Pyramid Peak (El Dorado County, California)

High above lake Aloha in the Desolation Wilderness area, rises Pyramid Peak. My backpacking trip through the wilderness area earlier this summer offered some amazing views from below, but when my friend Van inquired about hiking to the summit today, I had to take advantage of seeing the vistas from the top. 

Pyramid Peak sits at 9,985 feet above sea level and the approach from Rocky Canyon is brutal with 4100 feet of elevation gain over a short 3.3 miles. A guide that Van sends me indicates 'The Rocky Canyon route to the summit of Pyramid Peak is probably the greatest vertical climb in the Tahoe Sierra.' Not being ones to shy away from a challenge, this is the route we decided to take of course. We met at a small pull off on highway 50 right about 7:00 AM. It was Van, myself and Van's friend Mark, whom I was meeting for the first time. Not finding a clear trail head, we bushwhacked up a steep hill through manzanitas for the first half-mile or so before finally stumbling across the actual trail.

The trail is fairly well maintained, but obviously does not see a lot of traffic. However, the steepness of the trail is harsh and it doesn't ever seem to let up. We make our up the trail, occasionally loosing it, only to re-find it a short time later. As the trail passes through a number of rock out-croppings and in some cases, through dense growth it continues it's drive up the mountainside.

Finally, reaching an area with much less vegetation, we begin what was probably the steepest part of the journey, and with the sun now well overhead, it made for a pretty warm day. We push on though, until finally reaching the base of what has to be one of the largest piles of granite boulders I have ever seen. This essentially what makes up the highest part of the mountain and to get to the top, we must scramble up 500 feet or so of these large stones. 

Van and I carefully make our way up, while Mark lags a bit behind. He says he's a little out of his element and so, we try to give him plenty of time and guidance to make it up at his own pace. The climb itself is fun, but a bit tiring. Finally though, we reach the summit and discover what may be some of the best views in all of Tahoe. From up here we can see so many of the lakes in or near Desolation Wilderness. Lake Aloha is directly below us, but in the distance we can see Gilmore Lake, Lake of the Woods, Upper Echo Lake, Tamarack Lake, Heather Lake, Susie Lake and that's just looking North. 

In addition to the amazing views, we discover an ammunition box chained to a large boulder with a collection of journal entries from those that have climbed the mountain before us. Van and I each leave a word of wisdom and sign the book. My own thought was that 'Whatever your problem, this is the solution!', which I believe to be true for myself and many others. Being out here among the mountains gives me a since of clarity that I struggle to find most other places. This is my sanctuary; this is my church.

The climb down is equally challenging and as I hop from boulder to boulder, my bad knee starts feeling each and every impact. We make it down and start our way down the mountain, taking in some amazing views along the way, including Lover's Leap in the distance. Eventually, we reach a fork in the trail and learn where we went wrong on the way in. The trail does actually go all the way to highway and literally drops one out only about 50 yards from where we started bushwhacking. That said though, it is unmarked and probably impossible to see from below. All in all, it was a great hike of roughly 7.4 miles, but that elevation gain on the way up and the impact of that same elevation loss on the way down made it an extremely challenging adventure.