Mt. Sill
The Palisades, Big Pine · near Big Pine · Eastern Sierra
Mountaineering
At a glance
- Grade
- technical
- Elevation
- 14153
- Best season
- July–September for the Swiss Arête; earlier for snow lines
What is here
- Terrain
- glacier-peak
- Amenities
- Big Pine Creek / Palisade Glacier approach · Swiss Arête is a coveted moderate line · Guide services offer it · Arguably the best view in the range
- Best for
- A Palisades 14er with the range's best summit view
- Features
- Reputed finest view in the Sierra · Classic Swiss Arête (5.7) · Palisade Glacier setting · A committing but attainable technical 14er
Worth knowing
- Hazards
- Glacier and moraine approach with crevasse/bergschrund risk · Exposed roped climbing on the Swiss Arête · Altitude on a committing multi-day trip · Rockfall and afternoon storms
- Beginner friendly
- No
Guides, rentals and operators
- Guided trips
- Yes
Mountaineering detail
- Skills
- glacier · roped-rock · altitude
- Style
- mixed-alpine
- Altitude
- 5
- Route notes
- Widely called the finest summit view in the Sierra — a Palisades 14er offering the elegant Swiss Arête (5.7) or a class-4 north couloir off the glacier, both leading to an airy perch above the whole Palisade basin
- Beta note
- ~14,153 ft; Swiss Arête 5.7 or North Couloir Class 4; glacier approach, rope recommended
- Intl tip
- The Palisades peak many rank as the finest summit view in the Sierra, straight down the crest across the glaciated basin. Its classic line is the Swiss Arête, an elegant, exposed 5.7 and a coveted moderate alpine climb; a class-4 north couloir off the Palisade Glacier is the snow alternative. A committing, roped, high-altitude objective reached across glacier and moraine. Pairs with the other Palisades 14ers; guide services run it for climbers stepping up to technical terrain.
- Directions note
- Park at Glacier Lodge / Big Pine Creek trailhead — approach via the North Fork
The guide
Mt. Sill is the Palisades peak that many climbers rank as having the single best summit view in the Sierra, looking straight do…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Mt. Sill — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 37.0925, -118.5011