Page Type:
|
Route |
|---|---|
Lat/Lon:
|
38.23700°N / 119.695°W |
Route Type:
|
Hike / Scramble |
|
Time Required:
|
One to two days |
|
Difficulty:
|
Class II |
|
Approach
Soda Canyon is located approximately 8 miles from the Kennedy Meadows trailhead. The trail is well marked and maintained, and is an easy hike.
Follow the Huckleberry Trail for 2.4 miles until you see the signed trail split for Kennedy Lake. Follow this trail SE for 3.5 miles. You'll see Soda Canyon off to the right. You can ford Kennedy Creek here and travel cross country into Soda Canyon, or continue hiking for another mile. There is a log that crosses Kennedy Creek about half a mile past the emergency log cabin.
If you decide to ford Kennedy Creek, hike cross country on the east side of the creek that comes from Soda Canyon. Look for the trail on higher ground, about 1/4 mile east of the creek. It's usually dryer up there.
If you cross Kennedy Creek via the log, look for a small foot trail that leads from the horse camp south up towards Kennedy Ridge. After 1/4 mile, you should cross the trail that runs east-west. Follow the trail west back towards Soda Canyon. It will turn south into Soda Canyon around the lower part of Kennedy Ridge.
The trail into Soda Canyon gets washed out in some places. Just keep heading south on the east side of the creek until you reach the base of the cirque. The trail starts to disappear completely near Soda Spring. The ascent begins here.
Route Description
Cross the creek coming down from Molo Mountain, and follow the creek coming down from Relief Peak. There are a couple of different routes that you can take to the summit. Both routes follow to the right of the creek and lead to a point just north (right) of the summit. This is a northeasterly facing slope, so snow is likely to be encountered well into summer.
Photo 1: No snow
Photo 2: With snow
Dsclaimer: I've not climbed this route yet, though I've had a good look at it from both nearby Molo Mountain and Kennedy Peak. I believe it to be fairly simple class II, with possible class III sections (at most).
Start elevation: 8,200'
Summit: 10,808'
Elevation gain: 2,608'
Distance: 1.5 miles
 |
Essential Gear
There is no special equipment required for this climb during the summer months except for the usual overnight backcountry camping gear.
Miscellaneous Info
If you have information about this route that doesn't pertain to any of the other sections, please add it here.