Page Type:
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Route |
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Lat/Lon:
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37.42900°N / 118.7653°W |
Route Type:
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Scrambling |
Season:
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Spring, Summer, Fall |
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Time Required:
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Half a day |
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Rock Difficulty:
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Class 3 |
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Difficulty:
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Class 3 |
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Overview
Mt. Starr's south ridge is a fabulous class-3 climb, despite having no mentions on the Internet that I could find as of 2016. It caught my attention during my several trips up the Mono Pass trail, and I finally decided to check it out.
Approach
From the Mosquito Flat trailhead, hike towards Little Lakes Valley and turn right onto the Mono Pass trail. This trail proceeds along the bottom of Starr's east face, and eventually hooks around Starr's south side before turning north on the way to Mono Pass. Shortly before the trail turns north (above Ruby Lake), leave the trail to the right and make your way up to Starr's south ridge.
The start of the ridge is on the left side of this photo, taken a half mile or so prior to leaving the trail.
Route Description
The bottom part of the ridge starts at the Mono Pass trail and heads N/NE. An initial bit of sand and brush quickly gives way to very enjoyable, solid rock. Staying as close as possible to the ridge proper yields some very enjoyable & steep class-3 climbing.
At the top of this initial section, pass through a small notch and begin a less steep class-2 section, which will curve to the right (east) and then eventually back to the left (north).
The ridge here becomes less pronounced, but stay to its right side. (To the left is the class-1/2 west face.) Eventually it will turn into a proper Sierra ridge again, with a good bit of class-3 scrambling (albeit less steep than the first portion) all the way to the south summit and then on to the north summit. Stay on the ridge proper for maximum fun, dropping left to the west side where needed to go around obstacles. The right/east side at this point becomes vertical cliffs, so pay attention to your footing.
![South Ridge (3)]()
In due time you'll be on the true (north) summit, taking in splendid views all around.
For a descent route, I recommend a wide sandy chute on the east face, in plain view from the summit. To access it from the summit, backtrack south a bit to pick it up, or proceed north about a hundred feet and then make a ~120 degree right turn. You can pretty much stay on sand for the entire 2000 vertical foot descent towards the Mono Pass trail. (I highly recommend using a trekking pole as a third leg.) Once you reach the tree line and the sand ends, veer a bit to the right and follow the path of least resistance downwards -- you'll intercept the Mono Pass trail in no time.
For a descent route, I recommend a wide sandy chute on the east face, in plain view from the summit. To access it from the summit, backtrack south a bit to pick it up, or proceed north about a hundred feet and then make a ~120 degree right turn. You can pretty much stay on sand for the entire 2000 vertical foot descent towards the Mono Pass trail. (I highly recommend using a trekking pole as a third leg.) Once you reach the tree line and the sand ends, veer a bit to the right and follow the path of least resistance downwards -- you'll intercept the Mono Pass trail in no time.