Distance: 5.8 miles round trip on trail
Summit Elevation: 6801'
Prominence: 1201'
Elevation Gain: 1418'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 1.1
Round trip time: 3 hours
Recommended water: 48 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free on Huntington Lake Road
Difficulty: Easy
We parked on the side of Huntington Lake Road at the start of the dirt road leading to Musick Mountain. For a shorter hike, it was possible to drive almost a mile up the dirt road before hitting a gate but we didn't know that at the time. The entire mountain appeared to have burned recently, only the ghosts of dead trees standing guard on the slopes. Some undergrowth was struggling to make a living amid the ruin, but the landscape was bleak. Once past the gate, the road got noticeably steeper. It makes a couple of long switchbacks before curling back to the summit with an abandoned fire lookout and two large cell towers. We noticed immediately that we had the best receiption of the weekend on the summit with 5 bars of 5G service. I took advantage by completing a few online chores I had not been able to do from the campground. In addition, there were great views north to snowbound Mount Ritter, Lyell, and other Yosemite summits. The view of Shaver Lake was marred by the dark, dead forest in the foreground. I found the benchmark in great shape near one of the cell towers, but no register. This was not an exciting hike, but I did enjoy the heads down, mindless grind of the road. Sometimes, working up a lather is enough.
After Musick, we visited the McKinley Grove of giant sequoias in the Dinkey Lakes area. It only had about 25 trees, but they dwarfed all others.
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