Want to hike to the tallest peak in Arizona?
Your journey starts in Flagstaff near the Arizona Snowbowl in a meadow. It’s nearly 5 to the top — making this a 10 mile out-and-back, all day kind of hike.
Trail Conditions
This trail is rated as difficult/strenuous with 3,346 feet of elevation gain over 10 miles. Plan on this hike taking somewhere between 5-8 hours.
For us, it took 6 hours to summit (including an hour lunch break on the saddle), hung out on the summit for ~1 hour, and another 3-4 hours to reach the car.
Keep in mind, this wasn’t all hiking time… we like to go slow, take photos, and stop for snack breaks.
The Trail
The trail starts in the Coconino National Forest and begins to slowly ascend up the mountain.
You start to get above the tree line around the 11,400 foot marker. It takes about 3.5 miles to reach the saddle, this is a great point to stop for an extended break, check the weather, and fuel up for the summit. There are several false summits from here until you reach the peak.
In the summer, thunderstorms can move in quickly. It’s important to get off the saddle and summit when this happens as it is extremely dangerous.
The Summit
It took us another hour or so to hike the last 1.5 miles to the summit. The trail at this point is ~12,000 feet and extremely difficult to hike if you’re not acclimatized. Many folks don’t make it all the way to the summit due to altitude sickness. If you start to feel nauseous, fatigue, dizzy, or get a headache, you may be experiencing altitude sickness. You can bring oxygen cans to assist or move to lower altitude.
Once you make it to the top, on a clear day, you can see the Grand Canyon, Sunset Crater, and even the Painted Desert.
Make sure you sign your name in the hikers book of folks who have summited!
The hike down
Take your time hiking down as the trail can be steep. Hiking poles can help your knees and thighs on the way down.
Once you reach the parking lot, it’s time to celebrate with food! The downtown Flagstaff area has several local restaurants and breweries where you can kick back, replenish your calories, and your post-hike muscle soreness starts to set in!
Traveling Tschidas 
Leave a comment