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Lodges and Huts
Peter Grubb Hut
The Peter Grubb Hut is in need of urgent repairs and, for the safety of all users, the hut will be closed until further notice. The Sierra Club is currently in the process of evaluating the condition of the hut and the extent of the required repairs.
Peter Grubb Hut is three miles north of I-80 at Donner Summit. It was built in 1938-39 by friends and family as a memorial to Peter Grubb, who had just graduated from Galileo High School in San Francisco and was on a bicycling tour of Europe when he died at the age of 18.
The hut has a main room with a wood-burning stove, tables, and a kitchen area. An upstairs sleeping loft accommodates 15. A single-story annex on the east side is sometimes preferred by smaller parties. A two-story outhouse is 75' WNW of the cabin.
Overnight parking is available at a California Sno-Park on the I-80 frontage road east of the Boreal Inn. From I-80 there is 800' of elevation gain over the first two miles to Castle Pass, then a descent of 250' to the cabin in Round Valley at 7,800' (see USGS Norden 7-1/2' topo map). The route is poorly marked by orange triangles mounted obscurely in trees at 100-200 yard intervals. The cabin is just off the Pacific Crest Trail and is a popular day trip destination.
From the hut there are day trip possibilities to Paradise Valley, Basin Peak, Castle Peak, and Sand Ridge Lake. Round Valley is a good instructional and practice area for skiers.