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| Hiking | 7.36 Miles |
2,527 AEG |
| | Hiking | 7.36 Miles | 5 Hrs 31 Mns | | 1.44 mph |
| 2,527 ft AEG | 24 Mns Break | | | |
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| no partners | | This was the third time I've done this hike, but it's been just over 23 years since my last visit, pre-HAZ days for me. I did the loop hike like I did both times before, but instead of starting on the Hunter Trail and hiking clockwise, I started from the Sunset Vista TH and did the loop counterclockwise. The biggest plus from 23 years ago is that they have built an actual trail along the park road so that you don't hike to hike the asphalt and dodge traffic. I guess I wasn't the only person who did that.
the morning light along Sunset Vista gave a really neat view of the shadow that the mountain casts on the desert floor. Looking over at the Sawtooth and Silver Bell mountains was cool as well.
The last 2 times I did this, I descended on the cables on Sunset Vista. I remember this being kind of exhilarating since it's a pretty big drop and you need to hang on. This was the first time I ascended on them. Halfway up I felt gassed and needed to rest for a few seconds. I then noticed that my climbing gloves with the leather palms aren't really a good fit for the metal cables like they are for rope or rock and my hands were slipping. There's just enough exposure at the halfway point that if you lose your grip there could be a problem. Fortunately I got thru ok and made it to the top. Finding foot holds on the rock was easy except for maybe one spot where I needed to stretch my legs beyond the comfort zone of someone who was 23 years older.
Before that ascent, I only saw one other hiker, who was actually a trail runner  . After that, it was a full on ant trail. Each ascent on the next set of cables got my comfort level higher each time. At the last nearly vertical section I had to wait a good 10 minutes while a group of ladies took their time not letting the hike get in the way of their conversation about extra-terrestrial life  . At the top of that climb I was again gassed. The wait for people coming and going was less of an annoyance at this point trying to breathe. At one point I offered 2 other guys to go ahead of me and the one responded, "No, I need to breathe first". 
On the final climb to the summit I lost the actual trail a few times due to the sun being in my eyes. There are several braids up there and a few cuts on the switchbacks. At the top I took the obligatory pics, had a snack and made my way back down.
I decided to make my way over to the shorter peak since there's an obvious trail that goes over there. At least it was obvious this time of year since the green is everywhere except on the trail. I made the easy scramble to the top of that peak and enjoyed the views there.
got back down and headed down the Hunter Trail. I thought all the work for the day was done but forgot about how much of an ascent there is up to the saddle on those cables. Exposure was no issue on that, but pulling myself up on the cables was really getting taxing at this point. I had to stop to take some pictures (i.e., rest and breathe  ) at one point. On this section I saw a young couple on their way down and the dad had a baby backpack on with a 2 year old in tow  . The child was sleeping which was probably best for all involved. I remember a few hikes when my daughter was little and a grumpy baby yelling in your ear does not make a hike more enjoyable, let alone a challenging one like this.
After the saddle it was all easy peezy. I was planning to hike the Calloway Trail to the overlook but I was behind on time. I didn't pack a lunch and I was getting hungry. Took the Barrett Loop Trail back to the Sunset Vista TH and called it a day. Stopped at the vistor center on the way out and got a fridge magnet and t-shirt.
The motivation for this hike was because this summer I'm planning a very challenging hike in Europe in the Alps which will involve some via ferrata for over a mile and 1000' AEG. This was the best match I could find and I hadn't been there in a long time. I need to start doing more vertical hikes to train for the hike this summer. This was only 2500' AEG for the day so I need to ramp it up. I feel pretty good though, having got thru this without too much difficulty except on the steepest sections. The hike this summer will be over 6000' AEG, but it will be split between 2 days, so I think I'm on the right track.  |
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