Olancha Peak is one of the 15 emblem peaks of California. These 15 mountains were designated so because they dominate their surroundings. Olancha is not a 14er, and it’s several miles south of the Mt Whitney Portal. These two things mean that it is climbed infrequently compared to many of the other Sierra Nevada peaks. It is believed that the name derives from the Olanches tribe.

Route

Sage Flat road starts from US 395. Sage Flat Road will take you to a trail head on the east side. You can also start from Monache Meadows on the West, but the driving is very involved apparently. I started from the east.

We camped at the trail head and started off the following morning. The first day took us through large pines and a steep desert like terrain. We merged with a cattle road just before we got to the alpine meadow. Once there we went north to the Wranglers Camp. This camp is stocked with a metal bear-proof box (maybe a BBQ), a log picnic table and a stream. In the height of summer I have read that all the streams dry up though so carry in plenty of water if you go.

The second day we hiked around the west side of the mountain and went for the summit. There is no trail to the summit, so some route-finding skills are needed. Getting closer to the summit, the boulders seem to get bigger, until you are doing quite a bit of scrambling. There is also some exposure if you get near the huge wall that drops off the east side. The summit affords a great view of the Owens valley and the ranges to the east near Death Valley.

We got a bit mixed up and missed the trail coming back down. That cost us an hour or so and that was enough time to keep us on the mountain another night since we were exhausted when we got back to Wranglers camp. We ate our gorp, powerbars, our emergency meal, and stale cheetos out of the Wranglers stash from the previous year.

All in all, it is a great trip. Olancha is the most southerly “big mountain” in the Sierras, so it’s the easiest to get to from the LA area.

Courtesy of Outdoorzy.com