Freel Peak

A few weeks before Whitney, I used Freel Peak as one of my training hikes — at 10,881 feet, it's the tallest peak in the entire Lake Tahoe Basin, and a serious enough climb on its own to work as solid altitude prep. The trail climbs out of forest and sagebrush into open, rocky slopes well above treeline, with the kind of exposed, sandy switchbacks that make the last mile the hardest part.

The payoff at the top is one of the best views in Tahoe — the entire lake spread out below, ringed by the Sierra crest in one direction and the Carson Valley dropping away in the other. Good practice for legs and lungs, and a solid confidence boost heading into the real thing.