 |
| Fletcher Peak from Peak Trail |
 |
| Mt. Charleston & Mummy's Toe from Fletcher Peak |
Seven plus six plus one equals fourteen hikers on the trail to Fletcher Peak this morning. We had a slower group, a faster group and a solo hiker (read non-committal!) on, perhaps, our last hike to Fletcher Peak of the summer season. Due to the Carpenter One forest fire of 2013, Fletcher Peak became our "go to" hike for the summer of 2014. We have probably done Fletcher Peak just about every which way but loose. Today, it was a simple hike up the North Loop Trail and down by way of Wild Horse Canyon.
 |
| Morning Sunshine on the North Loop |
The faster group reached the North Loop meadow at the same time that the slower group plus one was leaving the meadow. It didn't take long before we started up the switchbacks, too.
 |
| Resting at the North Loop Meadow |
By the time the last "fast" hiker arrived at the high point corner, the rest of that group had passed many of the other group. So, essentially, we were now one group. Fletcher Peak could be seen from the ridge that we hiked down to find its trail junction. We took a sharp left turn onto the peak trail, circled around and dropped steeply down to the Fletcher Peak saddle. Although our hiking speeds varied, we were not too far from each other as we navigated the Fletcher Peak Trail down, up, down, up, down, and, finally, up one last time.
 |
| Heading Toward the Fletcher Peak Trail Junction |
The trail is well-marked since we are not the only hikers that have done this nice little peak a lot this summer.
 |
| Cairn on the Fletcher Peak Trail |
We all reached the peak and signed into the log book. There were, at least, two newbies in the bunch! Then, after a restful break, we started back down. We retraced our steps to the North Loop meadow, then turned left onto the crossover trail for Wild Horse Canyon. Down the steep small switchbacks and out through the pleasant canyon, we hiked. A short walk up the paved highway was required to return to the North Loop trailhead and our cars. Beautiful day and good workout.
6.5 miles; 2400 feet elevation gain; 4 hours
 |
| Fourteen AtBF Hikers on Fletcher Peak |
 |
| Hiking the Fletcher Peak Trail back to the North Loop |
No comments:
Post a Comment