Wheeler Mountain

Route: South Ridge
Posted On: 10/8/2022, By: bangerth
Info: The approach to the saddle is dry, but once you cross over to the west side, there is substantial snow in each of the gullies you have to cross -- all unconsolidated and not particularly confidence inspiring. We enjoyed it so little that we decided to go via the ridge to North Star instead of descending the way we came. 

Route: South Ridge
Posted On: 9/8/2022, By: kwhit24
Info: We did this as a car shuttle starting at Montgomery Reservoir and finishing at top of Road #2 off Hoosier Pass. I was able to get Ford Edge up Road #2 but did bottom out towards the top. Any 4Runner type would get there to top no problem just good driving. The road walking all the way to the lake and then used the South Ridge route to the top of Wheeler Mtn. There is a trail and/or cairns all the way to the ridge. Only some on the route over the summit and there are some class 3 spots getting there. After making it back to a high grassy saddle we started our way to Northstar. There was one spot where we really dropped to our right to get around what Daway8 described as a the "sweat slab". That would've been too much for the pup. While dropping unfortunately I released a crockpot size rock that triggered a microwave size rock. I'm sure people on Lincoln heard it because it was pretty loud. After dropping right we made our way back to the ridge in time the make it to the "rock window". After that point we thought the route became much more obvious and presented itself as we made our way. I wouldn't recommend dogs on this route but I never had to pick Mav up. He did it all himself but he is a very good climber. Didn't see anyone until we were almost back to the car but there were a lot of people walking up the road off Hoosier Pass. (9.07 mi; 3,386' gain; 5:30:05 total time) Start at Montgomery Reservoir 6:15am; Wheeler Lake 7:35am; Wheeler Mtn 8:55am; Northstar Mtn 10:30am; Back to Road #2 TH 11:45am 

Route: South Ridge
Posted On: 8/8/2021, By: gcook33
Info: Route is well cairned. Smoke was present today, but definitely not as bad as yesterday, felt fine all the way up and down. Only tip: halfway to the summit from the saddle on the west side you'll see a loose, dirt gully. Look across the gully and uphill a bit to see the next set of cairns...this route is way more solid and direct. 

Route: South Ridge - Variation
Posted On: 6/29/2021, By: rudi32
Info: Backside of Wheeler is still holding some snow, making the suggested South Ridge route pretty sketchy. I opted to ascend the standard South Ridge route, but descend ridge proper. Personally, I believe the ridge is in much better condition right now. Definitely more technical, but all solid rock and dry. The road up to Wheeler Lake right now is essentially a small creek. Crazy amounts of runoff. 

Route: South Ridge
Posted On: 6/20/2021, By: hellmanm
Info: Taken from Clinton Peak. It looks like the upper gullies may still hold some snow. The other pic is looking up from Wheeler Lake 

Route: Traverse from North Star
Posted On: 10/31/2020, By: angry
Info: Did not use traction. The snow was significant enough to keep things interesting. Some sugar and some deeper pockets over boulders and talus. There are cairns for the descent route, but didn't notice any on ridge traverse. Pro tip: when you plan a car shuttle, make sure you actually have the keys for said car. 

Route: South Ridge
Posted On: 9/30/2020, By: MC.Ikema
Info: Snow patches hiding in the shadows but avoidable on route. Ridge to Clinton snow free. 

Route: South Ridge
Posted On: 9/18/2020, By: Snow_Dog_frassati
Info: Very, very small amounts of snow on the west face. Not enough to be concerning to me, traction would be more trouble than it's worth imo - Just take it smart and slow. Only one or two places when it's not avoidable and it wasn't a problem to just go through it. 

Route: South Ridge
Posted On: 9/13/2020, By: gluckhikes
Info: A cairned route follows just below the ridge on the west side, but it's full of snow. I took the ridge direct, which is dry but definitely class 4 with some exposure throughout. A couple brief downclimbs with good holds. 

Route: South Ridge
Posted On: 6/25/2020, By: nathansmithpiano
Info: North Star to Wheeler traverse from Montgomery Reservoir. Peaks are in great shape, tiny bit of snow when cutting around obstacles near Wheeler but nothing too notable. Wheeler Lake road is very wet, probably a dozen spots to take small paths around but easily done. Brought micro spikes but didn't use them. 

Route: South Ridge
Posted On: 6/14/2020, By: kmikwilliams
Info: The snow is holding in the basin. Crampons and ice axe are needed for the ascent/descent to the ridge. I did not take snowshoes and did posthole - from the lower lake to the upper lake, but was mostly able to walk on top of the snow. I was able to glissade down in half the time! The ridgeline is clear of snow. I added some cairns that had been knocked down over the winter. The snow runoff is making the road pools much deeper. There is one runoff without a "go-around" near the lake's waterfall runoff. On the ascent, I chose to follow an old trail up and cross the waterfall instead. I wish I had brought an extra pair of shoes to change into on the descent for the final two miles! 

Route: South Ridge
Posted On: 3/7/2020, By: cottonmountaineering
Info: In pretty good shape for late winter, not too much snow on the west side but needed crampons and one ice axe. Snow was crusty and inconsistent for skiing (from south ridge) due to clouds/lack of recent snow 

Route: South Ridge
Posted On: 1/4/2020, By: cottonmountaineering
Info: Went on a ski tour to check out Wheeler, the road has 100% snow coverage. Snow in basin is the usual for this time of year, wind blown/crust/variable. Recommend flotation. From Wheeler lake to Wheeler S ridge I found excellent snow for skiing, about 6-12" of pow over firm. This area appears to have gotten more snow than anything around it, I did see sluff avalanches coming off of Clinton today, as well as an avalanche that stepped down to a deeper layer that happened recently. After reaching the saddle I checked out the west side of Wheeler, it is really filled in with unconsolidated snow. Usually the wind scrapes the whole west face bare this time of year so that was a surprise. I skied down from the saddle instead of risking traversing the face, as the snow is very unconsolidated at the moment. 

Route: South Ridge
Posted On: 9/22/2019, By: supranihilest
Info: There's a ton of route finding on Wheeler's south ridge. I found this to be the hardest part of the route, not the climbing itself. Be aware of the route finding challenges! Sometimes I'd climb up a rib and across ledges; sometimes I'd climb down a gully and under a rib; sometimes I'd just scoot across steep and loose ledges between notches in various ribs. There are lots of cairns but they aren't always correct, so be vigilant. The route description's suggestion to just find a view of the white "Y" on the summit is probably the best idea of them all, otherwise you're just kind of climbing around in all that steep, ribby terrain. Finding the "Y" at least gives you an idea of where you're supposed to go! This route harbors TONS of loose rock so be very careful and test every hold! 

Route: South Ridge
Posted On: 9/20/2020, By: amkempf
Info: Very good conditions right now (no traction needed) and perfect weather for doing all four peak in a nice loop (clockwise). Took the ridge proper all the way and would say it mostly went (a couple small 10ft or less work-arounds). If you are comfortable with ridges, I would actually recommend this over the standard description. One thing to note: READ the description and make sure you actually summit. We thankfully took the ridge proper and went over every part, but one person in our group took the lower line towards the end and missed the actual summit. The summit is not obvious when climbing on the ridge, but the description makes it very clear where it is from the standard lower line.