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| Weatherford to Snow Bowl Shuttle, AZ | |
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| | Weatherford to Snow Bowl Shuttle, AZ | | | |
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Weatherford to Snow Bowl Shuttle, AZ
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| Hiking | 16.56 Miles |
5,141 AEG |
| | Hiking | 16.56 Miles | 9 Hrs 15 Mns | | 2.12 mph |
| 5,141 ft AEG | 1 Hour 26 Mns Break | | | |
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| no partners | | Original plan was to hit up the Summit trail, with a side trip to the B-24 bomber site. But, as we headed out of Flag towards the Peaks, road signage indicated that Snow Bowl Road was closed for the morning for an event.  Luckily, the signage was just before the Museum of Northern Arizona, and we made a split-second decision to re-route our starting point to the Weatherford trailhead, instead (the turn-off for which is literally just past the Museum).
Arrived at Weatherford TH just after 8 am. The parking area doesn't have very many stalls, but we found a spot. I walked down to Shultz tank to take a peak, as it seems more full than in times past (I've never taken the time before to check in out.)
Hit the trail about 8:15. That said, we had prepared for a 10-11 mile hike, and and out-and-back on Weatherford is about twice that. So, my wife volunteered to turn around at Doyle Saddle and shuttle the car over to Snow Bowl, while my two kids and I made our way to Humphreys Peak and then down the Summit trail.
I love the Weatherford Trail! Saw a few more people on it than we normally do, but still, this is the summit route with the best chance of solitude on the Peaks.
At the junction with the Inner Basin trail, traffic picked up. Apparently, the event planners on Snow Bowl Road routed disappointed hikers to Lockett Meadow, which accounted for the larger-than-usual numbers. Even so, it wasn't "crowded" on the trail. The biggest problem from the Inner Basin junction to Fremont Saddle was BUGS! Swarms of those flying ant types--literally millions of them.  Normally, this section of the trail is one of my favorites, but on this day, it was a mile's worth of constant swatting, flicking and trying not to breathe the darn things in. I wondered: Where are your predators?  My son used his hat to swat a path through the insect-fest, and by the time we arrived at Fremont Saddle, he had unwittingly captured about 20-30 of the buggers.
Needless to say, we were glad to get above the treeline and leave bug-a-geddon behind.
Views along the Agassiz switchback and on up to the Summit of Humphreys were fantastic. It was as clear a day as I've ever experienced up there. Conditions on the summit were great as well--just enough breeze to keep the gnats away, but not the heavy wind that often blows up there. And clear visibility in all directions.
We enjoyed the summit for 15-20 minutes, then started our way down--glad to only have 5 miles to go, instead of another 11. 
We thought briefly about hitting up the Bomber site on the way down, but were running low on both water and energy, and decided (once again) to save that exploration for another day.
The last mile and a half to the trailhead seemed to drag on ..., and we were glad to cross the finish line on another adventure in this always beautiful section of the Great Outdoors.
Dinner in Flagstaff at Freddy's and then it was back to the oxygen-filled lowlands of the Valley. |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
