Standing near our camp which was located 2/3 of the way up to Peak 6980, we set out first thing in the morning in this wide drainage:
Peak 6980 (or P6980) was clearly visible high above us and far in the distance. It is the left summit:
This was the wide wash we were hiking up for the first mile of the day:
There were some really nice hillsides that we passed by. Notice the natural lines running across the surface of the rock:
This Joshua tree looks very healthy and vibrant:
We were aiming for the first major canyon which cuts to the right up ahead. We needed to find a passage through the outer foothills and into the area just below the summit:
Looking back down the easy hiking terrain of the first mile. About the only challenge besides navigating correctly was dodging bushes:
P6980 and the summit ridge which heads toward Sandy BM really stands out in dramatic fashion:
Outside of the canyon, there were mostly just rolling hillsides. An exception was this canyon wall with interesting features revealed by erosion:
Looking into the canyon while standing at the mouth. It is always exciting to enter an undocumented large canyon for the first time:
Both the canyon wash and the hillsides were covered by Joshua trees in abundance:
A fascinating display of rocks to check out on one side of the canyon:
The hillside was partly dirt and partly solid rock, leading up to some jagged outcroppings:
Check out the giant boulder which has collapsed from the canyon wall and fallen into the wash:
A giant flat slab of rock has been left behind here:
There were sections through the canyon with fairly deep gravel, which slowed progress down a bit:
Up ahead, we encountered a major junction in the canyon. For our route, we needed to stay to the left here:
Standing almost directly below the summit now. However, we would not try to attain this ridge:
Some impressive jagged formations across the top of this high ridge:
Looking back down the canyon from the spot where it heads sharply to the southwest at about 5,200 feet in elevation:
A very impressive towering canyon wall that is also quite colorful:
While hiking up canyon, we were scouting potential ridges to climb up. However, we wanted to see as much of the canyon as possible, so we kept going past this hillside:
The canyon looks quite beautiful up ahead, with the rounded rock peak to the left and the diagonal sloping hillside in the background:
The scenery through here was mostly hillsides dropping down into the wash rather than solid canyon walls:
There were some really high ridges and mountain tops visible above the canyon:
Notice that our walking path was a very narrow wash of smooth gravel:
This rock hillside in front of us was quite interesting and colorful with a sharp contrast between the top and bottom halves:
The tan and red bottom half appeared to have lots of small caves, while the darker upper half had a very sharp and distinct top ridge:
The walking path winds right next to this interesting canyon wall on the right side:
Here is the major dry fall which we had been expecting based on studying satellite imagery before the hike:
After using a bypass, we had this view looking back down canyon from the top of the dry fall:
A close-up of the major dry fall and rim where gravel (and sometimes water) pours over:
A number of small pinnacles were rising up along this hillside:
When planning out the hike at home, I was unsure if we were going to be able to get past the major dry fall. Now that we had, it was time to explore more canyon:
The canyon soon became a lot narrower and there were portions of canyon walls with solid rock:
Colorful patterns on the canyon walls and small wash we climbed up:
This was the 2nd major dry fall that we encountered in the canyon. This one could not be climbed directly either:
At this point, it seemed sensible to attain the summit ridge. Thus we exited the canyon and headed up this small gully:
From the gully, we got on the hillside and looked back before starting our climb:
This was the beginning of our 700-foot elevation climb up the hillside ridge:
Josh and Tom resting up before the long, hard climb while enjoying the views back down canyon:
Twin Joshua trees that both have "V" shaped branches:
Looking up canyon from our vantage point toward the area we missed:
As we gained more elevation, we could see more of the winding lower canyon which we had passed through earlier:
The ascent was fairly straightforward, as we headed straight uphill and navigated around just a few larger rock sections:
Notice how Marble BM and Tin Mountain both popped up above the horizon in the distance:
Marble BM looked especially impressive from this vantage point:
The steepness increased as we neared the top of the ridgeline leading to the summit:
Here we have finally made it to the top ridgeline, which had a nice flat area to rest up on. Looking south:
And looking to the north upon reaching the summit ridgeline:
Before we made our final push for the summit, we took in some of the views. This was looking back down into the canyon we hiked up:
A better look at Marble BM with Tin Mountain's triangular summit behind it and to the left:
Looking at some of the ridges heading up Marble BM, it would likely be impassable to climb up from the front face:
A good view of Tin Mountain (8,953 feet), a summit that I reached about 7 years earlier:
Dry Mountain was about 11 air miles away from where we were standing. It is hidden just behind these peaks which are visible:
Saline Peak could be seen for the first time. Almost directly behind Saline Peak is Keynot Peak (11,101 feet) in the Inyos. Just to the right of Keynot Peak is Mount Inyo (10,975 feet):
In the foreground, the southern end of Eureka Valley is visible. In the far background, we could see the Sierras:
But we knew there would be better views at the summit, so P6980 remained our focus:
P6980 looked a lot closer now. The summit is on the right half of the mountain in the distance:
Getting a picture on the summit ridgeline with P6980 in the background:
Panoramic showing the lengthy canyon below us we had hiked up:
Before doing our final climb to the summit, we first had to descend and lose almost 100 feet of elevation:
I took this picture because it shows the entire ridge we climbed up from the canyon (center of picture):
After dropping elevation, it was time to start climbing again:
I always try to stay near the highest point of the ridge, depending on terrain and any obstacles faced. Notice how the right side of the ridgeline gives way to cliffs here:
While hiking along the ridge, there appeared to be multiple routes which would work for getting back down later:
Looking back at some of the terrain we were crossing along the top ridge:
Josh heading back downhill on a short section, while Tom is farther ahead of us:
The mountain block of P6980 has some very steep cliffs on the south side. We planned to circle around and climb it from the right:
Another look back. Are you able to pick out (left to right) Tin Mountain, Marble BM, and Dry Mountain?:
As we circled around on the ridge, the route to the summit became clearer:
The hillside with distinct lines along the slopes and colorful stripes looks even more impressive from up here:
The final climb to the summit would involve 350 feet of elevation gain from this spot:
Looking to the southeast during the climb up, the Grapevine Mountains and Funeral Mountains were very distinct:
About 10 air miles away from us was Ubehebe Crater:
Looking down at the Joshua trees dotting the steep slopes of P6980:
Passing by a unique and impressive rock formation off to the right:
This is the final climbing section before reaching the summit:
Arriving on the summit of P6980 after several years of hoping to do this hike:
We were surprised to find a summit register of any type on this unnamed major peak:
This was the view that completely took our breath away upon seeing it for the first time:
Wide angle panoramic of Eureka Valley and the surrounding area:
Eureka Sand Dunes full dunes view and south Eureka Valley panoramic:
Eureka Sand Dunes mountain of sand panoramic:
Fully zoomed panoramic view of the Eureka Sand Dunes:
In looking at the lengthy mountain of sand section of the Eureka Dunes, there seems to be two distinct high points. This is the southern high point:
And this seems to be the northern end high point. My last time actually standing on this spot was almost 3 years earlier:
The sand hills which make up the southern portion of the Eureka Dunes are quite enchanting to look at:
Notice that the Eureka Dunes, South Eureka Valley Road, and Eureka Dry Lake are all clearly visible:
Now we get to some of the other views from P6980. This is looking to the north from the summit:
Lead BM (5,856 feet) is the high point seen in this picture. Lead BM is one of the shortest summit climbs in the park:
Last Chance Mountain (8,456 feet) is about 15 air miles away from P6980:
Sandy BM (7,062 feet) is probably the most well-known and frequently hiked peak in this area:
Those previous views were all mostly looking to the north. Now we are looking to the east:
This particular smaller mountain, which we got photos of several times earlier in this report, stood out the most from the summit:
Looking down at the route we would need to take later to get back to camp and then our vehicle:
Panoramic looking to the east and south from Peak 6980:
Other than the Eureka Dunes view, my other favorite view from the summit was looking to the southeast toward Ubehebe Crater:
It looked like we could see about 2/3 of the way down into Ubehebe Crater. Simply an incredible view:
From the summit, Tin Mountain and Marble BM also stood out in more dramatic fashion than earlier:
The slopes leading up to Tin Mountain are incredibly steep:
A close-up of the summit of Tin Mountain as seen from P6980:
Marble BM is the closest major summit to P6980, being only 4 air miles away:
Zooming in a little bit more on the summit of Marble BM. Reaching this peak remains near the top of my priorities list for Death Valley:
Dry Mountain (8,674 feet) is the high point of the Last Chance Range. The summit is located slightly out of view behind these minor peaks:
Saline Peak rises up above the Saline Range when looking to the southwest:
A look at Steel Pass Road as it climbs out of Dedeckera Canyon toward Steel Pass:
This unnamed dry lake is a short distance off Steel Pass Road:
A closer look at Saline Peak (7,045 feet):
To the west, Waucoba Mountain (11,123 feet) really stands out:
Two pictures of the snow-capped Sierras as seen behind the Inyos:
Three pictures of us on the summit of P6980 with the best view behind us:
We then headed down from the summit using a more direct route to reach the canyon. Here we have hiked down the first section and are looking back up at the summit:
Heading down much steeper slopes than earlier in an effort to save time:
From here, we dropped into the gully on the left and followed it down:
Almost back to camp now, it is getting late in the afternoon and thus the long shadows:
After packing up camp, there was still new terrain to pass through since this was a loop hike:
It was neat to see additional hillsides, sections of canyon, and views that we had not seen before:
Our group is now heading toward the same red hillside tip that we had first targeted yesterday during our hike up to Skookum:
A boundary benchmark which was placed here in 1976:
Near the benchmark was this boundary line marker which looked different from the ones we had seen yesterday:
A gorgeous sunset over the Last Chance Range as we completed a successful two-day backpacking trip to Skookum and Peak 6980:
