Mount Russell (Fishhook Arete)
Mt Russell, above Whitney Portal · near Lone Pine · Eastern Sierra
Rock Climbing
At a glance
- Skill level
- advanced
- Grade range
- East Ridge II class 3-4; Fishhook Arete III 5.9
- Best season
- July-September
Permits and booking
- Permit
- CRITICAL: Russell is climbed from Whitney Portal via the same North Fork of Lone Pine Creek approach as Whitney, so it requires a Mt Whitney Zone permit (Recreation.gov lottery, May 1-Nov 1 quota). Camp at Upper Boy Scout Lake. Altitude 14,094 ft; an exposed knife-edge summit ridge; afternoon storms.
Worth knowing
- Good for a first timer
- No
Rock Climbing detail
- Climb types
- trad · multi-pitch
- Rock type
- Sierra granite
- Route count
- A few classic alpine lines
- Signature routes
- Fishhook Arete · East Ridge
- Intl tip
- A superb, less-crowded 14er alternative to Whitney - but it shares Whitney's approach, so you still need the Mt Whitney Zone permit. The Fishhook Arete (5.9) is the classic. Camp at Upper Boy Scout Lake; the summit ridge is seriously exposed.
The guide
Mount Russell is Whitney's quieter neighbor - a 14,094-foot peak just north of the giant, holding one of the finest moderate al…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Mount Russell (Fishhook Arete) — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 36.59, -118.291