Lander County High Point Trip Report

Bunker Hill (11,474 ft)

Date: September 27, 2001
Author: Mike Coltrin

I camped the night of the 26th in the small saddle east of point 9335. This point is 600 feet or so above the divide between Kingston and Big Creeks. The 4WD road up and over point 9335 is good dirt but very steep. A low gear is required to both climb and descend this road safely. The wind was still as I prepared camp and had dinner but shortly after dark that all ended. I slept in my vehicle but was buffeted by the wind most of the night. At first light I began my trek to Bunker Hill.

First, I climbed three or four hundred up the bank to the southeast then began a long traverse to the 10,060- foot saddle north of Bunker Hill. The landscape was mostly open and there were many game trails to pick from on this traverse. Although I couldn't see the saddle until I was fairly close to it, finding a good course was not a problem. I deliberately chose to come in about a hundred feet below the saddle to avoid the high-speed winds blowing through it from the east.

The grade stiffened in the next few hundred feet and at about 10,520 feet really became steep. I could see what looked like small watercourses angling down from right to left above me. These turned out to be use trails. I followed them up and to the right until I reached the summit ridge. Here I forgot what the map had told me and climbed a white limestone peaklet which gave me a good look at the summit another couple of hundred feet away. This only cost about 50 feet of climb so I didn't feel too bad about it.

My return hike was uneventful. The whole adventure took only four hours.