Red & Black Loop - 2/14/13

                              Arch Seen on Climb to Red Mountain Peak

                                         Starting Up Red Mountain

 Thursday's ten hikers did a loop from the River Mountains Trailhead, up to Red Mountain Peak via a very steep bike trail, over to the Black Mountain Overlook, then down the switchbacks to the cars. It was six miles with 1643 feet of total elevation gain which we accomplished in around three hours with prolonged breaks on top of Red and Black Mountains.

Chris chose a very steep bike trail to ascend Red Mountain, nicknamed the Kamakaze Trail by the bikers.

                                       Views From Red Mountain Peak

 Once on top of Red Mountain, we were assaulted by the cold wind so we huddled on the lee side of the peak then descended to watch a group of people take off from the zip line platform just below on the saddle. The guy that buckled them up seemed so reassuring .... I guess that's a job requirement!

From there, we descended to the Red & Black Saddle where we met up with another hiking group who assembled at Red Rock Canyon. They told us about a large herd of bighorns that they passed by on the way up.

                                              This Could Be You!!

 We hiked over to the Black Mountain Overlook and took our snack break. The air was pretty clear but the wind continued to blow hard up there on the ridge. Afterwards, we descended the regular way down the switchbacks completing the hike through the maze of bike and hike trails below. It was a beautiful albeit windy morning.

                                 Views From Black Mountain Overlook

                                      Finishing the Hike on Bike Trails