Humphreys Peak: A Travelogue

             Hiking Humphreys Peak has been on the bucket lists of many Arizonans, and our group was no exception. It is the highest natural point in the state, with an elevation of 12,637 feet (3,852 m), and is located within the Kachina Peaks Wilderness in the Coconino National Forest, near Flagstaff, Arizona.

I personally had planned to hike Humphreys Peak with two different sets of friends and had backed out twice. Lightning at the peak and catastrophes had been the most deterrent statistics that made us cancel our plans. However, when a friend from our neighborhood asked who was interested in training for Humphreys, my hand shot up first! She has a lot of experience with such difficult hikes and has the needed leadership skills to guide a big group, to motivate and to deal with all our varying levels of strength, motivation, and availability, among so many other factors.

Organizing a common slot when the majority is available and when Arizona weather is conducive for hiking is a challenge in itself, yet she made it possible. Just to give you an example, we had planned a girls-only trip to Vegas with few friends but had ended up settling on simply watching a movie after our families’ dinners— that too after 8 out of 12 of the friends dropped out! So honestly, I had zero hopes of Humphreys being a reality. 

Without much knowledge of statistics & what it takes to reach the summit, many of us showed interest. We started off with of course, Telegraph Pass hike, which itself seemed bit challenging for many of us. Our leader friend came up with a detailed plan for next few weeks suggesting varying difficulty levels of hikes including Pyramid Trail, Camelback- Cholla/Echo, Piestawa Peak, Bursera, Flat Iron, Tom’s Thumb, Peralta, Sunrise Peak & what not. Her plan included good mix of challenging elevation & distance. Weeks over weeks we used to wait for her telling us on which hike we are going that weekend & what time to start. As it became evident that this is a tough journey, slowly the number of friends joining the weekend hikes started dropping. Around February’2020, we had rooms booked for the committed ones. Dates were finalized keeping the conducive weather & family obligations/summer plans in mind, for six families! That itself was a biggest hurdle to conclude at a common date, somehow all of us prioritized our hike & committed to it. And boom- COVID-19 became prevalent in mid of March 2020! Our world came to standstill. Kids didn’t return to school after the spring break. Everyone started working from home & it was evident that we had to cancel our plan.
         

Rest of 2020 everyone was coping up with the pandemic & keeping safe inside their homes. Around Januray’2021 our leader friend pinged for starting the hikes one more time. By then, few of us were feeling iffy about how it would be to go for hiking outside with masks on. Around mid-February’2021 vaccination news came & we became hopeful. Despite of different challenges, everyone kept training on their own pace. There were many hurdles along the way. I had to challenge myself to go hiking solo. I personally had never been hiking on my own, so this was an uphill battle to motivate myself to get out of bed early in the morning, sometimes even at 4 a.m.! Amongst these hikes, there were funny and not so funny incidents, including, terrifyingly, confronting a coyote. 

In 2020, we had bought all our gear, prepared our checklist for what to pack, and sorted out all the details. Only the starting date was missing! By the end of March, we had to make a decision if we were actually going to do it and finally took the bold step to make our cabin reservations. With concerns about internal air circulation, we opted to book individual cabins at Ski Lift Lodge and Cabins. This establishment had an option of cancellation that was 4 days prior to our trip, so if anything came up, we were prepared to cancel at the last minute. 

Our leader kept motivating us, preparing us week after week till the date of the hike. She shared so many valuable tips from choosing the right shoes, what to pack for emergency, filing the nails prior to go on hiking (which seems trivial but such an important step) & what not! Her lead gave all of us confidence that we should keep going forward no matter what!

With the hot Arizona summer on the horizon, we kept on going on varying levels of challenging hikes per her plan without questioning. If our leader said you need to go for an 11-mile hike after waking up at 3:30 in the morning, we did it! Because of the warmer temperatures, it wasn’t exactly fun, but we kept at it religiously. Then came the day, just 4 days prior to our travel when we could still cancel the trip. We were watching the weather closely, as the weather would make all the difference during the hike. If there was any sign of clouds, we knew we would have to turn back, as the weather could change very quickly at that elevation. And due to the lack of a tree line, there would be no cover, and lightning could become a reality very quickly.

We were relieved that it was finally going to happen, but boom, a day before our trip, the weather channel showed a cloudy day on the 29th and even later that weekend. We were cautiously monitoring the weather conditions in the area, and it showed no rain but cloudy after 2 pm. Considering the 10.7 miles we were to hike, I estimated it would take about 7 to 8 hours to finish the hike, whereas few others were more realistic and suggested that we should have an early start so that we would have enough buffer room if it were to take longer to complete. After bargaining on sleep time, we settled on starting at 5:30 a.m. from the cabin.

We began at the Snowbowl base trailhead at 6:15 a.m. Within few steps, we could feel that this was a different hike than the ones we had practiced, the main challenge being elevation! By then, the distance didn’t scare us, but we had no idea of what to expect at that elevation. To give you a relative idea, Phoenix is at 1,085 feet of elevation whereas, Humphrey’s peak is at 12,633 ft! The saddle, which is about 3 miles from the trailhead up to the end of the tree line. After that, all vegetation ends and the tundra region begins. 

From the saddle to the summit is a totally different experience than what it is up to the saddle. There are rocks, loose gravel, and absolutely stunning views throughout the hike! Even though we knew there would be false peaks, once we reached the first false peak, the path in front of us seemed impossible. The summit seemed to be receding back with every step. It became a sheer mind game to keep pushing forward, and because of the lack of vegetation in the area, it was super windy in that stretch. The air became so thin that I could hear my own palpitations! Breathing in through my nose and sharp exhaling through the mouth seemed to help a bit. Finally, we reached the summit at noon! After taking in the 360-degree views and fueling ourselves for the descent, it was time to start the hike back.  

       

         Although I usually enjoy the descents of most hikes, the challenge on this one was the slippery path. There was loose gravel, melting snow, and slippery, muddy patches all along the hike. I stopped counting the number of times I almost slipped but didn’t hit the ground, although few people along the way were not so lucky and fell down multiple times, only to lift themselves up with a zeal that they were not aware they had! We experienced wobbly knees due to continuously managing our balance, aching shoulders due to carrying heavy backpacks, and of course, squished toes begging for freedom. 

Descending, however, felt so much easier than the arduous climb up, and we couldn’t have asked for better weather! Thankfully, it was a clear, sunny day with pleasant temperatures. We even managed to play silly games to keep our minds occupied while hiking down. By 5 p.m., we returned to the trailhead to conclude the most memorable, fulfilling hiking experience of our lives! We concluded the night with comforting dal-rice arranged by Girish. All our families supported us throughout our hiking journey including the weekend hikes. Without them this was never possible.

You might ask: would I put myself through this ever again? Surprisingly, the answer is yes; I have already started plans to visit again & again. Our leader has willingly accepted the challenge to prepare us for the next adventure, and our group has already started brainstorming for the next one!