Skip to main content

2016 Fall Mountain Trip Part 26; Climbing Camelback Mountain

By
Upon arriving to Phoenix one of the first things that I wanted to do was hike Camelback Mountain for old times sake.  The morning after arriving in Phoenix I headed out to Echo Canyon Parkway to ascend Camelback Mountain via the Echo Canyon Trail.


This article serves the 26th entry in the 2016 Fall Mountain Trip Series.  Part 25 covered the history of Arizona State Route 69, the second Arizona State Route 79, and Interstate 17.

2016 Fall Fall Mountain Trip Part 25; AZ 69 & 1-17 to Phoenix (the history of AZ 69, AZ 79 ii, and I-17)

So why feature Camelback Mountain in a primarily highway oriented road trip series?  The answer is simply; the 360 degree views of Phoenix from atop Camelback Mountain are virtually unobstructed and two good to ignore.  Camelback Mountain is peak in the Phoenix mountains located at an elevation of 2,706 feet above sea level.

Camelback Mountain is known as Cew S-wegiom by the O'odham culture and likely was a scared site of local tribes in the 14th century.  Early efforts to protect Camelback Mountain began in the 1910s but it wasn't until 1968 that it became a Phoenix City Park.  Camelback Mountain can be ascended via the 1.2 mile Echo Canyon Trail from Echo Canyon Parkway or the 1.5 mile Cholla Trail from Cholla Lane.  Both the Echo Canyon Trail and Cholla Trail while short make a steep 1,420 foot ascent to the summit of Camelback Mountain.  While both trails are short and well traveled neither is exactly a cake walk as they very rocky.  When I lived in Scottsdale I would frequently bookend distance runs with a hike up Camelback via the Cholla Trail.


As for the cover photo of this blog that was taken from a plane headed east out of Sky Harbor in 2019.  My intent was to get some photos for an article on AZ 143 which can be found here:

Arizona State Route 143; the Hohokam Expressway

I quickly made my way up the Echo Canyon Trail (which was interesting after forgetting my hiking shoes) shortly after sunrise to the peak of Camelback Mountain.  To the southeast downtown Phoenix and the Estrella Mountains can be seen.



Looking south from the summit of Camelback Mountain one can see; South Mountain, Papago Park, and even the San Tan Mountains.






Looking eastward from Camelback Mountain the Superstition Mountains can be see (which wasn't all that photogenic during sunrise).  The Four Peaks of the Mazatal Mountains can also be seen to the east.  If the Four Peaks looks familiar it is likely due to it being displayed on the Arizona State license plate.



Looking northeast from Camelback Mountain overlooks the City of Scottsdale and the McDowell Mountains.


Looking immediately north of Camelback Mountain reveals a look at Paradise Valley and Mummy Mountain.



Looking northwest from Camelback Mountain reveals a look at the Phoenix Mountains Preserve and Piestwa Peak (formerly Squaw Peak).  Piestwa Peak was a frequent hike for me when I was living on Shea Boulevard.


Hiking down Camelback Mountain was considerably harder than climbing considering my footwear was running shoes.  Upon leaving Camelback Mountain I returned to my family's house, the next day included a trip on Arizona State 88 on the Apache Trail.


Part 27 of the 2016 Fall Mountain Trip Series can be found below.

2016 Fall Mountain Trip Part 27; AZ 88 the Apache Trail
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ghost Town Tuesday; Vineland, Florida; the town killed by Disney

By
Vineland is a small ghost town located in southwest Orange County, Florida near the junction of Florida State Road 535 and Interstate 4.  Vineland is somewhat unique due to it largely being squeezed out of existence by Lake Buena Vista which is the company town where Disney World is located. Vineland was founded in the late 1800s as Englewood.  The town name of Englewood changed to Orange Center in 1911 before finally assuming the name Vineland in 1924.  Much like the rest of Orange County the community of Vineland was centered around Citrus Grove.  In the case of Vineland said orange groves were centered around Ruby Lake. The end of Vineland came as the Disney Corporation began purchasing parcels of citrus grove land to build Lake Buena Vista.  Vineland fell into a sharp decline in the 1960s but the community managed to continue to exist to modern times.  Much of the street grid of Vineland still exists east of FL 535 but most of the original structures are either gone or falle
1 comment
Read more

Old NY 10 and Goodman Mountain in the Adirondacks

By
  Old highway alignments come in all shapes and sizes, as well as taking some different forms after their lifespan of serving cars and trucks has ended. In the case of an old alignment of what was NY 10 south of Tupper Lake, New York, part of the old road was turned into part of a hiking trail to go up Goodman Mountain. At one time, the road passed by Goodman Mountain to the east, or Litchfield Mountain as it was known at the time. As the years passed, sometime around 1960, the part of NY 10 north of Speculator became part of NY 30, and remains that way today from Speculator, past Indian Lake and Tupper Lake and up to the Canadian Border. At one time, the highway was realigned to pass the Goodman Mountain to the west, leaving this stretch of road to be mostly forgotten and to be reclaimed by nature. During the summer of 2014, a 1.6 mile long hiking trail was approved the Adirondack Park Agency to be constructed to the summit of the 2,176 foot high Goodman Mountain. For the first 0.9 mi
1 comment
Read more

Oregon State Highway 58

By
  Also known as the Willamette Highway No. 18, the route of Oregon State Highway 58 (OR 58) stretches some 86 miles between US 97 north of Chemult and I-5 just outside of Eugene, Oregon. A main route between the Willamette Valley region of Oregon with Central Oregon and Crater Lake National Park, the highway follows the Middle Fork Willamette River and Salt Creek for much of its route as it makes its way to and across the Cascades, cresting at 5,138 feet above sea level at Willamette Pass. That is a gain of over 4,500 in elevation from where the highway begins at I-5. The upper reaches of OR 58 are dominated by the principal pinnacle that can sometimes be seen from the highway, Diamond Peak, and three nearby lakes, Crescent, Odell and Waldo (Oregon's second largest lake). OR 58 is chock full of rivers, creeks, mountain views, hot springs and waterfalls within a short distance from the highway. OR 58 was numbered as such by the Oregon State Highway Department in 1940. OR 58 is a del
Post a Comment
Read more