Shuteye Peak

Shuteye Peak 8,351′
Sierra Nevada
Total Time: 5:30
Distance: 10.2 miles
Elevation Gain: 2900′
Crux: Class 1
Trailhead: Shuteye Lookout Rd, no services
Companions: Holly

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When I moved to Coarsegold, CA, Shuteye Peak became one of the most prominent summits in view from my new home. The peak, composed of a collection of granite crags and domes, serves as a portion of the Fresno and Bass Lake skyline, and is home to hundreds of climbing routes. The summit houses one of the oldest fire lookouts in the Sierra Nevada dating back to 1907, with the current structure built in 1957. A rough 4WD road, popular with OHV enthusiasts, leads to the summit making for a pretty easy outing, that can be as long or as short as you’d like- depending on the capabilities of your car. Of note, this trip took place 5 days before the Creek Fire started, and things will look dramatically different the next time someone has an opportunity to hike up. Leaving from home, our goal was to make the day about a 10 mile hike. Turning off of Beasore Road, initially the dirt portions were in excellent shape and passable by any 2WD vehicle. Turning off the dirt road heading toward Central Camp up to the summit of Shuteye, the road became a little rockier in spots, but still in decent shape. It wasn’t until we hit a rocky stream crossing a bit under 5 miles from the top where we actually needed high clearance, and we decided to just pull over and hike from there.

My car would not have had much trouble getting past, but we still wanted to get some exercise for the day. We started up the dusty road, passing a stream trickling water among large pines.

We actually made it a good mile before the first OHV passed us for the day. It would be the first of many, although the early start kept out much of the riff raff for at least the ascent. We followed the road up to just below the saddle between Shuteye Peak and Little Shuteye Peak to the northwest. It was at this saddle where the road truly became 4WD with large rock steps that probably required a bit more clearance than even the most capable stock vehicles. Beyond the first rock section, the road climbed up onto exposed rock slabs, leaving the trees for the high ridgeline.

While the ridgeline would normally have outstanding views across the Sierra to the east into the Mammoth Lakes area, the smoke from the coastal fires was so bad, I could barely make out the outline of nearby Kaiser Peak to the southeast. We passed by some interesting rock formations with scattered sport climbing routes, and stopped in the shade of one of the handful of trees for a snack. The summit lookout tower was now in view to the south, with a series of rolling false summits between us and the highpoint.

As we climbed on, we were overtaken by more and more OHVs, from lifted pickups, side by sides and dirt bikes. They were becoming a bit annoying, kicking up dust and blasting music, although the area was known for the OHV routes and I expected as much going into the day. The final switchback to the lookout tower was the steepest yet, and we trudged up the final hundred feet to rocky outcrop just below the fire tower with a series of plaques commemorating prior volunteers and forest service personnel.

It was only another 100 yards to the lookout tower at the top, and we stopped to rest at a picnic table just east of the tower. The views were unfortunately lacking due to the smoke, although I could see nearby Afternoon Nap on Big Sleep just to the south, the only multipitch I had gotten in on any of the Shuteye crags. Going up into the lookout tower was restricted due to COVID, but the volunteer was still quite chatty, yelling down to us from above as we ate our late lunch.

The smoke seemed to be intensifying, so we started back down the road, full brigades of OHVs heading up past us. We cut some of the switchbacks to avoid walking past the many vehicles on their way up, dropping quickly back below treeline. We wasted little time hiking down the dusty road back to the car, making note to drive a bit further on my next visit. Unfortunately, that might not be for some time thanks to the Creek Fire which has completely devastated the Central Sierra, still burning as I finish this write up and now the largest fire start from a single source in California history. Based on the most recent maps, the summit of Shuteye Peak was overtaken. I hope that there’s enough bare rock around the lookout tower to protect it from the inferno…