There is nothing special about Lamont Peak. It’s a sub-8,000 foot peak in the lower Eastern Sierras. It ended up on my list because it is part of the Sierra Peaks Section or SPS List for short. According to the Sierra Club, there are 247 notable peaks in the Sierras. I’ve already climbed a handful and late last year I decided I would pursue the audacious goal of climbing all of them. If I do 12-15 new peaks a year, in 18 years I’ll finish. I plan on celebrating my 70th birthday by finishing my last peak.
My Failed Attempt at Lamont Peak
My son Wes and I decided to bag Lamont Peak on a day trip. We got on the road at 6:00 am and reached the trailhead at 9:30 am. The peak is only 2.5 miles from the trailhead, but with 2,500 feet of elevation gain. Short and steep. We kept a nice pace up the slope with the sunrise cresting the mountains in front of us. Even with sunglasses on, I had to look down to avoid the glare. Then, out of nowhere, BAM! Lights out. I only lost consciousness for a second and gained my composure on all fours. I put my hand to my forehead and felt a large mushy wound. I knew our trip was over. I was bleeding a lot. This was the one day I decided not to bring the medkit, so I ended up applying pressure with a clean hiking sock Wes had in his pack while we headed down the mountain. We found a hospital in Ridgecrest where I got 8 stitches before heading home.
Lamont Peak, Again!
A few weeks later, Wes and I tried this again. Once again, the weather was perfect. As expected, we made the short steep hike to the ridge quickly. From there, the views of the area were gorgeous as the sun rose over the mountains.
We lost a little elevation after the ridge before moving up to the summit. It was an easy class 2 scramble to the top at the end. From the summit, we could see Owen’s Peak, Spanish Needle, Sawtooth Peak, and Olancha Peak – all SPS peaks I’ll be coming back for another day. I had to remind myself that we were halfway through January and this whole place should be covered with snow. While I’m a little sad about another drought year, I’m going to take advantage of the nice weather and climb all I can this winter.
Lamont Peak Elevation Profile
