Pleasant Point

Inyo Mountains BLM, CA Northern Death Valley + White Mountains

Trip stats

Distance
6.4 mi
Net Gain
2,000 ft
Time
2-4 hrs
YDS Rating
Class 2
Route
Out/Back
Peaks
2

Ratings out of 10

Effort
3.4/10
Personality
5/10
Beauty
6/10
Solitude
4.1/10
What do these mean? →

Peaks on this hike

Summits listed in route order

  1. Pleasant Pinnacles
    9,615′ elevation · 95′ prominence
  2. Pleasant Point
    9,690′ elevation · 1,170′ prominence

Route map + Trailhead

Trailhead Coordinates

36.539610, -117.794670

The directions link below drops a pin on the trailhead coordinates and lets Google Maps pick the route. If the drive has rough roads or access issues that GPS nav might get wrong, I cover that in my trip report.

Trip report

May 1, 2022 — Pleasant Point is best accessed from Cerro Gordo, a silver mine ghost town maintained as a tourist attraction. The peak has a bit of bureaucratic stuff to contend with, but the summit is quite nice and worth the excursion. The drive to reach Cerro Gordo is overall in excellent condition, but the steepness and light rockiness might make sedans hesitate. Upon reaching Cerro Gordo, Tyler and I inquiried about paying a reported access fee to help maintain Cerro Gordo. Since we weren't actually visiting the attraction, the caretaker nicely informed us not to worry about it, and we were off to the trailhead, located at a saddle above the ghost town. We started up the dirt road, which would lead us about halfway to the summit. We later found out that the road we chose to take is off-limits to hikers and vehicles alike (orange line on my attached map), but we didn't know better at the time. Most hikers seem to use this route since it's significantly easier than the "legal" alternative (blue line on my map). I'd recommend inquiring about both the permit and the access road when you visit, since the level of nonchalance may differ depending on the person currently attending the area.

Choosing the orange route means following a road to reach the south ridge of Pleasant Point. The road continues to a minor peak housing some towers (apparently the reason this route isn't okay is to prevent people from getting too close to the towers). A social trail continues along the ridge and wraps around a small hump along the ridge. The legal alternative follows the 4WD Swansea-Cerro Gordo OHV Route (which you could drive to shave off some miles), then leaves the road in order to ascend the steep slope up to the ridgeline, avoiding the off-limits area. I drew this line in for reference, but we did not go that way and my hike stats reflect the orange line only. Either way you go, the route to ascend Pleasant Point remains the same once reaching the ridgeline.

The slope is quite nice as it ascends toward the Pleasant Pinnacles, nothing exceeding light Class 2, nor ever particularly steep. There were a couple of times where sticking to the ridge crest directly resulted in some mild bushwhacking, but it can be avoided on either side using one of a few social trails. We reached the base of the Pleasant Pinnacles, both a very short Class 2 jaunt to reach, and I'd say both are worth checking out since they offer excellent views both toward Pleasant Point and to the east into Saline Valley.

After enjoying the Pleasant Pinnacles views, we headed back down to the social trail, which continues down a small Class 2 gully to avoid a short section of loose rock outcroppings. From here it was more nice walking on a well-defined social trail to the summit of Pleasant Point.

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Photos

25 photos

  1. At the trailhead, view north.
  2. Starting along the standard road, technically illegal. You can see the Swansea-Cerro Gordo OHV Route on the far left in this photo, the recommended legal route.
  3. Close-up toward Cerro Gordo (top left) and the ghost town.
  4. View into Owens Valley.
  5. Along the road. Swansea-Cerro Gordo OHV Route visible below.
  6. View back along the road walk section.
  7. Pleasant Point comes into view.
  8. Along the south ridge to Pleasant Point, a hundred feet or so dip in the ridge leads down from the dirt road. A social trail wraps around the hill ahead.
  9. Starting the ascent to Pleasant Point.
  10. View back, you can see the social trail that wrapped around the hump.
  11. Heading up Pleasant Point.
  12. View back.
  13. Minor Class 2 on the way up.
  14. View back again.
  15. Approaching the base of Pleasant Pinnacles.
  16. Southern Pleasant Pinnacles, view toward Pleasant Point.
  17. View back toward the southern Pleasant Pinnacle.
  18. View toward Pleasant Point from the northern Pleasant Pinnacle.
  19. Below Pleasant Pinnacles, a Class 2 short gully descent.
  20. View back at the social trail leading down the gully.
  21. Final bit to the summit of Pleasant Point.
  22. Pleasant Point summit, view south along the ridgeline.
  23. View north toward Keynot and Inyo.
  24. View into Saline Valley.
  25. View toward Owens Valley.

Photo 1 of 1

Hire me or show some love!

Hire or refer me as a web developer, or send me a few bucks if you find my site useful. I'm not sponsored, so it's funded by yours truly. It also takes a ton of work to edit photos and write these reports. I really appreciate it!

GPX track

Pleasant Point GPX route and driving track

The complete GPX track is available to download, so you can load the route straight into your navigation app or device. The trip report, route info, photos and planning details stay free.