Location: Kern County, about 43 miles north of Mojave, 140 miles from Los Angeles

Maps

Auto Club: Kern County

Forest Service: Sequoia National Forest

USGS Topo: Owens Peak 7½, Freeman Junction7½

HPS: Route(s), waypoints and explanation of usage

Nearby Peaks: Russell Peak (Russell Peak can be hiked from Backus Peak.)

Distance: 8 miles round trip on trail and rocky cross-country

Gain: 3700'

Time: 8 hours round trip

Rating: Class 2, strenuous

Navigation: Moderate route finding

Access: Do not park past the Wilderness boundary signs.

Original: Byron Prinzmetal, April 1999

DRIVING ROUTE 2

• Take SR 14 north to Mojave.
• Continue north on SR 14 to the intersection with SR 178 (Freeman Junction).
• Go west on SR 178 4.7 miles to a dirt road on the north side of the highway. Park here. Unlimited parking space. If you are coming from the west, it is 3.7 miles from Walker Pass summit to the parking location.

Note: You will save several miles of hiking if you leave a car at the parking spot for Route 1.

HIKING ROUTE 2

• From Russell Peak hike southeast along the ridge passing over bump 6515'.
• Continue along the ridge staying to the south side of bumps 6661' and 6582'.
• Continue past bump 6582' up the ridge to Backus Peak.

The ridge from Russell to Backus is only 2 miles long, but plan for it to take at least three hours due to route finding and rocky cross-country travel. There is 900' of gain and loss along this ridge. You should not traverse any of the bumps on the north side. All rock outcrops should be skirted to the south. There is a faint use trail developing and one should look for it.