I first read of Matterhorn Peak in Dharma Bums, a Kerouac novel that had quite an effect on my then-pubescent brain. In the novel, a character named Japhy Ryder (aka, Gary Snyder, one of my favorite poets) drags Kerouac and another friend up Matterhorn Peak. Kerouc collapses short of the summit while Japhy bounces from rock to rock all the way up the mountain. I was a midwestern kid at the time with no climbing experience or knowledge of the Sierra, but I knew I’d rather be Japhy than Kerouac.

Lack of a partner and limited knowledge of the area prompted me to climb the East Couloir (class 3) rather than the North Arete (5.7), which had been in my sights for some time. The Horse Creek trailhead is in Twin Lakes, 10 miles west of Bridgeport on hwy 395. I drove west from San Francisco through Yosemite on Tioga road and slept just east of the pass at a turn-out near Mount Dana. Woke the mext morning and drove north to Twin Lakes and got pancakes at the little diner at Mono Village.

I got going around 10 AM. The trail follows some switchbacks along a swiftly-moving Horse Creek, then up and over a ridge where you come a gorgeous glacial valley. There was still plenty of snow above 10,000 feet, so I put on the gaiters and climbed the snow slopes along a moraine on climber’s left. I spent the night on top of the moraine in a nice little cove where someone had previously built a rock wall for shelter. I watched the sun go down as I ate dinner – a gorgeous sunset with an incredible glow caused by the forest fire haze in the atmosphere.

I woke the next morning, had some coffee and oatmeal, and set out for the East Couloir. The snow was soft and low-angle, so no need for crampons and axe. After the snow ran out about half way up the couloir, I began scrambling up the loose, pain-in-the-ass, one-step-forward-two-steps-back, scree.

When you get to the top of the couloir, you’re practically there. Just angle right and start climbing up the ledges with firm rock and little exposure. On top you’ve got a fabulous view of Sawtooth Ridge and the rest of the East Sierra to the south. This is a great climb. Perfect couple of days for the solo adventurer. Would also make a great first alpine climb for the aspiring mountaineer.