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| Hiking | 3.57 Miles |
1,150 AEG |
| | Hiking | 3.57 Miles | 4 Hrs 43 Mns | | 1.70 mph |
| 1,150 ft AEG | 2 Hrs 37 Mns Break | 12 LBS Pack | | |
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| partners | | Sam brought part of the family and friends over to the house and we took the Escape. Figured if the road is a little rough, may as well beat up the SUV. The road in was little rough, but not bad. There's a few spots that have some washed out ravines, a few of them pretty deep. One of those spots I actually got out and looked at it to see if I could sneak by the edge, as it was close. Drop a wheel or get too close to the edge where it collapses on you and you are pretty much pumpkined, even with a 4x4. A couple of other places, you better be confident in your ability to know where your wheels are or you face the same thing. I actually held my breath a couple of times....  Somehow even though I had to hug the "shoulder" a few times, I only suffered some temporary Arizona Pinstriping.... 
The Peak looks impressive from the Parking Spot and I'm excited. You actually follow an old road on foot for roughly a mile before going "off trail". Don't even try to drive that road, it's very steep and we had trouble just keeping our footing on the hills.
I had brought both ssk44's and Joe's Routes and when we hit the saddle by the Water Tank, (which is bone dry), we decided that although ssk44's Route was a little longer it was less steep.  So we went to the east side of the saddle, turned south, and up ssk44's ridge. Nice uphill climb and we are almost to the top of the small peak that starts the East/West ridge of the Mountain. It was warm and with the uphill, we were taking a little while to get there. I could see a small grassy meadow in-between the small peak and summit. Looking at the terrain, I decided that we could eliminate some of the "direct" uphill to the small peak and bypass it completely, traversing across just below the ridge and achieving the meadow with a gradual uphill instead.  It worked out really well and the meadow was very cool. Soft green grass, hardly any rocks, and the soil felt almost spongy, but not muddy. Sweet.
Took a break there and enjoyed the views and some shade. Sam was a little puzzled at the elevation he was showing, he was eyeing the Peak and felt like it wasn't nearly as high as it should be. Well as we found out, from the angle we were looking, we were actually looking at a "false summit". Got to the false summit and were in awe of the actual Summit. It rose above us almost like a Pyramid and the "ridgeline" going up looked just like a corner of one... It was narrow and rocky looking, but after just doing Battleship, it wasn't nearly as narrow or exposed as that, so I was fine with it. If I fell, I was just going to tumble, not plummet...
I lead the way, trying the find the easiest route, but also anxious to get to the top. Eric's description was right on when he stated that the bushwacking was light, I could have easily worn shorts and been fine, but since I had pants on, sometimes I was too lazy to go around a thicker area and just plowed through. That probably wasn't fair to my compadres, as Adrian had shorts on. But the brush areas were isolated enough, that if they weren't comfortable following what I did, it didn't take much for them to find a cleaner route. About 10 feet below the Summit I stopped traversing, took a left and went straight up a steep dirt part. Talk about timing. When my eyes came over the top, my face was almost headbutting the Summit marker....
The Summit was amAZing!!! 360 degree views for miles. And top it off, it must be the season for a certain Family of Butterflies. They were everywhere on top, but they weren't feeding. If they landed, it was only for a split second, no chance of getting a picture. White, Green, Blue and Yellow ones constantly flitting around and doing acrobatic moves. Sam actually caught a White one with Picture #9. It's in the air on my right. So to top off the incredible views we were soaking in, the Butterflies gave the moment a touch of "Magic", usually only read about in books....
There were a few bees too. There were alot of different blooms going on in the area. Very few poppies, and the Indian Paintbrush was very isolated, but there were about 10 other species in full bloom and very colorful.
The others decided to start their descent back to the false summit, I stayed for a few more minutes and took a few more pics. When I got down and met the others, apparently Adrian had a run-in with a bee. He had a welt growing just under his right eye. He said that the Bee smacked him in the face and stung him, but I really couldn't see a Stinger. I scraped it to be sure and since he wasn't swelling up like a balloon, it wasn't going to be an emergency. He seemed ok and looked no worse for wear an hour later, so we were probably lucky he wasn't allergic....
Took more of a direct descent, probably following Joe's Route a little closer. It's steeper, but with a little creative switchbacking to help with the steepness and to find "cleaner" areas, it worked out great. Back to the Saddle, took a shade break and then followed the rollercoaster road back to the car. Some of those downhills on that road are almost easier to run down, rather than try to walk it and keep your footing.... Got back to the car and made it out to the highway without incident...Whew....
Awesome trip with good company. Sam could have probably left me in the dust, but was watching out for his daughter who wasn't as experienced of a Hiker as he was. We had a great time and the Summit was totally worth the work to get there....Thanks to Sam, Laurel and Adrian for joining me in this Peak Quest.... |
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Wildflowers Observation Light
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| Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty & well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, totally worn out & proclaiming, "Wow What a Ride!" |
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Route Editor
Route Scout
From here I hoofed up what remains of the road and turned right at the tank and began the climb. The chest-high straw was dried out and crunchy, but provided a clear view to the ground, while the knee-high grass was thick and obscured whatever footing might be below.
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