This crag in the Sawtooth Range can honestly lay claim to being one of the biggest granite walls in the High Sierra. Essentially the culmination of the north ridge of Eocene Peak. It is separated from the towers to the south by a significant notch, which forms part of the standard descent route (see below).
Getting There
The trailhead is at Twin Lakes/Mono Village, to park at the Marina you must pay $10.00. A permit is required if camping, go here for more information.
Hike west along the Robinson Creek Trail to Little Slide Canyon - about where the Hoover Wilderness sign is. Negotiate boggy terrain and a couple of tributaries (sandals recommended, cache on other side) to the south bank of Robinson Creek, go right (west) and pick up "The Switchbacks" which are steep but short. Continue to follow the trail on less steep ground to the talus. Stay left of the creek; follow cairns up to a ramp with trees which passes beneath a waterfall. Here the trail is less obvious, but cairns do mark a way up over granite benches, and ledges to a flat area west of the Hulk and east of Maltby Lake.
About 6 hours with backpacks, 3 hours without. Some people mountain bike to the wilderness sign, some people do the Hulk in one long day, some people camp beneath the climbs - it's up to you, and how you view the mountains.
Descent from the Routes From the summit, and after paying homage to the Superball - make a steep and exposed Class 3 descent (nervous soloists need not apply) of the south ridge, about 300', near its terminus go left and descend down to the rappel anchor, where a single rope rappel will deposit you in the notch mentioned above. Go right (west) and descend steep and loose scree to a small tower and a branch. Take the left branch and Class 5 down climb the overhanging chockstone - very worrying. A little further you'll reach the main gully beneath the Incredible Hulk's wall - stagger and stumble down some of the worst scree I've ever seen back to the start of the climbs, and then down the final scree fan. Some may take 45 minutes to do this, I've seen it written up as "trivial" - IMHO it's more than both of these.
The Classics
Mountain Project's determination of some of the classic, most popular, highest rated routes for Incredible Hulk:
The Venturi Effect is a spectacular line, maybe the best of it's grade in the Sierra (or California, or the US...?) Continuously difficult, the bulk of the climbing if sustained 5.11, with plently of vicious, well-protected 5.12 cruxes. Do this route right now!P1 starts at a thin flake with a bolt on the right side of the "Triangular recess". It's not the wider crack that forms the actual right side of the triangle (that's "Eye of the Storm"), bu...[more]Browse More Classics in CA
The wilderness sign mentioned here and in the supertopo is no longer there. To find the right spot to turn off the main trail (Barney Lake Trail), look for Little Slide Canyon on the left, it's the first major side canyon you'll see. Just before you reach it, there'll be a large open meadow on your left, bordered on its west by a dense grove of aspen. Walk across the meadow, find the downed logs to cross Robinson Creek (it's easy to stay dry), and then work your way into the mouth of Little Slide Canyon.
Climb Safe, -Scott
Edit: Apparently these directions might lead you astray, since there are multiple "meadows bordered by aspen" along the Robinson creek trail. Here's another landmark to make sure you turn off the main trail at the right spot: Make sure that you can see the distinct spires (Outgard Spire, Totem, Duck, and Reggae Poles) high on the West side of Little Slide Canyon before leaving the main trail.
There is one earlier "meadow bordered by dense aspen", and then you actually walk through an aspen grove (on the trail), and then enter the correct meadow, from which you can see the spires. Here, leave the main trail, cross the meadow, and cross the creek. Once across, stay just on the South side of the creek for a few hundred yards. You make an unlikely 3rd class traverse on a rocky section about 6 inches above the water, and then enter Little Slide Canyon in a grove of pine trees.
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