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| Hiking | 6.00 Miles |
1,680 AEG |
| | Hiking | 6.00 Miles | 5 Hrs | | 1.20 mph |
| 1,680 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | I had made this trip once before unsuccessfully and, after recently reading some comments from my fellow HAZ members about how the wreckage was actually visible in the sun from the TH, I decided to give it another go.
I recently purchased a GPS so the coordinates of the crash site were of a much greater value than on my non-GPS attempt. I left from Scottsdale expecting a much sharper drop in temp up in Flagstaff than I actually experienced. It was in the high 70s at the TH (9000+ feet up) when I set out. The day was not too warm though and the hike up to the now famed '7th Switchback' was enjoyable. I should note that living in Florida for a year has erased my memory of high elevations. I definately felt the affects of my moderate asthma and stopped for short rests every 15 - 20 minutes once I got above 10,000 ft.
I cut slightly uphill upon leaving the trail as the area immediately to the north is a fairly steep-sided ravine that I wasn't interested in crossing. I took a slightly meandering route across the alternating brush and flows of loose lava rock but kept my general Northerly heading, making occasional cuts up the grade of the mountain in order to gain the last several hundred feet to find the main debris field.
The coordinates (and map actually) that I got from one of the other HAZ member's photoset (I believe his screenname is "00," got to give credit where it's due) were excellent and I doubt I would have found the site without them. It took me approx 3 hours to reach the crash site from the TH.
The site is incredible! I took about 30-40 photos and posted several on here. The act of taking the photos was difficult sometimes as one needs to balance on the loose scree in the high winds of Humprheys. I think I was most amazed at how well most of this stuff has survived up there for over 60 years! Other than the damage done by the initial impact there seems to be very little damage, deterioration, rust, etc of any kind. I entered the debris field near what appeared to be the top and walked down to within about 100 yards of the large pieces (wings, armor plating, fuselage) that seemed to make up the lower end of the site. Both wings are still there in some respect as well as the landing gear (sticking straight up,) at least one engine, one prop (bent to a rather un-aerodynamic degree) and all of the small rocks you stand on are awash with small metal pieces ranging from about the size of a quarter up to the size of my forearm.
I took a slightly circuitous route on my way back to the trail (due to some GPS ignorance on my part) and ended up rejoining the trail from above a little beyond Swtichback Seven. As a result of this, I will refrain from posting my GPS route on here as I think it might confuse more than anything else. Pretty much after leaving the trail, if you have a GPS/coordinates, just follow the path of least resistance going generally North and slightly uphill and you will get there.
Upon rejoining the trail I stopped for a quite snack/rest. While there, a young couple returning from the summit stopped to talk about my GPS w/me. I told them about the crash site (of which they were previously unaware) and shared a few pics from my digital camera (hopefully enough to pique their interest to try on their own.) They set off and I made a quick phone call to say hello to my Mom from over 2 miles above sea level (cell signal was surprisingly strong.)
It took me about 90 minutes more to reach the TH and pack in a very enjoyable and rewarding day on Humphreys
PS- One thing I did note is that it seems to technically be illegal to hike off-trail on Humphreys. There does not seem to be any significant detachment of rangers up there to enforce this in anyway but it does appear that I made myself subject to a $500 fine that day. The legal issue coupled with the general scarcity of knowledge of the crash site seem to really keep this place under wraps. This is just my own personal estimate but I would imagine the crash site sees less than 10 visits per month |
| _____________________
"Being unselfish is a natural high, like hiking or paint thinner."
- Homer J Simpson |
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