WARNING : the following route passes through a patchwork of private inholdings. NO TRESPASSING signs are clearly posted, starting with the gates at 5,200'.

Discouraging tales of brush, poison oak, ticks, ripped clothes and battered psyches seem to be the "norm" for reports from the "standard" southern route up Homers Nose, this otherwise innocuous western Sierra peak that's "innocently" nestled just inside the southwestern corner of Sequoia National Park. We had originally planned to take the traditional route up this peak (via South Fork and Clough Cave) and suffer the consequences as had our precedent peers. But not being one to always follow the trend, it was mandatory for me to assess all the options. It was suggested to me by my friend Brian Smith (soon to be SPS list finisher) that we consider an approach from the north since his preliminary research revealed roads yielding access into the area. So, acting on some dated but essential information passed on to me from Ron Hudson, we set out to forge what was to hopefully be a better, or at least easier, route than that from South Fork. Foremost, we didn't want to hack through brush and poison oak (been there, done that). Directed by Brian's information, I scanned (aged) 7.5' maps for the area around Homers Nose which actually reveal a variety of route options. However, none are as "short" as the route from Clough Cave coming up from the south. But, keep in mind, "short" is relative when you're hacking/groping through thick brush. Anything would be better than that, especially after reading all the compelling reports. Odd that some of the more astute SPSers and PCSers hadn't researched these options. Anyway, to get to the point and after much map assessment and deliberation with my hiking friend, Brian Smith, we decided to scout out and hopefully succeed at a route from the northwest that was originally pioneered by Ron Hudson back in 1996. However, thanks to Brian's observations, we were able to refine Ron's route in to a dayhike and specifically, we came at the peak out of Oak Grove, which is not much more than a place name along the Mineral King road. We arrived near Oak Grove in the dark Friday. The 7.5' map revealed a nearby "4WD" track that could ultimately get us to about 6000' on Salt Creek Ridge. If this all panned out, that would eliminate any intense brushwhacking, deposit us beyond/above any poison oak threats and have us ideally situated conveniently on the Salt Creek Ridge ridgeline where we'd be in "easy" forested terrain, above the thick brush-laden slopes that blanket the peak's lower flanks. The big question was, was this 4WD track good and was its bridge over the East Fork intact? A quick recon Friday night revealed the bridge was indeed intact and superficially the road was too, in fact, it looked in excellent condition, but, for how far? Saturday morning, we'd find that out and much more. Departing Saturday just before 7 AM under ideal Fall conditions, we quickly made our way over the bridge and continued walking up an excellent dirt road that, had there not been a locked gate at the pavement, we could have driven up to 5,400' (mountain bikes are a viable option up to and perhaps beyond here). The roads shown on the latest 7.5' map (Case Mtn., CA, 1987, 40') are not quite accurate in the (Case Mountain Grove) area, so good intuition and compass bearings are necessary to lead you from about the 5200' contour along the remaining 4WD track shown on the map, to where it intersects the better road shown at 5870T. Some old residual 4WD tracks and some newer 2WD roads are not shown on the 7.5' map, but, it's not too difficult to navigate through this area. From the 5870T intersection, we followed excellent dirt roads southeast towards point 6015T along Salt Creek Ridge. Keep in mind, there has been virtually NO brush whatsoever until this point! We were beyond exhilarated having avoided that dilemma we'd heard too much about. From the vicinity of 6015T, a sometimes-faint and patchy use trail warbles up the sometimes-steep SCR ridgeline to the 9040' summit. Some minimal brush is encountered along the way, but it's virtually inconsequential. The bigger obstacles, if that's the right word, are several large rock croppings along the ridgeline that can be passed by dropping off the ridgeline's apex as needed. The forest in here is lush pine. Despite this though, there isn't too much redeeming value in this long approach (other than brush avoidance), except for a few rare Giant Sequoias that haven't been cut down around the 5500' elevation. However, the summit views are well worth the effort. And perhaps most dramatic, are the sheer granite faces of Homers' southern walls, rivaling those of perhaps, Yosemite. With breaks, lunch and navigational checks, our ascent time was 7.5 hours, we arrived on top about 2:30 PM, the good ammo can left by Doug Bear is still intact, not many people climb this isolated summit. We spent nearly an hour on top, basking in the sun and enjoying the clear views to the east and north. We departed the summit at 3:30PM and retraced our exact path as best we could back to the dirt road near 6015T. Once back on good dirt road near twilight, we relaxed a little. The glowing, nearly-fluorescent orange sunset against the nearby towers and walls of Castle Rocks and the Sierra was stunning and almost surreal. We arrived back at the trailhead at 8:30 PM (well in to dark, take headlamps), making for a 13.5 hour dayhike, not really all that bad. After several adult beverages and copious amounts of chips, we departed for Wolverton/Lodgepole. We dayhiked Silliman (extremely clear summit views, amazing how little snow is left in the Sierra) on Sunday and then returned home. My estimate for the Homers' roundtrip via this northwesternern approach is 22 miles, 6500' gain (net), extreme class one+, 12-14 hours. However, I had my Avocet altimeter accumulator running and the ascent's "gross" gain was 7,200'. But, since there are several dips along the ascent/descent, the total day's gain for the roundtrip was nearly 8,000'. There were several small streams flowing along the way, but residual evidence of cattle was also noted, so a water pump is prudent. Furthermore, public access to these dirt roads is blocked by locked gates. We saw a lot of fresh tire tracks en route, but never saw anyone.

Mandatory maps : 7.5' Case Mtn.; 7.5' Silver City Route notes :

• From CA highway 198, take the Mineral King road to the 1923 Kaweah River bridge and park (limited to maybe one or two vehicles here). This is where the road crosses the East Fork of the Kaweah River at BM 2536.7' (see Case Mtn 7.5' map) and is about 0.25 miles southwest of Oak Grove.
• Walk up the paved road about 0.1 miles to the gated dirt road on the pavement's east side, UTM 11S 0339368, 4035226.
• Pass through the gate, then over the bridge and continue following the obvious main dirt road (shown as "4WD" on the Case Mtn 7.5') generally south, climbing up to about the 5200' contour. Here, the road forks, each of the two sides with a locked gate posted with "NO TRESPASSING" signs. NOTE : from about 5200' to point 5870T, the 7.5' map does not correctly show all the roads in this area.
• Take the left/southerly fork, dropping down perhaps 20' crossing a small stream. Proceed for about 0.3 miles to a "T" intersection with an old 4WD track (now more of a cattle trail) and turn left here, following the path through a gate, then past an old logging camp on your left. From here, the path hairpin turns northwest and is cluttered with some downed trees that are easily avoided. Also note several well-preserved Giant Sequoias in the area. Continuing on, pass through an old black iron gate, now heading south, to a "T" intersection with an excellent dirt road. Turn left here and proceed uphill 0.25 miles to an intersection with another excellent dirt road near point 5870T. Again, turn left (southeast) here and follow the excellent dirt road to a fork at point 5815T and take the left (easterly) side of the fork. Continue on this road, crossing the stream (near the "U" on the map @ UTM 0339145, 4030156) where there's a fork with the signed road that heads downhill towards Coffeepot Canyon. At this fork, take the right side (uphill) and continue generally southeast towards point 6015T. Just southeast of 6015T, the road makes one final fork (0340600,4029300), the left side going downhill, the right going up; take the uphill fork for 0.25 miles to a small level area, just before this spur deadends. In this area is where you strike out southeast cross country along Salt Creek Ridge at first picking up a good and taped use trail that's obvious for maybe 0.5 miles. Beyond here, essential cross country navigational skills are necessary. At times, the forest trees are thick, but the ridgeline maintains its integrity and is pretty "simple" to follow. Occasional patches of low brush and large rock out croppings are as confrontational as it gets during the 3,000' gain to the "bald" summit area. You may pick up intermittent "pieces" of trail and/or see ducks as you stroll along the ridgeline and eventually pass by points 7163T and the large out cropping of 8323T. There is an anonymous benchmark disk on the summit's boulder.

Thanks to Brian Smith and Hillery Royer for their collaboration and quality camaraderie in making this a great and satisfying adventure into the "great unknown". I'm sure over time, this route description will become refined. We found the hike to be enduring yet enjoyable, especially as a Fall dayhike. Some may desire to backpack, but we felt a dayhike was certainly a doable endeavor as we've proven. It was actually quite fun "engineering" a route past the dreaded brush we'd heard so much about which added to the day's satisfaction.