Peaks Climbed: Mount Washakie & Bernard Peak

Peak Heights: 12,524' / 12,193'

Route: NW Ridge / South Slopes

Difficulty: Class 3

Location: Wind River Range, Wyoming

Trailhead: Big Sandy Opening

Mileage & Gain: 7.5 mi & 3,330 ft

Date Climbed: August 20, 2018

Washakie and Bernard are both easily climbed from well-trodden Washakie Pass. While en route from Pyramid Lake to Macon Lake I stashed most of my gear at the pass and quickly bagged them in deteriorating weather. The view of Macon, Pass, and Washakie Lakes from the top of Washakie is outstanding. My camera was stuck on some whacky setting so the photos I got don't do it justice.

Bernard Peak is unusal in that the summit is crossed by a black dike. These diabase dikes are not uncommon in this area, but they are typically weaker than the surrounding granite and erode into notches and gullies. Bernard's dike is made of a tougher rock, periodite, which isn't as prone to erosion. Unfortunatly I didn't have time to investigate its interesting geology because I was pushing my luck and trying to outrun the impending weather. I got caught in one hell of a storm on the way down to Macon Lake, constructed my tent in a downpour and then sat inside, absolutely soaked, sipping whiskey in a puddle of water until it passed!