{"id":19117,"date":"2019-02-16T08:10:35","date_gmt":"2019-02-16T15:10:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/?p=19117"},"modified":"2020-09-24T15:59:04","modified_gmt":"2020-09-24T21:59:04","slug":"black-hills-sd-expedition-no-245-peak-5438-1-15-19","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/?p=19117","title":{"rendered":"Black Hills, SD Expedition No. 245 – Peak 5438 (1-15-19)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Start – 9:56 AM, 27\u00b0F at the junction of Vanocker Canyon Road & USFS Road No. 135.2C<\/em><\/p>\n

Snowier than SPHP expected.\u00a0 Chillier, too!\u00a0 Not even above freezing yet, though the day was supposed to warm up nicely for January.\u00a0 Lupe was more than a mile S of the turn to Veteran Peak<\/span><\/a> (5,333 ft.)<\/span><\/strong> at the start of a snowy side road off Vanocker Canyon Road.\u00a0 An old marker declared this as USFS Road No. 135.2C.<\/p>\n

Loop had been bored, bored, bored for days on end.\u00a0 Chilly and snowy didn’t matter.\u00a0 She wasn’t going to miss out on an expedition!\u00a0 Conditions really weren’t bad at all.\u00a0 Besides, one never knows how long it might be before the next chance for an expedition would come this time of year.<\/p>\n

Lupe led the way past a couple of gates, proceeding N up a valley.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Chilly? Snowy? Forget it, SPHP! You’re not backing out now. We’re doing this!<\/em> Lupe at the start of USFS Road No. 135.2C. Photo looks NW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The snow was a good 6″ deep, loose and fluffy where there weren’t any tracks, crunchy and hard where there were.\u00a0 The valley soon widened out.\u00a0 The sun was brilliant.\u00a0 SPHP stopped to shed a layer.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
The valley widened out. The brilliant sunshine felt warmer than the temperature indicated. Photo looks SSE.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Looking farther up No. 135.2C from the same spot. Photo looks NNW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Looper’s peakbagging objective for the day was Peak<\/span> 5438<\/span><\/a><\/strong>.\u00a0 According to Lists of John<\/span><\/strong><\/a>, the mountain has 548 feet of rise (prominence), quite good for a Black Hills peak.\u00a0 Peak 5438 was less than a mile W of the snowy valley where Lupe was now, but a high ridge and another valley were between here and there.<\/p>\n

No. 135.2C might eventually take Loop to the top of the ridge and around the N end of the valley to the W, but perhaps a more direct route could be found?\u00a0 As Lupe headed up the valley, SPHP watched for an easy way up the ridge to the W.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Continuing up the valley on No. 135.2C. Photo looks NW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After more than 0.5 mile on No. 135.2C, the last remaining tracks in the snow veered W off the road.\u00a0 They started up the ridge toward a big pine tree with a curved trunk.\u00a0 Why not?\u00a0 Maybe this was the shortcut the American Dingo was looking for?\u00a0 Lupe followed the tracks.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Leaving USFS Road No. 135.2C to start up the ridge to the W. Photo looks WNW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The tracks ended before Lupe even got to the deformed tree.\u00a0 The snow was deeper off the road, more like a foot.\u00a0 The slope wasn’t all that steep, however, and Looper only needed to gain 200 feet of elevation.\u00a0 So she kept going, and before long reached a big rock on a rounded edge where the terrain was leveling out.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Heading up the snowy slope. The snow was hard enough to support Looper’s weight. Photo looks S.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
On the big rock near the start of flatter terrain. Photo looks ESE.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As shown on the topo map<\/span><\/a><\/strong><\/span>, a higher part of this ridge was visible off to the SW.\u00a0 Loopster traveled W or WNW from the rock, still gaining some elevation.\u00a0 The goal was to get to the other side of this ridge, where she ought to be able to see both Peak 5438 and the intervening valley.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
From close to the big rock, a higher part of this ridge was visible between the trees. Photo looks SW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Crossing the wide ridge, the Carolina Dog came to long open areas full of snow.\u00a0 Logging or other minor roads may have been hidden beneath it.\u00a0 Beyond these openings, Lupe got her first glimpse of Peak 5438.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Crossing the ridge, Lupe came to long snowy openings in the forest. The snow may have been concealing logging or other minor roads. Photo looks SSW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
From the W side of the first ridge, Peak 5438<\/strong> was in view. Photo looks WSW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The E slope of Peak 5438 looked steep, and the intervening valley was deeper than expected.\u00a0 Not wanting to lose so much elevation crossing this next valley, Lupe turned N following the W side of the ridge she was already on.\u00a0 Beyond a high spot, she came to the biggest opening yet in the forest.\u00a0 Again it looked like a road must have been buried beneath the snow.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
At the big snowy opening. Photo looks SE.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lupe did not attempt to follow the hidden road.\u00a0 She continued N along the W side of the ridge.\u00a0 Dog-hair pine thickets slowed SPHP down.\u00a0 After less than 0.25 mile, though, it was possible to see that Loop was getting close to the N end of the valley.\u00a0 A snow-covered road on the far side led up toward a minor saddle.<\/p>\n

A check of the map confirmed Lupe ought to head over to that saddle.\u00a0 She would lose less than 50 feet of elevation crossing the valley here, so she went down to it.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
See that snowy road (L) on the other side of the valley leading up to a minor saddle? That’s where we’re going next!<\/em> Photo looks WNW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Crossing the N end of the valley. Photo looks W.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The valley was dazzlingly bright.\u00a0 Lupe trotted W across it.\u00a0 She did not head directly for the snowy road leading up to the minor saddle.\u00a0 She stayed on hillsides N of it, where a S exposure meant far less snow to deal with.\u00a0 In some places, none at all.<\/p>\n

Halfway up, the N hillsides became snowy, too.\u00a0 Lupe finally took to the road.\u00a0 She even tried crossing it and going directly up the hill to the SW, but the snow was 2 feet deep.\u00a0 Returning to the road, she bounded the rest of the way up to the saddle.<\/p>\n

Lupe was now on Peak 5438’s N ridge.\u00a0 A small hill along this ridge was directly to the S, but there was no need to go clear to the top of it.\u00a0 An open lane went SW from here toward another, as yet unseen, slightly higher saddle.\u00a0 Lupe explored the forest near the open lane on the way to this second saddle.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Loop reaches the first minor saddle on Peak 5438’s N ridge. She would take the open lane beyond her to another slightly higher one. Photo looks SW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

From the second saddle, Looper traveled S along the W side of the hill she was circumventing.\u00a0 This slope wasn’t nearly as snowy, but deadfall timber was present.\u00a0 For the first time, Lupe had tree-broken glimpses of C<\/span>uster Peak<\/span><\/a> (6,804 ft.)<\/span><\/strong> far to the SW.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Heading S on the W slope of a small hill along Peak 5438’s N ridge. Photo looks S.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Lupe was now catching glimpses of Custer Peak<\/strong>. Photo looks SW with help from the telephoto lens.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Once S of the hill she had just bypassed, a long, broad incline was ahead.\u00a0 All Lupe had to do now was follow it to the top of Peak 5438.\u00a0 The summit was barely 0.33 mile away.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Starting up the broad slope leading to the summit of Peak 5438<\/strong>. Photo looks S.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Near the top, the slope of the terrain diminished.\u00a0 The ridge was almost flat by the time it turned SW and began widening out even more.\u00a0 The snow was 1.5 feet deep.\u00a0 Looper traveled SW through the forest.\u00a0 SPHP expected she would soon come to a 20+ foot rise shown on the topo map where the true summit of Peak 5438 was located.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Getting close to the top. Photo looks SSW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Exploring the flat, forested summit of Peak 5438<\/strong>. Photo looks SW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

She never did.\u00a0 The whole mountaintop covering quite a large area was almost completely flat.\u00a0 The topo map showed a definite 20+ foot rise near the W end of the greater summit area, but Lupe arrived at the W edge of the mountain without having seen any such high point.<\/p>\n

A second brief reconnaissance of the whole region where the 20+ foot rise was supposed to be revealed nothing at all.\u00a0 Lupe hadn’t somehow missed it.\u00a0 The rise didn’t exist.\u00a0 Never had, either.\u00a0 This summit was undisturbed.\u00a0 The topo map was simply wrong.\u00a0 Yet this was Peak 5438 alright.\u00a0 Everything else matched up just fine.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Lupe reaches the W edge of Peak 5438<\/strong> without ever finding the 20+ foot rise indicated on the topo map where the true summit was supposed to be. Photo looks S.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The highest ground did seem to be about where the topo map indicated, not far from the W edge.\u00a0 A few little rocks seemed to be about as high as anything else around.\u00a0 As far as could be determined, this unremarkable spot in the woods was the true summit of Peak<\/span> 5438<\/span><\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Lupe sits near a few scattered rocks at the true summit of Peak 5438<\/strong>. Photo looks NE.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Well, guess this is it. Sort of disappointing, I know. We’d been expecting something a bit more dramatic ourselves.<\/em> Photo looks ESE.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Some of the highest ground near the W edge. Photo looks SSW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Maybe Peak 5438 isn’t as high as what the topo map would lead one to believe.\u00a0 Or maybe the entire mountaintop is virtually that high.\u00a0 Either way, it was what it was.\u00a0 The mountain was quiet and undisturbed, a pleasant place to be on a warmish January afternoon.<\/p>\n

Lupe and SPHP took a break near the highest ground.\u00a0 A rock formation along the W edge was the most interesting thing around.\u00a0 Lupe climbed up on it.\u00a0 Within a couple feet of being as high as the actual summit, this was a prettier spot.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
This looks more noble and adventuresome, doesn’t it? Like I’ve actually climbed some kind of a mountain, instead of aimlessly wandering the forest?<\/em> Photo looks W.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The rock formation provided a distant view of Custer Peak<\/span><\/a> (6,804 ft.)<\/span><\/strong> again.\u00a0 SPHP was tall enough to get a clearer look at it from another spot a little to the S.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Lupe at the same spot, with Custer Peak<\/strong> (L) in sight. Photo looks WSW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
SPHP was just tall enough to get this clearer view of Custer Peak (Center). Another year or two, and the pines will grow up to hide it. Photo looks SW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lupe laid in the sun on a patch of snow-free of ground.\u00a0 She crunched up a bowlful of Taste of the Wild.\u00a0 Custer Peak was about the only distant point of interest not hidden by the forest.\u00a0 40 pleasant minutes of repose and quiet solitude shot by.\u00a0 Time to go.<\/p>\n

Loop and SPHP made a short trek around the S end of the summit area.\u00a0 Another dog-hair pine thicket was on the SE side.\u00a0 Not much to see.\u00a0 Lupe started back N, the way she’d come.\u00a0 An opening appeared permitting a view to the SE.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Loop discovers an opening along the SE edge of the summit area. Photo looks SE.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On the return trip to the G6, Lupe made only a couple of variations to the route she’d taken to Peak 5438.\u00a0 She climbed the little hill along the ridgeline, taking a shortcut from there through snow as much as 3 feet deep down to the upper N end of the valley to the E.\u00a0 On the first ridge she’d climbed, she followed a snowy road S to the biggest clearing.\u00a0 She wandered the forest a bit N of where she’d been before.<\/p>\n

The last part was all the same, though.\u00a0 A snowy trek down USFS Road No. 135.2C brought Lupe back to the G6.\u00a0 (1:59 PM, 41\u00b0F)<\/em><\/p>\n

Peak 5438 hadn’t been spectacular in any way, but Lupe was happy with her expedition.\u00a0 At least she’d explored a new place in the Black Hills.\u00a0 These precious hours had broken the monotonous spell of winter.<\/p>\n

Winter wasn’t over yet, though.\u00a0 Not by a long shot.\u00a0 The Carolina Dog would be staring out the window at home many a tiresome day before spring would arrive.\u00a0 Peak 5438, or most anywhere else, would sound mighty good!<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Custer Peak<\/strong> from Peak 5438<\/strong>, Black Hills of South Dakota 1-15-19<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Links:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Next Black Hills Expedition<\/span><\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Prior Black Hills Expedition<\/span><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Want more Lupe adventures?\u00a0 Check out Lupe’s Black Hills, SD & WY\u00a0Expeditions\u00a0Adventure Index<\/strong><\/span><\/a>, <\/em>Master Adventure Index<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/a>, or subscribe free to new Lupe adventures<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/a>!<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Start – 9:56 AM, 27\u00b0F at the junction of Vanocker Canyon Road & USFS Road No. 135.2C Snowier than SPHP expected.\u00a0 Chillier, too!\u00a0 Not even above freezing yet, though the day was supposed to warm up nicely for January.\u00a0 Lupe was more than a mile S of the turn to Veteran Peak (5,333 ft.) at … Continue reading Black Hills, SD Expedition No. 245 – Peak 5438 (1-15-19)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":19109,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[105,9,106,104,1048,304],"class_list":["post-19117","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-black-hills","tag-american-dingo","tag-black-hills-expeditions","tag-carolina-dog","tag-lupe","tag-peak-5438","tag-south-dakota"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/adventuresoflupe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/IMG_3097.jpg?fit=1651%2C1238&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19117","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=19117"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19117\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28434,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19117\/revisions\/28434"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/19109"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=19117"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=19117"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=19117"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}