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| Hiking | 3.25 Miles |
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| | Hiking | 3.25 Miles | 3 Hrs | | 1.08 mph |
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| no partners | | Montana Peak Above Ruby
This is about a 45 minute drive from Exit 12 on I-19.
The road after Pena Blanca lake is gravel and is maintained but still rough in places.
The last mile or two of this cannot be made with a passenger car.
From rt. 39 – Ruby road
Take California gulch.
From this intersection there is a silted in dam and if you pass this you have missed it by the width of the dam its self.
There are two roads to the left across the silted in part. Take the second one. It goes up sharply.
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Every time I have been here the silted in dam has had water over it BUT the water is only 4-8 inches deep and standing. My Silverado in 2wd had no trouble crossing. Luckily.
I parked at about .75 miles from the dam.
There is no path so I shot off in a straight line and it was steep but fast. I found a lot of solid out cropping of solid rock that make the going easier.
There were lots of animal and human trails to follow. I found at least a dozen carpeted shoe covers.
There are a series of flattish spots on the way up that make good rest places and each on has at least one shade tree. (flat does not mean level.)
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Once I got over the first set of cliffs there was a really big flat area. Lots of trees and several lookouts to the South. I hiked to the south until it got steep and around the flat area for about 30 minutes. No interesting rocks to speak of but lots of backpacks and sleeping bags.
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My mistake was going up the East side. This is doable and there quite a few interesting rock formations but its longer and irritating because of the flora and unstable rock and exposer in places.
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I came down the wash to the South and when I go back I’m going up this way. There is a hidden lookout at the top of the wash hand looks pretty recent. It’s steep but safe.
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Once at the top of this set of cliffs the way slopes gradually to the top. Gradual being relative to the first 2/3 of the hike. The top is flat though not level for most of it. There are some big solar panels. And I found a memorial rock. Kudos to whomever hiked that thing up there.
If there was a register there it was glass and was broken when I got there.
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I didn’t make it to the peak because of all the side trips on the way up. I really like to explore all the nooks and crannies so light was fading.
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I covered a little over 3 miles and the entire trip on foot took about 3 hours including breaks.
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Hoping to go back this Fall and make it to the actual peak. |
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