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| Hiking | 6.35 Miles |
2,682 AEG |
| | Hiking | 6.35 Miles | 4 Hrs 7 Mns | | 1.81 mph |
| 2,682 ft AEG | 37 Mns Break | | | |
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| partners | | After an adventure exploring new parts of the range yesterday, I opted to guide my tourist guests up to the tourist peak! It's been a few years since I did it and I completely forgot about the fun at the top! There was one car at the trailhead when we started and we encountered the vehicle's hiker about halfway up the lower slope of the climb. Somewhat unusual, he took pains to find his way off-route in what seemed to be a deliberate attempt to avoid us. No greetings were shared, which seemed odd to us -- hikers are usually fairly cordial when encountering others on hikes like this where it's not common to see anybody else. No matter. We continued on.
The route has been well-traveled over the years and finding the way is not a challenge. I forgot how steep it gets. The last half mile knocks off an impressive 1,200 feet. When we reached the saddle at the top of the chute I remembered the great views to the south but forgot there was an easy way up. So I proceeded up the sketchy 4th class climb up the crack directly from the saddle. There's a big loose chock stone there that seems pretty dumb to grab hold of, but I survived long enough to get above it. Once there I saw the worn path leading to the easier, safe route, and advised the others they shouldn't follow me.
The puzzle of steps and switches leading to the summit was great. I'll try not to forget these details should I choose to return here in the future!
Reading the register, we discovered that some people who climb this peak take a much quicker and significantly more vertical and gravity-powered descent option. That's not my thing, but it would be enjoyable to watch them jump sometime. We also discovered that the hiker we passed along the way was a guy that I would have liked to meet. We share a name, he has written a number of books about hiking and canyoneering all over Arizona, and he publishes an online hikingguide that's been a resource for decades. Next time maybe I'll just yell "HI!" even if somebody seems intent on avoiding me! 
We made good time on the descent, though the scree does slow you down a bit. The low winter sun provides shade along most of the route on the mountain, but down in the wash, the sun was bright and warm.
I wasn't a fan of the new bypass route so tested out the exit over Macpherson Pass. If you're coming from Quartzsite, I found this to be 10-15 minutes less driving time. There's one tricky spot just south of the pass ... a multi-tiered rock step that would require 4wd and stop most drivers of subaru or crossover type vehicles. There is a short route around the obstacle that solves that. While there's more dirt on this north access, it's generally very pleasant driving across beautiful desert and avoids all the irritating bs of the new bypass road on the south side. YMMV. |
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| I'm not sure what my spirit animal is, but I'm confident it has rabies. |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
