January 28, 2016

January 28, 2016

We drove my sister and brother-in-law to Phoenix this morning, so they could catch their flight back to St Louis.  Not one to lose an opportunity for exploration, we drove to one of the iconic views of the Phoenix area, Camelback Mountain.  Looking like a resting camel, it lies within the Phoenix Park called Echo Canyon Recreation Area.

As we get closer, we notice lots of expensive housing climbing the flanks of this overgrown hill.  Once privately owned it was only saved from development by Barry Goldwater in 1968. 

The Echo Canyon Trail to the summit is very popular with both locals and tourists.  But we are here relatively early, so we easily snag a parking spot.  The short 1.25-mile hike turns out to be a very strenuous uphill climb atop large rocks.  Aimee is not a fan of “bouldering”.  She perseveres and after an hour trek, we make it to the summit for spectacular views of the surrounding Phoenix Metropolitan area.

Unfortunately climbing down rocks is slower than going up.  I remind Aimee about the benefits of zigzagging across a steep open trail.  By switch-backing, going back and forth across the rocks, the hike, while made longer, is a lot less steep.  Plus, if you stumble, you fall sideways, and hopefully not straight downhill.