Location: Near Bishop, CA – East Side of the Sierra
Elevation Change: 3,338′
Recommended Map: Tom Harrison Maps – Bishop Pass
Mt. Gilbert 13,106’ – I love Mt. Gilbert for its friendly terrain, easily skied in a 6 hours or so day by competent backcountry skiers. It’s a big peak with many descent options that luckily starts at a high trailhead called South Lake – 9,768’. Take hwy 158 West from Bishop, CA and drive up over 5000’ in 20 miles. You can park at this trailhead at the start of fishing season, which is around May 1. Sometimes you will find a road closure while they are plowing or repairing the road, usually setup a mile back. This works fine too. Trailhead opening dates are a moving target based on spring storms. There are bathrooms and bear bins and a large overnight backpackers parking area with a sweet view. Skiers don’t seem to be kicked out for sleeping in their vehicles in the spring before the hikers start filling up the parking lot. Bring food and water to the trailhead because you are going to want to spend a second day there!! It’s a 22 mile road trip dropping all the way back to town. None of the nearby campgrounds will be open during the spring ski touring season, and they are gated. Of course you can sleep in your vehicle on BLM land closer to Bishop.
You’ll want a very early start, as the south and east facing slopes above Treasure Lake can provide a bit of wet slide danger on a warm afternoon. South lake is usually frozen to skin across. I have walked around the south side of South Lake many times when there is no ice to cross on. At first the talus is annoying but it only lasts for a few hundred yards. Don’t try to walk around the north side of South Lake, that looks terrible. I just added a map I made tonight, after skiing Mt.Gilbert 3/28/26. The route detail isn’t that important, as you can feel your way up and down the mountain fairly easily. However I do enjoy skiing up and back along two different paths that I drew.
Mt. Gilbert hosts a beautiful tick list 50 degree N. Couloir, as well as another steep angled line near the summit I’ve skied and enjoyed that just barely goes. But I ski Gilbert for the mellow east couloir passage to the high elevation south face. You can ski right off the summit and enjoy corn snow on a windless day, re-enter the east side through the one and only snow covered col, and get some powder in the E. Couloir. This mini couloir is fairly steep at the top at about 40 degrees. You may want axe and/or crampons to go up it. And take note of where this notch is for your return! The terrain will look totally different 2 hours later when you have climbed and skied the south face. I like skiing about 1000′ further down the south face and then skinning back up to the col. After shredding the little couloir (or side slipping in crust), I usually stay high and sidestep for 2 minutes and ski down to Treasure Lakes. My pictures show this. That slope is a nice long SE face and leads me to the exit creek that I enjoy skiing along to reach South Lake.
On one ski tour we skied Mt.Johnson and Mt.Gilbert using Treasure Col. Johnson doesn’t have a summit that can be climbed easily in ski boots but it grabs an additional 600′ North facing couloir with a beautiful little hidden zone that you can’t see from the parking lot.
On this particular day in my main post, I saw a group set up camp at Treasure Lakes. What a beautiful spot to stage day ski tours of all the peaks in this group – Hurd Peak, Mt. Gilbert, Mt. Johnson, Mt. Thompson, Mt. Goode, and Mt. Agassiz. You can ski them all in a day from the parking lot, but this camping spot works to split off towards all of them. Personally I reserve the nights spent out on snow for the ski tours I can’t do in a day, but I get it; you are going to want to ski multiple days when you see the terrain above this trailhead. And repeating the approach across South lake and up through the little forested cliffs to Treasure Lakes would be nice to just bang out once, rather than daily.
Check out the photos I added in the REPLY below of my 3/28/26 ski tour to Gilbert in very low snow conditions. It’s still amazing! And please upload your own pics and comments!
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May 7 2024 Marty and I took our lovely ladies up to Mt.Gilbert and found great snow coverage and smooth corn snow, with a just barely enough freeze to skin the lake. You can still do this peak if you have to go around the lake, but the suncups have probably taken over the mountain at that point. Look for the moment South Lake trailhead is within a few miles of opening. You can go from Parchers resort if you start an hour earlier, or ride a bike with studded tires. The road will be icy in the morning from afternoon snow melt. I find when you can get to the trailhead proper finally, there will still be good snow coverage for a week or three. This is a big peak with bigger views, yet a fairly straight forward 3/4 day effort. We skied the south face down about 1000′ lower and skinned back to the East col.