Mt. Humphreys
Sierra crest NW of Bishop · near Bishop · Eastern Sierra
Mountaineering
At a glance
- Grade
- technical
- Elevation
- 13986
- Best season
- July–September for dry rock
What is here
- Terrain
- alpine-rock
- Amenities
- Buttermilk / North Lake approach options · Humphreys Basin camps · Guide services offer it · Bishop's signature peak
- Best for
- Bishop's bold near-14er with a technical summit
- Features
- Dominant peak on the Bishop skyline · Committing class-4 East Arête · Tiny, dramatic summit · Clean granite faces for harder lines
Worth knowing
- Hazards
- Exposed class-4 summit climbing, often roped · Route-finding on the arête · Altitude on a long approach day · Storms on a very exposed high point
- Beginner friendly
- No
Guides, rentals and operators
- Guided trips
- Yes
Mountaineering detail
- Skills
- roped-rock · scrambling · altitude
- Style
- rock-route
- Altitude
- 4
- Route notes
- The dramatic horn that dominates the skyline northwest of Bishop — just shy of 14,000 feet, its standard East Arête is a committing class-4 climb to a tiny, exposed summit, with harder rock routes on its clean faces
- Beta note
- ~13,986 ft; East Arête Class 4 (often roped); a committing summit for its modest height
- Intl tip
- The bold horn anchoring the skyline northwest of Bishop — just under 14,000 ft, but it climbs like a bigger mountain. The standard East Arête is a committing class-4 route to a small, wildly exposed summit, with harder technical lines on its clean faces. A proper roped objective across the lonely Humphreys Basin — treat it as a full alpine climb, not a peak-bag. A superb step up from class-3 scrambling to real class-4 exposure. Guide services offer it.
- Directions note
- Common approach from North Lake via Piute Pass
The guide
Mt. Humphreys is the bold, solitary horn that anchors the skyline northwest of Bishop, and though it falls just short of 14,000…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Mt. Humphreys — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 37.2708, -118.6733