| turn right onto a good dirt
road. If you miss the turnoff, continue driving another 1.9 mi. to the
intersection of the Waucoba-Saline and Saline Valley roads, turn around and
backtrack the 1.9 mi. to this road. Bear left at fork in 0.2 mi. near a
guzzler. Drive 3.4 mi. on a steadily deteriorating road (shown on 9 minute 1987
topo as going from unimproved to 4WD) to a saddle at 8582 ft. elevation. Drop
over this saddle and go 0.6 mi. to a fork; bear left.** At faint fork in 0.2
mi. bear left and start a downhill drive eastward into a canyon, reaching the
remains of 2 cabins at a place called "The Narrows" in 1.9 mi. Reaching its
lowest point, the road now climbs upward in a SW direction, staying in the wash
for a considerable ways and eventually emerging at Squaw Flats and a junction
with the main N-S dirt road in 2.2 mi. from the cabins at the Narrows. Turn
left here and drive 1.1 mi. to a fork. Bear left and go 0.8 mi. to the starting
point for the hike, a concrete water trough on your left. Parking is available
for 3-4 cars on the south side of the trough. Note: Good camping with shade is
available at an established site just opposite the trough on the west side of
the road. **Bearing right here will get you to the Squaw Flats parking area in 3.6 mi., but enroute you'll have to negotiate a horribly steep downhill portion on a road which is sloped in the direction of a potential 200 ft. roll if you're not careful. We drove in this way, but opted for the Narrows route going out. Definitely not recommended. Hike: The majority of the route is visible from the water trough at a mag. bearing of 90° and includes prominent landmarks such as the obvious saddle between points 8829 and 9143 and the relatively barren ridge seen behind the saddle and leading toward the top of Waucoba. The actual summit is not visible from the water trough. Start hiking E across nearly flat terrain toward the mouth of the wash that separates points 8829 and 9143. Follow the wash to the saddle between the two points, avoiding the dry waterfalls encountered by climbing right around them. From the saddle head ESE across easy terrain to the above mentioned ridge. Between 9800 and 10200 ft. elevation on the ridge the brush starts getting thick. Staying below the crest on the left (N) side and picking your way seems to work best here. Above this obstacle, the walking is easier through a pine forest to a saddle at 10600 ft (UTM grid 097977) and then up to the large flat summit of Waucoba. Stats(Round Trip): 3200 ft. gain, .5.5 miles, Jhrs up 2hrs down. Map: 7-1/2 minute series 1987 Waucoba Mtn, Calif. (See Inset) On Sunday the 9th, Les and I did a climb of Nelson, The approach to this peak has been altered by Mother Nature since the introduction of the Peaks Guide. The road has become more difficult and should be downgraded from 2WD to probably 4WD with high clearance. Following describes our approach and hike. Drive/Approach: From Olancha, CA., drive east on SR-190 14.7 mi. to its junction with SR-136. Turn right on SR-136 and go 17 ml. to the signed Saline Valley Road. Turn left (N) and drive 8.2 mi. on the fair, paved road to pavement end at a fork. Bear left here on the signed |
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