Sundance Pinnacle

A minor summit just south of Warbonnet Peak, Sundance Pinnacle is impressive from nearly every position. While it lacks the prominence from the Sundance-Warbonnet saddle (only about 200' rise) to qualify as a ranked peak, it is still named on many maps and has its own entry in Joe Kelsey's indispensable Climbing and Hiking in the Wind River Mountains. At 15 miles RT and about 2000' of elevation gain from the trailhead, it's one of the few peaks in the Winds that's reasonable to climb as a day trip. However, it's more likely that one would make it one of several objectives during a multi-day trip to the Big Sandy Lake area and/or the Cirque of the Towers.

Sundance Pinnacle is a fairly quick side trip one can do on a day of climbing Warbonnet Peak and/or the Warriors via scrambling routes, but it also has at least 7 multi-pitch technical routes ranging from 5.2 to 5.11. The rock is a good, solid granite, though it turned out to make for a frighteningly slick Class 4 climb on a rainy afternoon.

If you are camped at or near Big Sandy Lake, you can do Sundance Pinnacle in 2-3 hours round-trip if you're in solid shape, so it's a nice objective for late in the day after you've made camp or if you did something bigger and longer earlier but have the energy for something else.

Much is said, and little of it positive, about the drive to Big Sandy.

It is not as bad as you might have heard or read. Yes, there are parts of the last few miles that are rocky or rutted, but I had no trouble getting there in a regular passenger car and did not have to slow to a crawl while doing so. And it's not as confusing to get there as you may have been led to believe; there is good signage along the way.

There was only one section that was pretty iffy for me: a muddy stream crossing just before the trailhead. If it looks like a no-go for your vehicle, you'll find ample parking space nearby and can cross on foot. This adds literally only a couple of minutes.

There are three main starting points for an approach to Big Sandy: Boulder (11 miles south of Pinedale), Farson, and South Pass. Because of this, I'm not going to go into detailed directions on this page.

Here are directions copied from the Forest Service website:

"From Pinedale, drive south on Hwy 191. At Boulder, turn left on Hwy 353 and drive 18 miles to the end of the pavement. Shorty after the pavement ends, go straight through the junction, and drive south crossing the Big Sandy River (Buckskin Crossing). At next junction, turn left (east) and drive 7 miles. Turn left at the following jct and follow the main road to the Big Sandy Campground and trailhead. This trailhead is remote, so be sure to have a full tank of gas."

Once you turn off the main trunk road, it is about 16 miles to the trailhead. Finding that first turnoff is critical, but there is a large sign indicating the junction. From Pinedale, it's between 50 and 60 miles to the trailhead.

From South Pass, directly across from Oregon Buttes Road, turn north onto the Lander Cutoff Road. This is a good unpaved road. Follow it until reaching the critical junction mentioned above.

From Farson, head east on WY 28 a short distance and turn north onto Farson-Little Sandy Road, which becomes Big Sandy-Elkhorn Road a bit after 5 miles. It pretty quickly becomes a good dirt road. Follow it to a junction with the Lander Cutoff Road. The turnoff to Big Sandy is nearby. Look for signs. 

Expect 1.5-2 hours of driving from any of the principal access points. Note: there is no fuel at or near South Pass.

For specific details about the routes, especially the technical ones, see Kelsey's guide. This book is available as a digital download from Google Books and from Amazon and likely some other sources as well, so it's a great idea to have it on your phone and take it with you when going out. It beats the hell out of carrying the book, copying pages, etc.

• West Face-- Class 4, not as enjoyable as the ridges, best as a descent
• South Ridge-- Class 4, a bit spicier and more exposed than the west face, fun ascent
• East Face Left-- 5.6
• East Face Center-- 5.9
• East Face-Klettershoe Chimney-- 5.9
• East Face, Right Crack-- 5.9
• Northeast Arete-- 5.10 b/c
• North Face-- 5.11 A1
• Northwest Ridge-- 5.0-5.2

Red Tape

When to Climb

Summer is best. You will not be able to drive all the way to the trailhead late fall through early spring because of snow. I do not know whether snowmobiling on the road is permitted.

Camping