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| Kay's Archive Photo of a View from the White Rock Springs Peak Ascent |
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| Climbing the Ridge |
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| Arriving at the Peak |
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| Seriously? |
Monday's hike took the Six with Sticks into the Red Rock Canyon NCA Scenic Loop to the parking lot just before mile marker 6. This is the bottom of White Rock Mountain Road. We hiked up the road, took advantage of the pit stop then headed up the long ridge that leads to the first peak on the left. The climb is a constant scramble up and over several false peaks until you reach a long flattish top with a large boulder at the other end. Sometimes, hikers continue out to the peak on the left requiring more difficult scrambling but, today, we decided as a group that we didn't need to do this. After a break, we started the steep downclimb of the northwest side of the peak. The drop was made more difficult with the addition of a few mini-glaciers along the way. This is the shady side of the hill and the ice was seriously thick due to repetitive snowfalls. But, cuidado, even the lichen covered frozen sandstone was slick as ice. I found out the hard way!
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| Skeptical Cheryl and Jerry |
We finished our descent at the White Rock Hills Loop saddle. Next, we turned to the left and began the long way around the loop trail. Our pace increased a lot from the previous scrambling portions of our hike. We hiked through the Willow Springs Picnic Area and on around to the east side of the loop. When we reached the point of the loop that is closest to our trailhead, we turned to the right and headed straight for Turtlehead, a good point of reference. The bushwhack only lasted 0.8 miles and we were back at the cars. It was a great day of hiking. Fun friends! Thanks, Mike, for the photos.
Stats: 6.6 miles; 1800' gain; 4.75 hours
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| Committed |
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| This is some really thick ice! |
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| Peak to Saddle - Accomplished! |
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