Kristen Peak?

[Hikin_Jim]

Has anyone here done Kristen Peak? Is it worthwhile? It looks like a really steep descent from Miller Saddle to a knob and an equally steep ascent. I wonder if it's worthwhile.

HJ

[RMRUpete]

Did this Peak back in the 1970's as I believe our route was a first accent of the drainage that shows as a stream on the topo map and comes in right below Kristin Peak. We called it a North Face climb. We spent the night on Kristin Peak. Did it with RMRU member Mike Daugherty who named the peak after his Daughter, and several other RMRU members also on the accent. Also I know my Son has done it from Miller Peak and back, but he was in his 20's and a cross country runner at the time, he said it was easy.

[guest]

Jim, sounds like an interesting trek, (is it NW of Miller)? Another good climb with terrific views, which you may have done, (imagine Pete has on a rescue or two), is what I call the east slope of Miller. From the meadow east & north of Round & Tamarack campgrounds, (just above Diorite campsite, I believe), go to the north side and up the drainage until you get to the edge of the mountain, (there's even a cool "window rock" up that 1st slope, like South Ridge trail has, just smaller).
Then stay along that ridgeline heading west, (if you don't, brush gets thick), up a cool, giant boulder field, and around the south side of Miller, going around the north side gets very steep and loose, with a vertical rock face to navigate around. This comes out at the flat area, (old boy-scout campsite), where the SJ peak trail switches back to the west to the summit. It's a lung-buster, being pretty steep, but a really cool cross-country with view to the south and north, with not much chinquapin and mt misery. Sometimes I'd take my break there instead of going to San Jac, watching the hikers cruise by, it's a very peaceful area. SS

[Hikin_Jim]

I missed your post somehow. Sorry for the delayed response.

I'm familiar with Miller Saddle (the flat area where the Boy Scouts used to camp). I haven't been up the way you describe. I'll have to try that way.

I have gone out of Diorite (I think it's Diorite - it's the last campsite to the NNW in Tamarack Valley) through the meadow and joined up with the old trail that kind of still exists that goes up through the field of misery (chinquapin mostly but also some manzanita and buckthorn). The trail was still pretty passable up and until the pandemic. It's gotten pretty overgrown now which discourages use which in turn contributes to further decline. Sigh. I liked that "secret" trail and used it as part of the Sid Davis route.

Some things are being lost over time. The trail to Laws that went by Candy's Creeks is gone and the connector trail from Laws to the Willow Creek Trail is also pretty much gone. There's a use trail ("the King Trail"), but it's not quite the same.

Last time I was there (May), I also noticed that the summit hut is missing a slat from one of the beds.

summit hut bed with missing slat

I guess the Seven Pines Trail is pretty much gone now too, although not much loss there. That thing meanders all over and is not a good way to get to the Deer Springs Trail IMO.

HJ

[guest]

Hey Jim, that old Boy scout trail is probably long gone for the most part, unless some old timers that knew it helped w some clearing. I remember taking some loppers there w a buddy at least 15 yrs ago, but it's a lot of work with all the types of bushes you mentioned, (manzanita being a slow growth, hard wood, not to mention all the mt misery thorns.
It's a shame, as the gradient was better for many, considering your already at 9k ft. A bit like many stretches on Skyline, where the short-cuts became the trail over time, and the grade is now steeper and tough than it needs to be.
Hope no ones pilfering the summit hut, I remember when that thing was fulling stocked w food, water, sleeping bags and more,

Pete, that North face climb sounds pretty crazy, considering how steep, loose and rugged most of that side of the mt is, (oh when we were young, ha). scott

[Hikin_Jim]

I didn't check the food and water stocks in the summit hut. It took me longer than I thought to get up the Marion Mtn Trl (I'm getting old), and there were swarms of people coming up from the tram. It was getting late, and, with all the people, I just wanted to get out of there.

I agree that the old Boy Scout trail was better laid out than the modern trail. There's not much left of it; maybe you can find some bits and pieces. You can't really follow it anymore. Of course, I like it when there's no trail. More interesting. I had fun cutting over to Joyce Peak and then down to Wellmans Cienega. I've been up there enough that even getting down to Wellmans went pretty smoothly. The trick is to stay high on the south wall of the canyon and then transition to the north side with some brief encounters with manzanita and chinquapin somewhere around 10,000'. You then want to stay on the north side of Wellman Cienega and head for the Wellman Cienega Trail, aiming for the base of the switchbacks coming down from Wellman Divide.

HJ