Mt Whitney Zone Forums General Discussion Mt Williamson Route Options

A couple of questions for my Sierra vets...

Dad and I are looking to booked Williamson via Shepard's pass trail for August. Problem is, we are east coast and the pass system doesn't let us reserve until two weeks before. What are the odds we'll get two for Shepard's pass? I've heard that Williamson isn't nearly as popular as Whitney.

The follow up to this is: I'm debating reserving George Creek trail to WIlliamson passes as a back up plan. Has anyone done that trail?

The Shepherd Pass route is a maintained trail all the way up to 12,000. I've been up that route 3 times and down it 4. It's a trudge, but an 'easy' trail to the Sierra crest. From there to Williamson, the route finding is straightforward but the terrain is varied. Anvil Camp is a good spot to split the climb. There are plenty of tent sites up at the pass as well, but that location is much more exposed. I've stayed at both locations - neither is better than the other. Depends on conditions and your interests. Higher up puts you closer to Williamson.

From reports I have seen, George Creek is an unpleasant bushwhack and is a less certain option for reaching the summit despite the more direct line.

If you have any flexibility on dates, you should have no trouble securing 2 permits in August for Shepherd Pass during the rolling 2 week 'walk up' permit window. The significant elevation gain seems to reduce demand for these permits. You can expect some other parties on Williamson on a weekend and may have the mountain to yourself during the week.

If you get GPS tracks for the first few miles, George Creek is a fairly easy to follow use trail and really not that bad of a bushwack. The approach to Williamson from Georges creek is an easy class 2. If you plan to stay overnight, you could do a loop via Trojan peak and lake Helen of Troy, which are also easy class 2.

Yes, Whitney is much more popular than Williamson, but the quota for Whitney is much larger. I’ve been over Shepherd Pass 20 times, including seven trips up Williamson. Four day-hikes and three overnight trips (one in February). The Shepherd Pass trail is a lot of work, but it’s a good trail. My only trip up George Creek was December 1995. It was a god-awful bushwhack with too much snow for bare boots and not enough snow to walk above the brush with snowshoes. I would have needed four days, and I only had three. Maybe the use trail is better than it was 29 years ago, but if it isn’t, you’ll regret George Creek.