Mount Elden Loop Hike - Flagstaff AZ

I decided that I wanted to do a longer Flagstaff hike this weekend, and thought a loop around Mount Elden - the Elden to Sunset to Heart Loop - seemed to fit the bill at 9.5 miles and 2400 foot elevation change. None of my hiking friends were available, but Steve from one of my hiking groups was interested in trying this hike. Neither of us had hiked this mountain before so we met early this morning and headed to Flagstaff.

The hike started on the southwestern slope of Mount Elden, following the Elden Lookout Trail. It started with a gradual climb, but quickly became steep switchbacks, which then gave way to tall "steps" up the mountain. I was keeping a fairly decent pace until about 2/3 of the way up, and then my energy was drained (I should have eaten breakfast!!).

We finally reached the first trail junction. Do we add 0.4 miles round trip to go to the summit, or do we skip it and start the loop at the Sunset junction?

We went to the summit!

The lookout tower was closed to the public, but there was a sign on the base indicating that we were now at an elevation of 9300 feet.
After enjoying the view, taking a few pictures, and having a hearty snack, we were ready to head back down and join the Sunset Trail.
The Sunset Trail hugged the side of Mount Elden and passed through an area that was burned by wildfires in 1977. After the strenuous climb up the the summit, it was nice to get on an easy trail, with gradual ups and downs.
The area was filled with new aspen growth along with lots of wild flowers, although the trail was a bit overgrown in areas.

It eventually opened into a field to the Mount Elden side.
It provided great views of the mountains and lava fields to the east of Flagstaff, including Sunset Crater.
Looking back on the trail towards the towers on Mount Elden's summit.
Overlooking Flagstaff from the Sunset Trail.
We then entered a nice wooded area. After about 1.5 miles on this trail, we came to a trail head area. We weren't sure if we missed the turn to Heart Trail. An older couple was approaching, so we asked directions. We were sternly advised to reconsider our plans to make the loop, since the Heart Trail was "treacherous and should be closed to the public". The couple offered to let us hike with them and then drive us back to our car. We decided to take our chances and assured them that we would "take it slow".
About 0.2 miles later, we found the turn for the Heart Trail, which would take us 1300 feet down the east slope of Mount Elden.
Looking back at the summit of Mount Elden - you can barely see the lookout tower on the summit.
Just as we reached the Heart Trail, another hiker (coming from the opposite direction) started down the trail. We decided if he could take his life into his own hands, we could too.
The top of the trail consisted of dozens of switchbacks along the edge of the mountain. There were steep slippery areas at each turn, followed by fairly flat areas along the length of the mountain edge. (If you click on the above picture to enlarge it, you can see Steve WAY ahead of me. He very politely stopped every so often to allow me to catch up.)


The trail was covered in loose stones, making it quite easy to slip, slide and turn and ankle or knee. I went down at a painfully slow pace to prevent injury or sliding down the mountain. It wasn't as treacherous as the dire warning we received, but it did require some balance and careful foot work.

(I thought it was painfully slow, but the Forest Service indicates an average hiking time of 2.5 hours for this trail - it took us about half that time)
When we were about half way down the Heart Trail, storm clouds moved in. We could see lightning in the distance and hear thunder, and we got hit with a few rain drops.
When the red soil turned to gray (about half way down) the trail got less rocky and steep, and we could pick up the pace. That was a good thing, since it was starting to sprinkle.

We finally hit the Christmas Tree Trail, which was a nice easy trail though the woods. We picked up the pace to avoid the rain.
Towards the end of the Christmas Tree trail, this horned toad scurried across our path. We then joined Fat Man's Pass for about a half mile back to the trail head.

Our total hiking time was just under 5 hours, which included about 30 minutes for a break at the summit and a couple of stops to talk to people along the way.

After a long hike, it was time to grab a pizza and beer to celebrate our successful hike!

Elevation change: about 2400 ft gain.
Distance: 9.5 miles for the loop hike

• From Elden Trailhead to Elden summit : 3.0 miles.
• From Elden summit to Heart trail along the sunset trail: 1.7 miles
• From Heart Trail to Christmas Tree trail: 2.5 miles
• From Christmas Tree trail to Fat Man's Pass: 1.7 miles
• From Fat Man's Pass to Elden Trailhead: 0.6 miles

Abineau/Bear Jaw Loop - Flagstaff

On Sunday, the hiking group headed up to the San Francisco Peaks outside of Flagstaff to hike the Abineau / Bear Jaw Loop trail.
The trail starts out flat and well graded, through a field full of aspen. Shortly into the hike, you can turn left to hike on the Bear Jaw trail, or right to hike on the Abineau trail. The Abineau trail is shorter, but steeper; the Bear Jaw trail is more gradual, with a few scattered ups and down. I was thrilled when the group decided to take the Abineau trail, since I would rather go up the steep trail and come down the gradual trail.
Gaining in elevation and leaving the aspens and getting into the Douglas firs. There were lots of wildflowers along the way, including paintbrush, penstemon, columbine, and lupines.
Butterflies and bees enjoyed all of the wildflowers.
After a steep climb, we reached the end of the Abineau trail.
If you look to the north (behind me), there was a spectacular view, including the Grand Canyon. It was a little cloudy (rain in the area) so the camera didn't capture how spectacular the view really was.
At the top of Abineau trail, the "fast group" stopped to take pictures, eat a little snack, and wait for the other half of the group to catch up. I was actually in the "fast group" this time! While the others snacked, I had my own little construction project.....
My hula hoop! The others were so busy taking their pictures and eating, that they missed me assembling my hoop, and then asked how I carried the hoop all the way up with me. Too funny! Behind me is the meadow that sits at the base of Humphrey's peak, which still has a little snow.
I played with my hoop for a while until the first few members of the back half of the group showed up. Then it started to mist, so we decided to don our rain gear and move forward.
We had to go about 2 miles down an old forest road to connect to the Bear Jaw Trail. During that time, the weather turned from mist, to sprinkles, to all out rain. We also heard some scary lightning cracks and loud booms of thunder. All of us joked about the wisdom of carrying our metal hiking poles.
The rain slowed down as we entered the Bear Jaw Trail, and then stopped shortly after that.
The rest of the trail was a nice gradual descent. We finished the hike in about 3.5 hours and then enjoyed a post hike tailgate party while we waited for the rest of the group to finish. All in all, it was a beautiful hike and a fun day, even if it was cold and wet.


Trail Stats:

	Distance Round Trip	7 miles
	Trailhead Elevation	8510 feet
	Elevation Gain	1960 feet
	Accumulated Gain	2115 feet
	Avg Time Round Trip	4-5 hours (it only took us 3.5 hours, including breaks)

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

Sycamore Canyon Rim Loop - Williams AZ

The hiking group decided to do the Sycamore Rim Trail up near Williams, AZ this weekend. It's mostly a flat trail, with the exception of KA hill. The question is whether to do the hill first or last.
I've got my pack loaded for training for my Peru trip.
There were several pretty areas along the start of the hike.


I spotted this horned toad along the path.

We caught the last of the cactus flowers still in bloom.

We stopped for lunch at the waterfall. No water was over the edge, but there were a few rock climbers to watch.
Standing at the top of the waterfall, looking down.


The direction we took around the loop, left KA hill for the very end. I thought it was a great way to end the hike.

Others weren't so lucky!
Coming down off the hill, we could see the flat ground ahead, and knew the car would soon be in sight.

Trail Stats:
Length: 11 miles
Elevation gain: 600 ft
Hiking Time: 5 to 6 hours
Rating: Easy to Moderate

Hooping on Humphrey's

I decided that I wanted to do a trek across the Andes in Peru this fall. In preparation, I decided to hike Humphrey's Peak again. I figured that this would help prepare me for the altitude, but also give me a chance to test out the new pack and decide how many layers I would need, since there was still snow up there.


When I got to the saddle, I decided not to approach the summit, since there were 50+ mph winds and I really wanted to save my strength to climb over the snowdrifts on the way back down. While I was waiting for the rest of my group to return, I hooped it up!
Maybe I should have saved that energy for the trip down. Instead, I slipped on ice and tumbled down the side of the mountain. Luckily, my 4 layers of fleece cushioned my fall and my backpack slowed me down, so I didn't get hurt. (other than a few bruises)

Trail Stats:

	Distance Round Trip	10.25 miles
	Trailhead Elevation	9320 feet
	Elevation Gain	3313 feet
	Avg Time Round Trip	5 - 6 hours