USE AT YOUR OWN RISK

01L

Backus Peak

6651'
(UTM 155460)

Location: Kern County, about 43 miles north of Mojave, 140 miles from Los Angeles

Maps

Auto Club Kern County
Forest Service Sequoia National Forest
USGS Topo Owens Peak 7½
Official HPS Maps TPO file - Save to your computer then open with National Geographic TOPO!
  Viewable JPG file - Approximately 1.4 megs
  GPX file or Google Earth KML file to download to GPS units and other map software (How to use GPX and KML files)
  Routes as shown on CalTopo using the above files (How to use CalTopo)

Nearby Peaks: Russell Peak (Russell Peak can be hiked from Backus Peak.)

ROUTE 2

Distance: 8 miles round trip on trail and rocky cross-country
Gain: 3700'
Time: 8 hours round trip
Rating: Class 2, strenuous
Navigation: Moderate route finding
Access: Do not park past the Wilderness boundary signs.

Original: Byron Prinzmetal, April 1999

DRIVING ROUTE 2

Note: You will save several miles of hiking if you leave a car at the parking spot for Route 1.

HIKING ROUTE 2

The ridge from Russell to Backus is only 2 miles long, but plan for it to take at least three hours due to route finding and rocky cross-country travel. There is 900' of gain and loss along this ridge. You should not traverse any of the bumps on the north side. All rock outcrops should be skirted to the south. There is a faint use trail developing and one should look for it.