Tahoe's Rubicon Peak .. Steep Short Hike, Killer Views, and a Fun 3rd Class Scramble

[A. Hugh Jass]

I love to do hikes with a fun scramble to the summit. A few weeks ago I finally did Mount Thielsen, and that was a fun hike with a very short and easy scramble to the summit. I was looking to do other scrambles in Central Oregon that I haven't done yet. I wasn't coming up with anything. So, I crossed over into Northern California and into the Tahoe area to do a few hikes with summit scrambles.

On September 23, 2019 I started this effort with Tahoe's Rubicon Peak. The peak is 9183 feet high and the views from the summit are stunning. With the immense Lake Tahoe on one side of the ridge and the beauty of the Desolation Wilderness on the other side.

The climb up is only 1.75 miles and about 2300 feet of gain. The route to the summit is a super simple 3rd class scramble. Once on the top there is a somewhat exposed ridge to cross, but it is wide enough to provide an easy 100 foot stroll to the actual summit.

The effort to climb Rubicon Peak is about the same as the trail up Dog Mountain, so not too bad.

For more photos and a fun video: https://www.mountroot.com/2019/09/tahoe ... tiger.html

[adamschneider]

Looks like fun. I did a Tahoe trip a few years ago, but there were just so many choices that I obviously couldn't get around to everything. On that side of the lake, I had a few hours one evening and squeezed in a trip up Maggie's Peaks.