Tuesday, October 22, 2024

Battleship Mountain - Superstition Mountains

The first time I summited Battleship Mountain was on November 4, 2020, from First Water Trailhead. This time I took the longer and harder Boulder Canyon Tail from the marina at Canyon Lake. I had packed four liters of water, but by the time I was about a quarter of a mile from the summit, half my water was gone, and there was a difficult climb, and a much steeper ascent ahead. So I turned back. When I returned to mini van I had barely any water left. My hike was 12.1 miles round-trip, and it took me 9 hours and 13 minutes.


Battleship Mountain






Battleship Mountain












I turned around a short distance further.


Tuesday, October 15, 2024

Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS - Red Mountain (Mount McDowell)

C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) is a comet from the Oort cloud discovered by the Purple Mountain Observatory in China on January 9, 2023 and independently found by ATLAS South Africa on February 22, 2023.



Monday, October 14, 2024

Ragged Top - Ironwood Forest National Monument

This was my third time to the summit of Ragged Top (3,907 feet), and my second time up the south gully. I prefer the south gully to the north gully. My hike was 5.2 miles round-trip, and it took me 5 hours and 27 minutes. It is the biological and geological crown jewel of the Ironwood Forest National Monument.












The South Gully

The South Gully


View from the summit.

Looking down at the south gully from the summit.

View from the summit.

View from the summit.


Monday, October 7, 2024

Humphreys Peak - Coconino National Forest

Humphreys Peak (12,633 feet), is the highest point in Arizona. It is part of the San Francisco Volcanic Field. This was my fifth hike up the mountain. My hike was 9.3 miles round-trip, and it took me 8 hours. The beginning of the trail was rerouted due to construction, which actually made it slightly shorter.





False summit.


Humphreys Peak





Humphreys Peak


View from the summit.

View from the summit.

The summit.