Wheeler Peak

Wheeler Peak is a 13,063-foot summit in Great Basin National Park, Nevada’s second-highest peak and the highest whose slopes all lie within the state. I’d save it for a clear forecast and a full hiking day: the trail starts above 10,000 feet and climbs through thin air to an exposed ridge. This is a summit hike, not a drive-up stop. From Summit Trailhead, allow about 8½ miles round trip with roughly 3,000 feet of climbing; plan for 4 to 10 hours.

The path begins gradually through open meadow with a view into Wheeler Peak Cirque. It then climbs the ridge above tree line across loose talus, with much of the elevation gain coming late. The final section is the steepest part. It’s the park’s hardest hike; wind, loose rock and the high start make it a tough day even before the summit push.

Afternoon thunderstorms, strong wind and fast-changing high-elevation weather are real concerns on this exposed route, which has no shelter. Start early and get back below the ridge before afternoon storms build; descend if thunderclouds gather or you feel symptoms of altitude illness. The summit trailhead is near mile 11 of the narrow, winding 12-mile Wheeler Peak Scenic Drive, about a half-hour from the highway without stops. The road is usually open from Memorial Day through late October, depending on weather; in winter it closes at Upper Lehman Creek Campground and the summit becomes a much longer winter mountaineering trip.

On a clear day, visibility from the summit can reach more than 100 miles. Stella Lake is visible below from points along the route, with other glacial lakes tucked into the cirques. For a summit photo, include some of the rocky ridge or the lakes below when they’re visible; that gives the wide basin view a sense of height and scale.

The mountain had several names before the one that stuck. Ezra Granger Williams called it Williams Peak in 1855; his Pavant Ute guide Nioquitch said it was known as Pe-up, while a Shoshone woman near the summit likely used Too-bur-rit. Army officer Edward Steptoe later used Jeff Davis Peak. George Wheeler’s party climbed it in 1869, and Wheeler named it after himself; the name became official with his report and map six years later.

Wheeler’s cirque preserves both a small alpine glacier and a separate rock glacier, a lobe of boulders and cobbles with ice between them. The alpine ice sits at about 11,500 feet, covers roughly two acres and is Nevada’s only surviving glacier. Much larger glaciers once shaped the South Snake Range, reaching down to about 9,200 feet during the last glacial period. The rock glacier has unstable boulders near its toe, so keep to established trails and viewpoints.