I parked along this dirt road about 0.2 miles from Saline Valley Road.Making my way cross country through the pinyon-juniper woodland.Looking back.Veering north toward the base of Wünüpü Peak.Starting up Wünüpü Peak's east slope. The first 1,500 vertical feet is very steep.A particularly loose section.Stumbling over talus to gain the ridge.Along the ridge, a fallen bristlecone pine trunk.The grade lessens about halfway up the ridge.View back.A treeless section. The summit of Wünüpü Peak is somewhere in the shadows on the top-right.View back toward the northernmost reaches of Death Valley National Park.View of Waucoba Mountain to the south, some 1,000 feet higher from this point.Entering a small wooded section below the summit.Heading north toward the high point.Nearing the high point, the small hill just past the trees.Wünüpü Peak summit.Views from the summit were mostly obscured by the trees, but there was a nice window facing the Sierra.Starting the traverse to Waucoba Mountain.View back. There were some easily avoidable patches of snow.Continuing south, descending 700 feet to the saddle between the two peaks.Scattered light on Waucoba Mountain's north slope.More views at the Sierra across Owens Valley.View back up Wünüpü Peak's south slope.Approaching the saddle between Wünüpü Peak and Waucoba Mountain.Starting up Waucoba Mountain's north slope.View back toward Wünüpü Peak.Brushy at times, though I was able to avoid any major bushwhacking.View back. Snow patches started to appear.I avoided much of the snow by climbing on top of large granite boulders like these.Reaching a plateau about half way up.A short downhill section. Waucoba Mountain comes into view.About 500 vertical feet from the summit.At this point the snow was unavoidable. It was quite soft and I was post-holing up to my shins.Above the tree line, nearing the summit.Waucoba Mountain summit. View southeast.View north. White Mountain is visible in the distance.Starting my descent of Waucoba Mountain's east ridge.Looking back up. The snow persisted until about the 10,000-foot mark.View north toward Wünüpü Peak. You can get a sense for the steepness of the terrain.Finally at the base of the mountain.View back.More cross country back to my car.One last look back at Waucoba Mountain and Wünüpü Peak poking out from behind the trees.
