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| Hiking | 4.74 Miles |
1,359 AEG |
| | Hiking | 4.74 Miles | 2 Hrs 19 Mns | | 2.05 mph |
| 1,359 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | Last week, I tried taking the Climbers Access Route up East End Mountain to Tom’s Thumb. I had to bail when I encountered a section I did not feel comfortable boulder-hopping. This week, I returned to take the normal human route up Tom’s Thumb Trail to … Tom’s Thumb. Of course.
I arrived at the Tom’s Thumb Trailhead aboout 6:30 a.m. It was still dark out. I was hoping to get up to Ogre’s Den in time for sunrise, but the gate was closed. I ended up tweeting for 45 minutes until the gate was opened.
I found Tom’s Thumb Trail to be wide & immaculately groomed. Up to the saddle, a lot of erosion remediation had been done. I tried to maintain pace on the 700 ft. climb only ¾ of a mile, but I seemed to have lost my hiking edge over the last few months and had to stop several times for ‘photographs’ (i.e. breathers). 
The saddle has good views of McDowell Peak and antenna-topped Thompson Peak. I had been hiking in deep shadow until I reached the saddle, about an hour into my hike.
There is a faint use trail to Ogre's Den, but there are several scrambly bits, so I would not recommend a casual day hiker visit the cave. I was hoping Ogre’s Den would have all the cool stuff I had seen in older photos ( [ Ogre's Den ] ) , such as a cot, picnic table, sandbagged walls, water retention system, lanterns, etc. A neat camping spot. But the killjoy park rangers had removed it all. Bummer. 
On my way back from Ogre’s Den to the saddle, despite my fears of explosive  , I finally broke down and tried eating some orange wolfberries. They were juicy, and extremely tart. I made it back to the trailhead without filling my drawers. 
After taking a break at the bottom of Tom’s Thumb, I followed the Climbers Access Route, which heads from emergency marker CR41 around the west side of Tom’s Thumb. Close to the formation, it was brushy and a bit scrambly, but the Climbers Access Route mellowed out for the next ⅓ of a mile along the ridge.
From the tip of the ridge, the Climbers Access Route is a very steep & rocky 700 ft. descent in only a half mile. Even with several small one- or two-rock cairns, the route is not always obvious. I'm glad I had the route on my GPS.
Once at the bottom, I booked back to the TT3 intersection on Tom's Thumb Trail, thence back to the trailhead.
Hike Video: https://vimeo.com/493143935
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Wildflowers Observation Light
Mexican Gold Poppy and some purple things, mostly closed up in the chill early light air. |
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| http://prestonm.com : Everyone's enjoyment of the outdoors is different and should be equally honored. |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
, I finally broke down and tried eating some orange wolfberries. They were juicy, and extremely tart. I made it back to the trailhead without filling my drawers. 
