, I was able to get there! (Note: for those not used to the area, I highly recommend using GPS, map and compass, or some other navigational system to get around this area. The trails are covered with snow and the footprints are not reliable.)

About half the lake was covered with just a thin coating of ice, indicating that it had been warm enough to melt off it. The logs also led credence to that idea.

I really liked the ice along the edges, as well as how transparent some of it was.

At the other end of the lake, the snow bank had partially collapsed at the inlet.

The west side of the lake was more frozen over.

Next I decided to go to Stella Lake. I took a roundabout way there, and ended up on the slope above Stella, where I got a close up look at this avalanche, caused by a collapsing cornice.

It was cool to look back and see my footprints.

Stella Lake was a different world from Teresa. It was still completely snow and ice covered.

I even walked out on the lake.

Here's a traditional photo from where the trail meets the lake.

The clouds had now gotten big and were making interesting shadows.

I decided to hike back to Teresa Lake and try to get to the bristlecones again.

While I was taking another snack break (I took a lot!), I saw the amazing reflection in the lake.

I found I couldn't follow the regular trail to the bristlecones, as it crossed a 60 degree snow slope. Instead, I had to drop lower and follow the moraine around. It wasn't easy.

I found an amazing tree on the way, with lots of wolf lichen on it.

I stayed there a bit, just in awe of the tree.

It was so gnarled and twisted.

On the backside I found wolf lichen decorating a cavity.

The curves were amazing.

I was waiting and waiting for the sun to illuminate it. I finally gave up and started hiking on. Then the sun came out, so I scurried back and caught this photo.

Eventually I reunited with the bristlecone trail and saw this iconic tree.

But then I lost the trail again and just wandered. It was so beautiful!

I found I really liked the dead trees and their unique shapes.

By this time I was wandering north, back to the trailhead. I was hoping to intersect Brown Lake. And then, off in the distance, I saw it!

After stumbling down the steep, snow-covered moraine, I arrived at the ice-free lake. Deep snowbanks lined the north-facing side.

Although the clouds looked threatening, I wasn't worried, the forecast was good for the day. But I didn't want to dawdle too much.

I continued on, cross-country to the north, stopping at this amazing tree.

Here's a close up of it's twisted growth pattern.

 

I arrived back at the campground and then took the wet trail down.

It had been a great day in the high country. It was the third week in June and yet still so snowy up there. Down lower, more flowers bloomed.





Now the Scenic Drive is open to the top, but it's still snowy. If you go, be prepared for rugged conditions, such as wet feet, no trails, postholing unexpectedly, and quick changes in temperature.