Groom Creek Loop Trail - Prescott

After a site visit for work in Prescott, I learned about the hike to the fire tower at the top of Spruce Mountain. I was going to try to get a couple of friends to join me, when the hiking group posted the exact hike I wanted to try. Perfect!

I carpooled to the hike with Brian, Sheri, and Bree - friends who I also know from the volunteer meetups.
The group decided to hike the loop clockwise, so we had a shorter steeper climb up, and a longer more gradual descent. (Yeah!!)
I saw lots of lizards and a few horned toads on the way up.
At the top of the mountain were picnic tables and an outhouse. Several people also discovered that the road led right here, begging the question..... why did we hike this?
There were several boulders to scramble over and climb near the base of the fire tower. Bree, Brian and I enjoyed the view.

The fire tower was manned, so we took turns entering and talking to the ranger.
After enjoying the views, we ate lunch then started the hike back down and towards the cars.

Trail Stats:

	Distance Round Trip	7.9 miles
	Trailhead Elevation	6346 feet
	Elevation Gain	1375 feet
	Avg Time Round Trip	4.5 hours