Newman Hill - Kaibab NF, AZ

Overview
Newman Hill (8,503' in elevation with 425' of prominence) is just outside of the Kendrick Mountain Wilderness, and can easily be accessed from the Kendrick Mountain Trailhead, which is the same trailhead that is used for Kendrick Peak Trail #22.


Hike
The hike begins and ends at the Kendrick Mountain Trailhead. From the trailhead, walk up Forest Road 90 for about a half-mile, and then veer off to your left to go off-trail up to Newman Hill. It's a steep climb -- you'll gain about 550 feet in elevation over 0.4 miles -- but the terrain is easy to walk on and there is no bristly vegetation to deal with. You'll be walking through some grass, and there are some sparse pine trees along the way. It would be a very easy and pleasant walk was it not for the steepness.Once you climb up to the top, you'll see a summit cairn, which has a summit register log. The summit is basically flat and has no trees, so you get some good 360-degree views. The view of Humphreys and Agassiz is arguably better than the view atop Kendrick Peak.

Descend the same way you came to get back to the trailhead. The descent is easier than the ascent, although trekking poles will be helpful.

Synopsis
This is a fun little hike, but it is not likely one that you'd make a special trip to Flagstaff to do. However, if you are already going to Flagstaff to hike up to Kendrick Peak, this one might be of interest as an add-on to Kendrick, especially to those who have the peakbagging addiction and who don't mind a little off-trail hiking!

2020-05-01 DixieFlyer