The mountains are calling!

There are many places where people can find solitude, but a hike to Koip Peak will definitely top it all! The Koip Peak area is very lightly traversed, and you would be lucky to find anyone on the trail to Koip Peak. Me and my group of crazy friends have attempted the peak twice and have been successful once. The first time we hiked the peak we celebrated the NPS 100th year on top of the peak, as it was that weekend we did this hike. The views from top of Koip Peak are simply breathtaking!

The hike to Koip Peak begins from Dana Meadows on Highway 120 in Yosemite. Look for Mono Pass Trailhead directions and you will find it. The trailhead is about 2 miles from Tioga pass entrance and is on the right side of the road but hard to find. As with any other hikes in Yosemite we always anticipate to start our hike at 6 am (never going to happen), but always end up starting at 8 am. Both the times we hiked towards Koip peak we started around the same time.

The initial stretch of the trail runs along the Mono Pass trail and is flatter to begin with. The trail gains gradual elevation as it traverses through the forest. Mono Pass trailhead is already at an elevation of ~9500 ft, so even a slight elevation in the beginning will start to feel tiring. People with altitude sickness should not try to attempt this hike coming from lower elevations. The first junction on the trail is at the break off to Parker Pass from the main Mono Pass Trail. Mono Pass is not too far from the junction and makes for a decent day hike.

We took our first break at this junction and headed towards Parker Pass. The trail runs through gradual elevation like before and crosses a mountain before hitting the gorgeous FLAT to parker pass. This is probably one of my favorite places on the trail as you can see miles ahead of you and enjoy the nature to its fullest.

The flat stretch of trail ends at Parker Pass which has some amazing views all around. This was a good spot to take our next break, but the open pass makes it for some pretty strong cold winds which bothered us in our 2nd attempt during late spring. The first time we hiked Koip Peak, we sat at Parker Pass and had a long photo session, which was not possible the 2nd time.

From Parker Pass the trail descends into a few water streams that are easier to cross. Parker Pass was the first place where we found other people who were hiking from Grant Lake. The second time we made this trail we did run into 2 other groups who were doing the Koip Peak, but the first time we were on the trail Parker Pass and the hike up Koip Peak pass were the only two places where we met other people. After the descent from Parker Pass the trail heads towards Koip Peak pass and the hardest part of the hike is staring right at you. The switch backs that go up Koip Peak pass are not clearly visible until you reach to the north west slope of Koip Peak base.

There is constant elevation gain from the descend till you get up to the base of the switchbacks. They are definitely not the 99 switch backs that you do on your way to Mount Whitney, but these are some pretty long, tiring, cruel, slippery switchbacks that take a toll on you. To top it all off, there is absolutely no shade on these switch backs which makes it even harder on a sunny day with no clouds. Talking about clouds, this is the same place a part of our group (including me) had to turn back as we were being overly cautious about carrying our JMT backpacks over a cloudy mountain. If you ever see too many clouds, remember it can get very dangerous on these switch backs. Luckily our other group ran into only a few rain drops and were able to make it to Koip Peak Pass. Once you get up to Koip Peak pass soak in the views and enjoy the solitude as there is not a living soul around to disturb you!

The final stretch to reach Koip Peak starts from the base of Koip Peak pass. We decided to leave our day backpacks at the pass and headed towards Koip Peak. There isn’t a trail to reach the top of Koip Peak, but its a class 2 route where you have to scramble on callus and rocks to make it to the top. It took us about 45 minutes to reach the top of the peak, and the views from here were simple AMAZING! Our quest to hike Koip Peak was indeed fulfilled but the sight of Kuna Peak reckoned. We were too tired to attempt a hike towards Kuna Peak, given that its hardly less than a mile from where we were standing. We made the right choice so we could preserve day light and hike back to where we started. The hike back is gruesome for the initial 2 to 3 miles as you need to get down the callus and traverse through the switchbacks that you ascended.

With most of our long day hikes in Yosemite we would reach our starting trailhead with our headlamps on, but Koip Peak was only the 2nd hike (first being Clouds Rest via Tenaya) where we did not use our headlamps. During our 2nd attempt we reached when there was plenty of sunlight but the other part of our group did use their head lamps. Overall Koip Peak is a killer when it comes to distance and elevation, but the solitude you get on this hike is unmatched and gives us a strong reason to do this again! Like with any hike there is not a set distance, but measures somewhere between 17.5 to 19 miles!

Difficulty – Strenuous Insanity Level – 3.5 Distance ~ 18 miles Elevation ~ 4000 ft Time ~ 12 hours
Directions – Dana Meadows/Mono Pass Trailhead (Highway 120) – Mono Pass Trail – Parker Pass Junction – Parker Pass Trail – Koip Pass – Koip Peak – Reverse