First Footsteps
Small beginnings, wide-open views. Short summit walks and first mountain days.
Trailcraft to practice: Comfortable pacing and trail awareness.
Collection keepsake: Mossy Boots
THE UNOFFICIAL AUTHORITY ON POCKET CLOUDS
Field Guide
Quest words, curious treasures, and mountain tales of questionable credibility. Look it up before the marmots make something up.
The words in your journal
- Trailcraft
- Our shorthand for the practical habits behind a good mountain day: pacing, navigation, fueling, route planning, and terrain-specific skills. “Trailcraft to practice” suggests preparation for that collection or approach; it is not a skill you unlock by earning an item.
- Quest pack
- Your display of virtual keepsakes. They appear automatically when your logged summits meet their requirements.
- Keepsakes
- Made-up treasures earned from your first summit, five different peaks, or a complete collection. They have no powers, expiry, or spending mechanic. Correcting your journal can change which ones you own.
- Trail journal
- Your record of outings: summits, repeat visits, and attempts or turnarounds. It is saved in this browser. Returning to a peak adds a story, but does not count as another unique peak.
- Collections
- Named groups of peaks with a shared flavor. Explore them in any order. Bag every peak in a group to earn its keepsake; a complete collection does not certify mountain skills.
- Bag a peak
- Reach a summit and record it in your trail journal. Past ascents count too. An attempt belongs in your journal without counting toward summit rewards.
- Quest challenge
- Our 1–10 estimate combining endurance, altitude, and technical terrain for the described approach. The storybook names below label that scale. Conditions can change the difficulty; this is not a climbing grade or an AllTrails rating.
- 1–2: First Adventure — Introductory
- 3–4: Worthy Quest — Moderate
- 5–6: Bold Ascent — Strenuous
- 7–8: Grand Expedition — Very demanding
- 9–10: Legendary Climb — Advanced alpine
- Wishlist & next peak
- Your wishlist holds peaks you want to visit. Your next peak is the one you have picked to focus on. Neither is a commitment or a readiness assessment.
- Peak legends
- Original Summit Quest tall tales, invented for a laugh. These are fictional stories, not local history, Indigenous traditions, or route advice. The mountains are real; their snack paperwork is not.
The item index
Every treasure, including the ones still waiting for you. Entirely virtual; no actual cloud bottling required.
Quest keepsake
Trail Spark
A little ember from the day the mountains called your name.
Bag your first summit.
Explore the summits →Quest keepsake
Wanderer’s Compass
Its needle has a habit of pointing toward another adventure.
Bag five different peaks.
Explore the summits →Quest keepsake
Mossy Boots
A well-loved pair, with a first chapter tucked into every scuff.
Bag all 7 peaks in First Footsteps.
Explore the summits →Quest keepsake
Ridgeline Feather
A wind-tossed keepsake from the long way round.
Bag all 15 peaks in Ridgeline Ramblers.
Explore the summits →Quest keepsake
Pocket Cloud
A tiny bottle of sky. Somehow, it never quite sits still.
Bag all 10 peaks in Cloud Chasers.
Explore the summits →Quest keepsake
Frostheart Crystal
A glimmer of winter with a mountain’s stubborn heart.
Bag all 3 peaks in Frost & Stone.
Explore the summits →Quest keepsake
Skykeeper’s Lantern
A small light for remembering very big skies.
Bag all 3 peaks in Skyward Bound.
Explore the summits →Quest keepsake
Crown of Tall Tales
Best worn around a campfire, with a story for every point.
Bag all 3 peaks in Peaks of Legend.
Explore the summits →
Six chapters, any order
Ridgeline Ramblers
Take the long way to a familiar skyline. Longer hikes with far-reaching views.
Trailcraft to practice: Sustained climbing, pacing, fueling, and navigation.
Collection keepsake: Ridgeline Feather
Cloud Chasers
A little closer to the sky. Long summit days, thin air, and rougher ground.
Trailcraft to practice: Long-day planning, altitude awareness, and Class 2 terrain.
Collection keepsake: Pocket Cloud
Frost & Stone
Where boots meet snow and stone. Snow climbs and committing alpine scrambles.
Trailcraft to practice: Route-specific snow or scrambling skills, alpine judgment, and turnaround decisions.
Collection keepsake: Frostheart Crystal
Skyward Bound
Big skies, close-knit rope teams. Glaciers, exposed rock, and steeper alpine terrain.
Trailcraft to practice: Rope systems, glacier travel, anchors, and technical descents.
Collection keepsake: Skykeeper’s Lantern
Peaks of Legend
The stuff of campfire stories. Major alpine climbs to dream about and prepare for.
Trailcraft to practice: Route-specific glacier or rock skills, remote travel, and long alpine days.
Collection keepsake: Crown of Tall Tales
The tall-tale atlas
41 real peaks. 41 completely invented stories. Original Summit Quest fiction, not local history or route advice.
Alta Peak
The tree’s postcard
A tree sent a postcard uphill asking what the view was like. The reply was so long it needed six stamps. The tree now claims to have visited, which is technically a stretch.
Visit Alta Peak →Bald Mountain — Sugarloaf Ridge
The missing wig
The mountain ordered a grass wig for a formal occasion. The wind tried it on first and left town. The mountain now insists the bare look was a bold personal choice.
Visit Bald Mountain — Sugarloaf Ridge →Brokeoff Mountain
Some assembly required
A mountain furniture kit arrived with one piece missing and seventeen spare screws. Its builder called the result intentional. The warranty department has been unusually quiet.
Visit Brokeoff Mountain →Castle Peak
The extremely small monarchy
A marmot crowned itself ruler of a castle with no doors. Its first decree required all clouds to look vaguely like cheese. Enforcement has been inconsistent.
Visit Castle Peak →Clouds Rest
The cloud hotel
Clouds checked in for one night and requested a late checkout. That was several seasons ago. The front desk keeps leaving increasingly polite notes about the borrowed towels.
Visit Clouds Rest →Ellis Peak
The lake’s good side
A portrait painter asked the lake to show its good side. The lake gestured everywhere at once. The painter switched to landscapes and stopped taking commissions.
Visit Ellis Peak →Freel Peak
The top shelf
The mountains put their best biscuits on the highest shelf and forgot who could reach it. A passing cloud offered to help. It returned with suspiciously buttery edges.
Visit Freel Peak →Grand Teton
The skyline conductor
A peak raised its baton to conduct the dawn chorus. The clouds came in early, the wind missed its cue, and a pebble coughed through the solo. Critics called it a bold interpretation.
Visit Grand Teton →Lassen Peak
The kettle complaint
A cloud bought a mountain-sized kettle, then complained that it took too long to cool. Customer service suggested patience. The cloud requested to speak to the geology manager.
Visit Lassen Peak →Lembert Dome
The giant’s paperweight
A giant set this dome on a picnic napkin to stop it blowing away. The picnic ended centuries ago, but the giant is certain the receipt is still underneath.
Visit Lembert Dome →Little Si
The small mountain’s résumé
Little Si applied for a job as a very large mountain. Its résumé listed “excellent views” and “surprisingly persuasive uphill.” The hiring panel asked about height. Little Si asked about attitude.
Visit Little Si →Mission Peak
The uphill assignment
A hill was given a simple mission: make everyone say “nearly there” at least twice. It exceeded expectations. Its annual review described it as alarmingly motivated.
Visit Mission Peak →Montara Mountain — North Peak
The fog subscription
Montara signed up for a free fog trial and forgot to cancel. Every morning another delivery arrives. The unsubscribe button is somewhere in the mist.
Visit Montara Mountain — North Peak →Mount Diablo
The horizon collector
This mountain began collecting horizons and ran out of shelf space. It stacked them in every direction. Visiting clouds are asked to admire the collection without touching.
Visit Mount Diablo →Mount Eddy
The understudy
Eddy agreed to hold the view while Shasta took a break. Audiences kept applauding, so Eddy started requesting its own dressing room. The room is a cloud with a folding chair.
Visit Mount Eddy →Mount Hoffmann
The map’s belly button
A map folded itself so enthusiastically that it declared this spot its belly button. The other peaks found that unprofessional. The map said it was simply trying to find its center.
Visit Mount Hoffmann →Mount Judah
The loop committee
A squirrel committee tried to design a walk with no end so lunch would never be over. They invented a loop. The minutes of the meeting are mostly crumbs.
Visit Mount Judah →Mount Pilchuck
The lookout guestbook
A cloud signed the guestbook “lovely view, could use more clouds.” It left a second review under a different name. Both were written in suspiciously damp handwriting.
Visit Mount Pilchuck →Mount Saint Helena
The cloud tasting
A cloud critic declared the afternoon sky had notes of oak, sunshine, and slightly damp socks. The other clouds nodded thoughtfully. None of them had any idea what oak was.
Visit Mount Saint Helena →Mount St. Helens
The cloud haircut
A cloud opened a salon in the sky and offered the horizon a trim. The horizon asked for “just a little off the top.” Both parties now insist on written instructions before booking.
Visit Mount St. Helens →Mount Tamalpais — East Peak
The fog’s alarm clock
The fog keeps an alarm clock here but hits snooze with its entire body. On clear mornings, the clock has rolled under a rock. Nobody is volunteering to retrieve it.
Visit Mount Tamalpais — East Peak →Mount Umunhum
The cloud filing cabinet
A cloud clerk ordered a filing cabinet and received a building-sized box. Every fog bank now arrives alphabetized. Nobody can find “miscellaneous drizzle.”
Visit Mount Umunhum →Mt. Adams
The second dessert
A mountain served what looked like the final course, then revealed another enormous helping. The clouds called it generous. The guests quietly loosened their imaginary belts.
Visit Mt. Adams →Mt. Baker
The impossible bakery
A cloud baker iced an entire mountain and called it a small batch. Asked where the cake was, it became evasive. The display case now carries a very firm “for looking at” sign.
Visit Mt. Baker →Mt. Dana
The pebble census
A very diligent pebble decided to count its neighbors. Every time it reached a thousand, someone asked how it was going. The census is now closed to public inquiries.
Visit Mt. Dana →Mt. Hood
The pointy dress code
Hood arrived at a mountain party wearing its most formal point. The invitation had said casual. Everyone else spent the evening pretending they had also considered dressing up.
Visit Mt. Hood →Mt. Rainier
The sky landlord
Rainier rents parking spaces to clouds. Most pay in drizzle; one keeps promising a rainbow next Tuesday. The lease now explicitly forbids leaving weather in the hallway.
Visit Mt. Rainier →Mt. Rose
The panorama invoice
The horizon once sent this peak a bill for excessive viewing. Rose returned it marked “please itemize.” The horizon is still counting individual trees.
Visit Mt. Rose →Mt. Shasta
The enormous hat
Shasta asked a cloud tailor for a modest hat. The tailor measured once, panicked, and used the whole bolt of sky. Shasta wears it like nothing unusual has happened.
Visit Mt. Shasta →Mt. Shuksan
The portrait fee
The mountain discovered it was in everyone’s landscape paintings and asked for royalties. Payment arrived as one flattering sunset. Its agent is calling that a strong opening offer.
Visit Mt. Shuksan →Mt. Tallac
The lake mirror inspector
A cloud checks its reflection here before every important weather event. It always asks whether it looks too puffy. The lake has learned that this is a rhetorical question.
Visit Mt. Tallac →Mt. Whitney
The sky’s suggestion box
The sky installed a suggestion box here to be more approachable. Every card says “more oxygen, please.” The sky thanks everyone for their feedback and has formed a working group.
Visit Mt. Whitney →Mt. Williamson
The stone librarian
A stone librarian shelved every boulder by personality. Visitors keep asking for the adventure section. “You are standing in it,” says the librarian, who charges late fees in epochs.
Visit Mt. Williamson →North Palisade
The stone dinner party
A gathering of peaks agreed to a quiet dinner and spent three epochs deciding where to sit. North Palisade is still holding a place card. Nobody wants to be the first to ask about dessert.
Visit North Palisade →Pyramid Peak
The geometry exam
A mountain turned in a triangle for its final geometry project. The teacher asked to see its work. It gestured at every rock and said this might take a while.
Visit Pyramid Peak →Sentinel Dome
The granite night watch
The dome appointed itself night watchman, then discovered it could not turn its head. It solved this by declaring everything it could not see “probably fine” and asking the stars for a second opinion.
Visit Sentinel Dome →Sierra Buttes
The upstairs department
A cloud ordered a lookout with an upstairs. The delivery crew took this personally. The cloud left a review reading “excellent upstairs; surprisingly little downstairs.”
Visit Sierra Buttes →South Sister
The family photograph
Three mountain sisters tried to take a family portrait. One blinked, one disappeared behind a cloud, and one insisted the light was better yesterday. The photographer has requested a geological extension.
Visit South Sister →Watchman Peak
The blue inventory
A tiny sky accountant came to count all the blue in the view. After filling nine notebooks, she wrote “quite a lot” and promoted herself to director of looking.
Visit Watchman Peak →White Mountain Peak
The ancient appointment
A mountain scheduled a five-minute chat with an old tree. The tree said it would be ready in a moment. The mountain brought a book. It has since finished the library.
Visit White Mountain Peak →Windy Hill
The wind’s unfinished sentence
A breeze came here to make one quick announcement and lost its place. It has been clearing its throat ever since. The grass remains a patient audience.
Visit Windy Hill →