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| Hiking | 9.75 Miles |
1,037 AEG |
| | Hiking | 9.75 Miles | 3 Hrs 57 Mns | | 2.84 mph |
| 1,037 ft AEG | 31 Mns Break | | | |
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| partners | | When Joe posted an event for Davis, my first thought was...why? It looked like an obscure peak in the middle of nowhere--a flat desert hike, then a 700-foot ascent up a volcanic hill, not particularly interesting and not the typical Joe hike. Regardless, it was something new and different, so I was in  . On the way there, I asked Joe how Davis even got on his radar, and he filled me in on the unfortunate Fliver story. The hike suddenly made more sense and was more interesting than I realized. This was my first--and will hopefully remain my only--hike exploring an area where a HAZ member recently passed away.
We parked along Dobbins and approached Davis from the north, with the peak visible the whole way. As expected, it was flat, easy, and fast hiking across Harquahala Plain other than a few minor brushy washes and a handful of barbed wire fences that we took turns holding apart while the other squeezed through. While the immediate surroundings weren't particularly interesting, the views of the Eagletails were top-notch, and Woolsey and Signal were prominent landmarks to the SE.
We swung wide to the west side of Davis, circled around the junior peak and then approached Davis Sr. going up the NW side, with increasing amounts of basalt as we closed in. Parts of the ascent reminded me of Woolsey, albeit much shorter. The slope up to the peak was very steep and covered in scree, but the rock was fairly stable, and the steep part didn't last long. The peak is located on a narrow ridge that runs north/south, and it was easy to find the discs and HOL posts on top.
[ youtube video ]
For a fairly low peak, I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the views, including the Eagletails and Kofa Mountains, Bighorn, Saddle Mountain, Signal, Woolsey, and more. We took some pictures and a short break on top, then headed down the same route. The hike out was uneventful, then we continued to our second stop of the day at Saddle Mountain.
***
I didn't know Fliver personally but had read many of his triplogs and had followed a few of his routes to various summits over the years. It was a strange feeling to visit this obscure peak that ended up being the last benchmark Fliver visited, less than two weeks prior, and the "Fliver dust" was still visible on all the disks. But I was glad we got out there so Joe could get some pictures and info and write up the Davis guide honoring Fliver. It's a sad situation, but it's a beautiful area, and it's nice that he spent his last day doing something he obviously enjoyed. |
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