Five Fingers Peak
Five Fingers Peak
LENGTH 2.2 miles round trip
ELEVATION GAIN 1725 feet
TRAIL HEAD Head to Indian Wells Canyon off of State Highway 14
in the eastern southern Sierra Nevada, turn left going north just after
passing Indian Wells Restaurant, travel about 2.6 miles on a dirt road
to the trail head
DIFFICULTY Strenuous climbing on steep scree-covered slopes,
with some Class 3 climbing (steep terrain where handholds and footholds
are used, usually no rope)
BEST TIME TO HIKE Fall, winter, spring (can be very hot during the middle of summer) and a great climb while the High Sierras are under snow
ROUTE Head north from the Powers Well (3450’), head straight up
the hill toward the small notch to the right of the highest crag or
finger. Climb up the notch, descend and contour left around the back of
the highest spire looking for the second chute, climb this southwest
passage, turn left and up to the summit. We took an alternate route
down, climbing down the long chute on the southwest side of the finger
that was climbed. This worked perfectly, but would have been very
difficult to locate and find for the ascent, but great for the descent.
FUN FACTS:
The China Lake Mountain Rescue Group has pioneered routes up all these cragsThis peak is sometimes called “Aguila,” Latin for eagleThe thumb is a Class 3 ascent, the index finger Class 4, the
middle one Class 5, and the ring finger – the next one southeast of
the summit is also Class 5Taking advantage of the current warm winter weather , we headed out to
climb a fun, challenging peak in the Southern Sierra Nevada. Five
Fingers Peak on the edge of Owens Peak Wilderness has an easy dirt road
access right off of the State Highway 14. This climb is described in Exploring the Southern Sierra East Side by
J.C. Jenkins and Ruby Jenkins, Trip # T48. This guide is one of my
favorites and is a great resource for hiking, backpacking, climbing,
biking, and road trips.