Sawtooth Mountain is positioned in the heart of the Trinity Alps. As the name would suggest, the mountain is rugged from all directions and is almost entirely composed of the glacier-polished white granite that is characteristic of the region. While not the highest peak in the Trinity Alps (~100 feet short), Sawtooth Mountain is arguably the…
Tag: trinity alps
Bear Lakes, Trinity Alps
At the north end of the Trinity Alps at the headwaters of Bear Creek lies a small slice of the much larger “White Trinities” to the southwest. This relatively small area contains the same distinctively white glacier-polished granite landscape as the much larger White Trinities region. If one didn’t know that 20 air miles separated…
Four Lakes Loop via Swift Creek
The easternmost part of the Trinity Alps is informally known as the Red Trinities due to the distinctive red rock present in this region. However, within the red rock is a section of white granite that is akin to the White Trinities to the west across the Stuart Fork of the Trinity River. This “island”…
Papoose Lake via Canyon Creek
Geographically located between the Sierra Nevada and the Cascades, it makes sense that the Trinity Alps look and feel like a mixture of the two mountain ranges, yet the sum of the parts creates something distinctly unique. The Trinities are a granite playground with glacier sculpted canyons, rugged spires, gushing waterfalls, clear lakes and wildflower…
Caribou Mountain & Lakes 2017
The Caribou Lakes area is one of the finest regions of the Trinity Alps with fantastic scenery and beautiful alpine lakes. This would be my second visit to the region (first time in 2013) and this time I made a point to visit the summit of Caribou Mountain which provides a commanding view of the…
Four Lakes Loop
The easternmost part of the Trinity Alps is informally known as the Red Trinities due to the distinctive red rock present in this region. However, within the red rock is a section of white granite that is akin to the White Trinities to the west. This white rock stretches from Granite Lake to Gibson Peak…
Trinity Alps High Route Part III: Wedding Cake, Mount Hilton & Boulder Lakes
Photos here. The third and final part of series of posts on a two day fastpack of the Trinity Alps High Route covers the section from Thompson Peak to the trailhead at Canyon Creek inclduing Wedding Cake, Mount Hilton and Boulder Creek Lakes. This portion of the Trinity Alps High Route was previously covered in the…
Trinity Alps High Route Part II: Mirror Lake, Caesar Peak & Thompson Peak
Part II of the three part series on the Trinity Alps High Route fastpack focuses on the section from Sawtooth Mountain to Thompson Peak. The other parts of the series: Part I including Little Granite Peak, Sawtooth Peak, Alpine and Smith Lake Part III including Wedding Cake, Mount Hilton and Boulder Creek lakes Photos here. The…
Trinity Alps High Route Part I: Little Granite & Sawtooth
Note: Photos here. The host of photos for this post is having issues so photos may no longer appear in the post. This the first of a series of posts on the Trinity Alps High Route, a mostly off-trail loop through the Trinity Alps that covers many of the highlights of this spectacular region. There…
2014 Adventure Run Ideas
It should come as no surprise that I have many ideas for adventure runs (see 2013 post here and 2012 post here). Listed below are several potential routes in the High Sierra, Trinity Alps and Coastal Region (mostly Big Sur/Ventana, but some Lost Coast). Many of these ideas are rather obscure, but the Ventana Wilderness and Sierra…
Leor Pantilat's Adventures