To hike the Grand Canyon rim to rim in one day requires mindful and effective training.  It can make the difference between a positive, enjoyable experience and one that is a once-only, miserable experience.

​This will be our fifth Grand Canyon rim to rim hike.  In 2024, we hiked north to south with our friend Jeff (Epic Grand Canyon Rim to Rim Hike In One Day).  This year we will hike south to north, with an increase of at least 1,000 feet elevation gain compared to last year, over a shorter distance.

These are our recommendations for an enjoyable and safe rim to rim hike in this incredible canyon, one of the seven natural wonders of the world, based on our experiences:

• Be able to hike at least 15 miles continuously
• Be able to hike 4,000 feet in elevation
• Be able to tolerate hiking in heat, as Phantom Ranch at the bottom of the canyon will be a lot warmer (one year it was 100 degrees for us but we had a lot of Palm Springs, California hiking experience).
• We use just one - two bottles of electrolyte drinks mixed in with water (our friend thought that one had to drink electrolytes continuously on this hike, so he felt adverse effects of electrolyte overload).  I'm not an expert on this, please check with your physician.

Our training hikes in the St. George/Southern Utah area and Palm Springs, California:

• Grand Canyon rim to rim in one day training near St. George, Utah.
• Kolob Arch, Skyline Trail and Goblet Squats
• Scrub Benchmark in the Beaver Dam Mountains.
• Burger Peak in Pine Valley Mountains 
• Skyline Trail in Palm Springs gains 8,000 feet on the longest portion of the Cactus to Clouds hike.

The hip strengthening exercises below create stability and endurance necessary for long distance hiking, scrambling, and climbing.

I also threw in some of this year's photos.  Fred and I, in our mid-60's are so grateful to be able to do these hikes, especially with our friends.  Many people are unable to experience the awesome grandeur of the changing colors and terrain descending and climbing back out of the canyon.  To be able to cross the green and blue Colorado River, see 1.7 billion-year old basement rocks and walk along Bright Angel Creek's rushing white water is something we'll never forget.

References

Sims, S.T.  2016.  ROAR:  How to Match Your Food and Fitness to Your Female Physiology for Optimum Performance, Great Health, and a Strong, Lean Body For Life.  Rodale Books.  RodaleWellness.com

Grateful for my Hiking Buddies
This was a pretty good training hike for the Grand Canyon rim to rim hike, since you can get a decent gain (>2,500') without snow in early spring.   I'm lucky to hike with Robin, Jeff and Lindy.  They're really fun and make hiking an even more positive experience!  

Next time I do this hike, I want to include Tahoari Peak.  From Scrub Benchmark, you would follow its west ridge and then drop down south to hike Tahoari's north ridge, like Stav Basis did (stavislost).

Keep On Exploring!!

One day a photographer who read my Golden Cathedral via Beeline Trail hike post contacted me through Explorumentary.  Mike Shedlock, AKA Mish, wanted to know if Fred and I would join him on another trip to this awesome sky-lit cathedral at the end of Neon Canyon in April, just in time for the spring leafing of the cottonwood trees.

Since then, we have gone on several photo adventures in southern Utah, including Water Canyon in Canaan Mountain Wilderness, Zion National Park, and a few petroglyph sites.  On our second trip to Stella Lake in Great Basin National Park, we caught the perfect dusk sky, arriving just in time after hurrying up the trail from the famous thousands-years-old bristlecone pines.
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​You've got to be on your toes when photographing with Mish.  He sets up fast, knows his camera really well, and has a schedule - especially if we are to get to a place in time for the perfect light.  He is a combined artist and superlative technician.

Getting out with Mish has been good for me and Fred, who patiently waits and takes in the beautiful scenery while Mish and I create.  It's motivated me to get out with my Sony DSLR camera more often and learn how to use it.  I was a Canon girl before.

We are talking about a trip to Cosmic Ashtray in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument this spring.

Check out MishMoments - Joy of Photography for some spectacular images of southern Utah, Iceland, night skies, "everything water" and more.  Here are a few images I have gotten so far, some with Mish's help.

One of the outstanding aspects of this hike is the magnificent views of the entire geography of Snow Canyon State Park that only a few get to see.  We stand on top of its rim, while the burgeoning  number of Snow Canyon visitors hike popular trails in the bottom such as Petrified Sand Dunes and Lava Flow.
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​Now we've hiked the highest peaks on Snow Canyon's west and east rims.  On the west rim, our Snow Benchmark hike reached the highest point in the beautiful Red Mountain Wilderness.  On the east rim, we summited the highest peak in Snow Canyon Sate Park - Peak 5024 - along with White Rock Peak with an awesome view of the deep chasms and sheer cliffs of Snow Canyon to the west and the black cinder cones and basalt flows near the town of Veyo to the east.

The gorgeous north/south Red Mountain Primitive Trail is the only rim trail in Snow Canyon State Park noted on maps. 

We took our friends Lindy, Jeff and Robin to White Rock's summit and Peak 5024 after we had found our way to them previously.   We accessed the east rim via a pretty canyon via the sandy wash that borders Highway 18, at Winter Quarters, shown on a  topo map.   

We found an animal trail leading up from the mouth of this steep-sided canyon to the right (north).  At first, the head of this canyon looks to be blocked by a headwall, but we found a steep exit trail obviously made by hikers to avoid Class 3 or 4 obstacles.  It brought us to the base of White Rock Peak where we scrambled up its north side. 

Our ascent canyon is unnamed as far as I know.  It took a bit of navigating/maneuvering on rocky moderately steep slopes, avoiding the bouldery bed of the creek most of the way.  I left a "duck" (rock trail marker using small amount of rocks, usually 2 - 4) at our creek crossing marking our entry into the creek, so we could see our way out on the return hike.  However, even if we did miss this trail mark, I can still see our previous tracks on my GPS and phone on the Topo Maps US app.

There was no water running at this time - only pools reflecting the yellow rocks above and the blue sky, with a thin sheet of ice in the morning.  I bet the water flow after a rain in this canyon is beautiful.  I'll run up here with my camera during the next rain.

Pure delight awaits as you top out on the east rim.  At the base of White Rock, there's a gorgeous flat area with curving ramps and flat rock stacks, and perhaps petrified sand dunes - all sorts of sandstone forms, and some highly developed biological crusts (see below).
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At White Rock's summit, Snow Canyon's deep chasms, made of striped white and orange Navajo Sandstone drop down to meet up with West Canyon Trail on its floor.  So many Colorado Plateau elements to take in:  white sandstone, accentuated with pockets of junipers, pinyon pines and prickly pear cacti undulates in many fun-to-walk forms.  Orange rock-strewn peaks rise above, inviting a boulder-filled scramble to the top.   I couldn't find a peak register.

References
Loope, D. B. 2019.  Hexagonal Fracture Patterns On Navajo Sandstone Crossbeds At Yellow Knolls, Washington County.  Utah  Geological Association Publication #48. 

A Field Guide to Biological Soil Crusts of Western U.S. Drylands.  Bureau of Land Management. Publication 4

Stellar views of the sheer cliff walls and chasms of Snow Canyon State Park from the highest summit of Red Mountain Wilderness.

From Red Mountain Trail looking down into one of Snow Canyon's "chasms."
This canyon traces a normal fault with the west side of it (right) dropped down from the east side.

Overview 
Snow Benchmark, a brown juniper and pine-covered dome rises in contrast above the orange and white sheer Navajo Sandstone cliffs of northern Snow Canyon State Park near St. George, Utah.  You can see it from town if you are near the opening of Snow Canyon to the south.  I've been looking at it for a few years, knowing it was the highest point in the Red Mountain Wilderness.  Finally, Fred and I took two friends to its summit via the northern end of the Red Mountain Trail just north of the Diamond Cinder Cone.

This hike travels the first few miles of the 9.5-mile Red Mountain Trail that treks almost due north and south on a gorgeous plateau with spectacular views of Snow Canyon State Park to its east.  Its northern trailhead is just north of Diamond Valley and its southern entrance can be accessed from 200 East Street in Ivins.  It's notorious for search and rescue calls due to hikers getting lost, because there are no trail signs and it's easy to lose the trail and get off into a canyon or wash.  It treks across areas of slickrock, through deep sand in parts.

This is one of the most gorgeous areas of Utah and I would venture to say the country.  I can't believe I live so close to it.  A green blanket of pinyon pines and junipers, interspersed with austere patches of bare slickrock, rises and falls, covering eroded sandstone domes and ancient sand dunes, and then abruptly ends at sheer orange and white cliffs where waterfalls tumble after a drenching rain.  From this perch 1,300 feet above the canyon floor, minuscule walkers and bikers move up and down West Canyon Road in Snow Canyon State Park.

Our Hike
The first mile of the northern Red Mountain Trail begins at a large parking lot and treks over a lot of big rocks scattered on the wide trail.  At an elevation above 4,500 feet, you travel through pinyon pines and Utah junipers in an undisturbed forest.  Lots of prickly pear, manzanita , sagebrush and scrub oak grow in the sandy soil and in sandstone cracks.

I could just sit on a pink-orange sandstone slab for awhile and breathe in the juniper and pine of this lovely place.  Maybe I would get to hear the "kaw" call of a few pinyon jays.

​At 0.8 miles, reach the fence for the Red Mountain Wilderness boundary.  Another mile down the trail, at 1.8 miles from the trailhead, reach the intersection for the Snow Canyon Overlook, a spectacular view with a sudden drop-off with Snow Canyon 1,600 feet below.  The hike to the overlook is 0.5 miles - a left turn (south) at the intersection.

Instead of taking the left trail at the intersection, keep straight on the Red Mountain Trail heading west/southwest.  At 2.3 miles into the hike, the trail runs close to the rim of one of Snow Canyon State Park's deep chasms.

At 3.0 miles, we found a drainage to follow up toward the summit, arriving to it in another 0.5 mile.  As with a lot of other hikes in this southern Utah area, there was a lot of biological soil crusts, AKA cryptobiotic soil to avoid stepping on.  

Afterward, we celebrated on a tailgate with tortilla chips and three different kinds of salsa from our local farmer's market, supplied by Robin.  She brought these because that was the tradition of my hiking buddies many years ago in the Coachella Valley.  After most hikes we would celebrate with chips and salsa and Corona beer with lime!  Great memories - relish the good times and good life!

Hiking south on Red Mountain Trail with Snow Benchmark (rounded tree-covered dome on right) in sight.
Interesting tilted sandstone cross beds on the trail.

The first mile of Red Mountain Trail is super rocky!  Entering Red Mountain Wilderness at 0.8 miles from trailhead.

Getting further into Red Mountain Wilderness with Snow Benchmark on the right horizon.

Chasm into Snow Canyon:  this stream empties into the main canyon, where West Canyon Trail is.

Leaving Red Mountain Trail heading south to take a right turn (west) to summit Snow Benchmark.

We found a beautiful drainage to follow to the base of Snow Benchmark.  From here on, avoiding cryptobiotic soil that covered much of this terrain.

Beauty in a tree trunk on the way up.

After ascending the drainage, the topography flattens out before the final ascent.

Picking our way through the brush and trees near the summit.

Looking back at the east wall of the huge chasm during our ascent.

Pretty easy summit to get to!

From the summit looking south into Arizona (right) and Red Mountain plateau (left).

Snow Benchmark summit - 5,568', looking southeast at Snow Canyon.  The Red Mountain Trail continues south through the light-colored slickrock upper right.

Some cool stuff on the trail:  Biological soil crusts, iron oxide coating(?), Sue and Fred,
apres' hike chips and salsa courtesy of Robin!!

Robin on the way down from the summit.

One last look down the chasm into Snow Canyon State Park on our way back.

A last look at Snow Benchmark from a patch of white slick rock.

Caltopo map of our tracks to Snow Benchmark from upper Red Mountain Trailhead off of Highway 18.

References
A Field Guide to Biological Soil Crusts of Western U.S. Drylands.  Bureau of Land Management.

​Warren, S.D.  2014.  Role of Biological Soil Crusts in Desert Hydrology and geomorphology:  Implications for Military Training Operations.

Biological Soil Crusts:  Ecology and Management.  2001.  U.S. Department of the Interior.

Walking through Tushars tundra and seeing mountain goats from afar on the highest mountain range in southern Utah.

The volcanic high Tushars looking west.
From left to right:  Mount Baldy, Mount Belknap, Gold Mountain, Signal Peak.

Hike Summary
0 - 0.7 miles:  Bullion Pasture Trailhead to first high point at 11,200'
0.7 - 2.0 miles:  to highest point on hike at 11,500' (this is just to saddle;  option is to summit 11,673' peak)
2.0 - 3.5 miles:  highest point to Copper Belt Peak summit at 11,383'

Overview
There's something about this little-known mountain range that keeps us going back.  Actually, lot of things. It's a striking high volcanic range where you walk on tundra above tree line to look over southern Utah and through aspens and meadows with wildflower-lined creeks in the summer.  It's only a couple of hours drive from St. George.  Often times we see more mountain goats than people on the trails.

So far we've hiked four of the Tushar summits, all of them over 11,000 feet.  The hike to Delano Peak, the highest peak in southern Utah, is a defined and short path if approaching from the west.  Hikes to Mount Holly and Shelly Baldy require a bit of cross-country navigation.  

​​This hike starts and stays high, with fantastic views as you cross grassy ridges and a talus-riddled saddle to drop onto an old mining road that leads to the easily-climbed ridge to Copper Belt Peak.  There's a good chance you will see mountain goats, and we did on this trip.  The trail is not marked and is faint in some places, so having GPS tracks and a map is helpful.

This peak gets its name from the significant copper ore deposits in this area, and in fact, Copper Belt Mine lies to its northeast.  Other mines in the area are Bully Boy, Cascade, and Shamrock.

Our Hike (topo map and our tracks at end of this post)
We stayed in our favorite campground, Mahogany Cove, on Hwy 153 about 13 miles east of downtown Beaver, Utah, sleeping in the bed of our truck.  It's ~ 6 miles from there to the turnoff for FR 123, a graded gravel road that goes past Big John's Flat and the trailhead to Delano Peak, and to Bullion Pasture trailhead in about 10 miles from turn-off.

At this elevation, aspens had already dropped their leaves and it was chilly, but beautifully sunny.  The trail begins east from the parking lot, where you see the mountain range you will be traversing through.  It goes to the right of the dark copper-colored peak furthest to the left.  To the right of that, a higher, broader light tan peak (Peak 11,673') is the highest on this trail.  Copper Belt Peak is behind this summit.

​The trail starts out very defined for the first 0.6 miles, where you encounter your first "bump" on the ridge after walking through a wide grassy saddle.  It traverses the right (south) side of this bump, where you see the next dark bump.   Unless you want to climb it, the trail goes around it to the left, 1.0 mile into the hike.  

For another 0.6 miles, hike along a relatively flat path through grass and volcanic rock to drop down onto another grassy saddle with a close-up view of the climb to come.  We met two hunters from St. George here, and we had a nice chat with them.  One is also a wildlife photographer:  mike_wildphoto64 on Instagram.

From this saddle, it's a 250' climb to the saddle between the round dark brown peak on the left and Peak 11,673' on the right. The climb to this peak is just 100 feet above the saddle.  The talus slope here is steep, so the trail climbs high towards Peak 11,673' summit to avoid too much traversing through the talus.

Once past Peak 11,673', the old road to the base of Copper Belt Peak comes into view;  follow it to the base of Copper Belt and then hike up its southern ridge to the summit at 11,383'!!

For the Geo-curious:  Walking through Volcanic Terrain
The map below shows our tracks (blue) through a geologic map of the Tushar Mountains on Google Earth.  Each of the different types of rock are recorded as map units, with their corresponding color and abbreviation.  On geologic maps, yellow always denotes the youngest map unit - the Quaternary Period which is 2.5 million years ago (Ma) to present time.

The oldest is the prevolcanic sedimentary rocks - 170 million years old - from the Jurassic Period (Ja) unit in blue on the right side.  Even after the explosive volcanic eruptions that formed the Tushar Mountains 22 Ma, this old Jurassic unit is still revealed at the surface.

​Our tracks begin at the Bullion Pasture Trailhead (lower left) in rhyolite (Tmbl), an extrusive rock that's high in silica and the chemical equivalent of granite (an intrusive rock).  It originated from the inside of the Mount Belknap Caldera.   Quickly, the trail crosses over the wall of the Belknap Caldera (line formed by red "T's")

After briefly crossing a Quaternary landslide (Ql), we headed into the Bullion Canyon Volcanic rocks (Tbm and Tbd), where we would spend most of the time for the rest of the hike, higher on the ridge.  

This hike is significant for trekking through Mount Belknap caldera (collapsed volcano following magma chamber emptying) rocks as well as Bullion Canyon volcanic rocks to the southeast, two different volcanic terrains.

So much more to explore in the unique Tushars:  more peaks to climb and trails to hike.  We're grateful we are able to experience these beautiful places.

Geologic map of the Tushars with our hike tracks on Google Earth.

Truck shot:  on our way to Bullion Pasture Trailhead on FR 123, AKA Paiute ATV Trail #01.

The trail begins at the left of this sign.  Trailhead reached via FR 123 coming from the south.

Starting from the trailhead in the morning - heading to the peaks on the left with the dark "copper" colors.
​Copper Belt Peak is behind the pointy peak on the left.

A good night's sleep in our truck bed last night and we are ready to go!
Just past the trailhead.

Looking back at the trail we have just ascended (far right).  I'm on the first "bump" on the ridge.

Trail goes across saddle to the left and around to the left of this next bump on the ridge (11,450').

Not too many hikes do I have to wear my puff jacket:  pretty chilly this morning at 11,000 feet!
Heading to the saddle between the two peaks above my head to the right.

Looking at Peak 11,673', the highest peak on the hike, to the right of the copper-colored peak.  Trail goes up through the pass between these two high points.

Approaching the lighter-colored mini-ridge where the trail descends through its low point into a lower saddle where it then ascends the flank of Peak 11,673' to the right, then traverses through the saddle on the left of the darker peak.

We ran into two fully-outfitted hunters.  The man on the left is a wildlife photographer.

Trail goes up to the saddle separating the two high points above.  You have the option of summiting the point on the right, which is Peak 11, 673', the highest on this hike.  The trail is just to the left of this summit.

Getting closer to Peak 11,673' on the right. You can see a faint trail on the left side of it.

Looking back at hunters (left) and our trail.  Mount Baldy on the right.

Ascending toward saddle with Peak 11,673', the highest point on this hike, on Fred's right.  We didn't ascend this peak, but instead walked around its left side.

Mt. Belknap, the second-highest Tushar peak (left), and Gold Mountain in center.
Added to our peak-bagging list!

Past the highest point on the hike, you walk toward the old (probably mining) road to the right of Fred. Copper Belt Peak is just on Fred's left with small dark dome on top.

Seeing mountain goats lying down on rock outcrop in the distance (lower center).

Looking back at old road along ridge, Mount Belknap on the right.

Copper Belt Peak ahead.  Planning our ascent:  we left road near saddle of ridge to the peak' right.

Heading toward saddle on ridge just under Copper Belt (left).

It's an easy scramble to the top of Copper Belt Peak.

Looking west at the volcanic Mount Baldy and Mount Belknap from near Copper Belt's summit.

From Copper Peak's summit:  Looking east at Mt. Baldy (left) and Mt. Belknap (right). 

Another Tushar peak conquered!

Copper Belt Peak register.

Post-hike celebration with fresh cantaloupe at the trailhead.  We use the foam pads in the truck cab to sleep on.  

Caltopo map of our GPS tracks from Bullion Pasture trailhead (lower left) heading northeast to Copper Belt Peak.
Elevation profile shows the one-way approach to the peak.
​North points up.

Walk on one of Earth's largest laccoliths in a quiet part of the Pine Valley Mountains near St. George, Utah.

Solitude, cool views of Zion National Park, nice pines and aspens, and unique geology are the rewards you get with this hike to Mount Baldy if you don't mind hiking through a large burn area and can handle some frustrating bushwhacking and deadfall maneuvering.

With this ascent, we conquered one of our "grudge peaks," as we gave this a try in April but faced a thick blanket of snow covering the steep mountainside that the trail traversed.  We should have known when we had to ford a cold, overflowing creek with waterfalls from snow melt at the beginning of the hike.

However, a few days ago, we added another peak - Mount Moriah - to our grudge peak list, so the net number remains the same!

The New Harmony trailhead for Anderson Valley Trail is at a large gravel parking lot with signboards and pit toilet.  
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This is a less-traveled trail - maybe because most Pine Valley Mountain hikers are on trails leading to Burger and Signal Peaks, 10,000-footers to the southwest looking over Mount Baldy's summit.  The approach to the saddle/ridge is bare of trees and faces east, so there's minimal shade in the morning.

The human-caused 2018 West Valley fire left a lot of charred tree skeletons.  The last mile of bushwhacking/navigating is crawling over/hiking around lots of large pine deadfall.

Hike Summary
0 - 3.2  miles (5,324' - 7,000'):  Anderson Valley Trailhead to saddle on Baldy's north ridge.
3.2 - 4.7 miles (7,000' - 8,175'):  Saddle to turn-off from Anderson Valley Trail.
4.7 - 5.8 miles (8,175' - 8,890'):   Cross-country to summit.

The first mile is flat, crosses over a few streams via wooden bridges, goes through private land with two gates.  At the wilderness boundary, the trail begins to climb up shrubby switchbacks with loose rocks.

Reach the saddle on ridge heading due south to Mount Baldy.  The trail is overgrown in a lot of places, but still discernible.  Great views of Zion to the east.  Anderson Valley Trail then traverses the west side of this ridge with great views of Main Canyon draining from the heights of Pine Valley Mountains.  This creek was roaring with waterfalls in April.  Aspens appear at 7,500 feet as the trail climbs past two water troughs and then up to the turn-off of Anderson Valley Trail.

Next time we hike this we would turn left to leave the trail right after what I call "the obelisk," a solitary rock pinnacle (see photo below) next to the trail to begin the cross-country navigation southeast toward Mount Baldy.  The AllTrails track for this hike goes further on Anderson Valley Trail and ends up unnecessarily mounting a steep and rocky ridge which you have to climb down anyway, so it's wasted effort.  This turn-off is ~ 4.7 miles in from the trailhead.  As with many other times climbing an off-trail peak, you find a more efficient track to and from the summit on the descent.

Now it's a steep climb (700 feet in one mile) through brush and over deadfall to the summit.  We made our way over a ridge just to the north of Baldy, then back down and up again to a saddle just north of Baldy.  From there, climb south to Baldy's summit.

I couldn't find a register or survey marker on the summit, but the views of the sheer orange cliffs of Zion's Kolob Canyons to the east was a contrast to this green and gray mountain.  Signal Peak, the highest in the Pine Valley Mountains loomed over us to the southwest.  There's a lot of Mount Baldys in the U.S. and now we can say we've climbed our local one!

This northern end of the Pine Valley Mountains with its trails and peaks deserves more exploring.  

Trailhead to saddle/ridge (0 - 3.2 miles)

Saddle to turn-off of Anderson Valley Trail (3.2 - ~4.7 miles)

Cross-Country to Summit (~4.7 - 5.8 miles)

Looking at the west rim of Zion National Park. The last peak on the right with the small "bump" is Mount Kinesava.

For the Geocurious:  Geology of the Pine Valley Laccolith
​Geology: 

• Most of the hike is on eroded Pine Valley Laccolith, perhaps the world's largest, formed by intrusive igneous rocks emplaced into existing rock layers 20.5 million years ago, and has since been exposed.  The rock is a quartz monzonite porphyry, with phenocrysts (large, noticeable crystals) in a groundmass (fine-grained).  
• Granite vs. quartz monzonite:  granite contains more silica, quartz, sodium and potassium than does quartz monzonite, which contains more hornblende and biotite, and calcium.
• Quartz content:  Granite = > 20% quartz.  Quartz monzonite = 5-20% quartz.  Monzonite = > 5% quartz.

The Land of the Laccolith
The "unique geology" appears once you've completed the first set of switchbacks to arrive at a saddle on Mount Baldy's northern ridge.  The rest of the hike to the summit is on perhaps the largest laccolith in the world.   The rock is a common igneous intrusive; it's the geomorphology (geo = earth, morphology = form/structure) and the size of this laccolith that make it unique.  Twenty million years ago, magma from a heat source deep within Earth's crust rose up through cracks in the rock until it found a layer with less resistance, causing it to spread horizontally and create a "lake" of molten magma (lakkos = pond or lake, lith = stone).

The molten rock formed a dome underneath the more resistant rock layer above it which prevented the magma from escaping.  The magma cools and forms a laccolith.  Over the millions of years afterward, the overlying rock eroded, exposing the Pine Valley Laccolith.  The heat sources still underlie this area as evidenced by the basaltic lava flows and cones in the area that are less than two million years old.

Cross-section of the rock units underlying the Pine Valley Mountain Laccolith.
Bottom orange unit = Cambrian (500 Ma).   Blue units = Permian (280 Ma).   Jn unit = Navajo Sandstone - famous cliffs found throughout southern Utah - the main rock of Zion NP (190 Ma.)
Geologic Map of the St. George area

References
Biek, R.F., et al.  2010.  Geologic Map of the St. George and East Part of the Clover Mountains 30' x 60' Quadrangles, Washington and Iron Counties, Utah.  Map 242DM, Utah Geological Survey.

Miller, R.  2/25/2018.  Our Geological Wonderland:  The Pine Valley Mountain Laccolith.  The Independent.

Utah State University Fire History Tracker.  ​https://fht.wildfirerisk.utah.gov/

Washington County Historical Society.  New Harmony, Utah.

This awesome hike up the much-loved and revered rock tower known as Mount Timpanogos lived up to the lore and legend.  Its final summit approach perches on its steep, rocky sides where you can gaze upon the cities like Provo that sprawl along Utah Lake's eastern shore on one side, and Robert Redford's posh Sundance Resort on the other.  I love these small, ultra-high summits  where, when I look down thousands of feet below to glaciers and meadows, I get a funny feeling in my stomach.

Mountain goats are often seen:  a fellow hiker pointed one out on the west side of the mountain below Timpanogos Saddle.

​Even before we finished this hike, I wanted to go back again.  Lush blankets of wildflowers surrounded the trail, especially in Timpanogos Basin on the way up to the saddle between Mt. Timpanogos and Bomber Peak.  I was blown away by the sheer numbers of lupine, bistort, columbine and paintbrush.  So many bluebells!

​"Timp," as this mountain is affectionately called by Utahns, is the second-highest mountain in the Wasatch range.  Mt. Nebo, 11,933 feet elevation, which we hiked two years ago, is the highest.   Both peaks have a huge prominence, a measure of the vertical distance from summit to lowest contour line encircling that mountain with  Nebo at 5,489' and Timpanogos at 5,269'.

When we got to the trailhead parking lot in the dark, at 5 a.m., we saw a lot of vehicles parked and wondered if people were backpacking.  It turned out that many students started the hike at 1:00 a.m. to witness the sunrise from the summit.  We passed a lot of groups of them descending.  Since this was a Monday, we didn't need a parking pass (see link above for recreation.gov permitting).

Seems this is a perfect training mountain for the serious trail runner and cross-country athlete.  We met a family at the top who run and hike this mountain every year.  The fastest known time is 2 hours and 18 minutes round-trip for 14.3 miles and 5,000 cumulative feet of elevation gain!  We were passed by a few runners.

On the trail at 5 a.m. with headlamps, we hiked the 7 miles to the summit by 9:30, taking our time and having a "second" breakfast break.  It was refreshing to be on an actual and well-traveled trail for a change, since we have been doing more scrambling and navigating to peaks.

Aspen Grove Trail, another way up to the summit, intersects with Timpooneke Trail as you enter the basin.

A metal building topped with a pyramid-shaped roof with hundreds of signatures scrawled on its walls crowns the summit.  This summit hut has overlooked the spectacular scenery of snow, glaciers and lakes and mountain goats for almost 100 years.  The Timpooneke Trail was completed in 1921.  The pointed roof acts as a survey marker that can be seen with a telescope from the valley below.

Next time I would drive a little further on Utah State Hwy. 92 to the Aspen Grove Trailhead and hike Timp from the east.  There's a snowfield to hike through in Timpanogos Basin that looks really fun.  There's more elevation gain with this approach.
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I have passed by and eyed this imposing peak many times on Interstate 15.  Finally I can say we were on the top!  I think we'll join the many hikers and runners to make this an annual pilgrimage.

Imagining a Natural Catastrophe
Still feeling energized after our Grand Canyon rim to rim hike, we decided to maintain our hiking fitness and get out of St. George's heat to hike a remote peak.  I often go to Stavislost website to get ideas.  Sandy Peak looked like a great opportunity for us to explore more of the forested Markagunt plateau near Cedar City, Utah.

The rocks on Sandy's summit are just a microcosm of Earth's largest landslide - covering at least 1,600 square miles of southwestern Utah's high plateaus.  It's called the Markagunt gravity slide, a catastrophic event that happened 20 million years ago when the surface of a huge volcanic field collapsed and slid southward for many miles, placing older rock on top of younger rock.

"Markagunt Megabreccia" is the name of this rock unit.  Breccia refers to jumbled angular rock fragments cemented together by a fine-grained matrix, with "mega' referring to fragments that are larger than one meter length.  Catastrophic events like volcanic explosions create breccias.

"Markagunt" is the Paiute word for "Highland of Trees".  It resides in the Colorado plateau province.  Cedar Breaks National Park rises from one of its highest points.

Our Route:  Avoiding the Steep Climb until it got Really Steep
We parked just off the Old Spanish National Historic Trail in Upper Bear Valley.  Locally, it is a nice graded road out of Paragonah that is also named Forest Road #077, Markagunt Plateau Trail and Bear Valley Road.  

0 - 1.3 miles - walk southeast over Bear Creek right after parking, then walk up road (not numbered) that leads around the knoll to the east and drop into Ashton Creek at when it turns to the right (south).
1.3 miles - 2.9 miles - walk up Ashton Creek.  
2.9 miles to summit - steep walk up Sandy's west slope, avoiding the top of the long ridge just to the north of the summit.
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We couldn't see Sandy Peak from the road approach.  If I were to do this hike again, I would get out of Ashton Creek sooner and climb the first ridge on the left (east) I could see, which leads easterly to intersect with Sandy's north ridge.  In the creek, we saw what looked to be a hunter's path (found a camera on a tree and a salt lick nearby) that led through a nice forest of pines, aspen and meadows, although we had a bit too many mosquitos.  Getting on the ridge sooner out of Ashton Creek would have probably meant less bushwhacking.  

The steep walk to the top on Sandy's western flank was riddled with deadfall, rocks, and vegetation, adding to precarious footing at times.  Maneuvering around rough volcanic blocks at the summit was fun.  The view was huge.  To the north, we saw smoke from a fire just south of the incredible Tushar Mountain range, and to the southeast the orange rocks near Bryce Canyon.

This area of the Markagunt Plateau, squeezed up between Parowan Valley to the west, and the Panguitch Valley to the east has lots of trails, mountains, and mountain-bike friendly roads to explore.  Gotta get back there!

Visions of a Centro Woodfired Pizza got me through the last bit of route finding out of the creek.  Per tradition, after hikes in this area, we went to this restaurant in Cedar City.  Route-finding, wilderness, amazing view, pretty tough hike (at least for us), great pizza and great beer makes for the perfect day.  Life is good!

All Fired up!
As Pat Benatar's song goes, we're "All Fired Up" for next week's Grand Canyon rim to rim hike!  Her song is a fitting accompaniment to the goblet squat video below.  Fred and I needed elevation training, so we went to Palm Springs, my old stomping grounds, and hiked the Skyline Trail for a gain of 4,700 feet, the same Bright Angel Trail gain on the south rim of the Grand Canyon. 

​We encountered too much snow at 8,000 feet in the Pine Valley Mountains just to the north of St. George, preventing a good elevation gain.  My last post, Grand Canyon Rim to Rim In One Day:  Training in St. George, Utah, explains how we got creative with emulating distance and elevation.  We did great on the Skyline; we're now ready for the big hike!

New goal:  hike to the tram this October with some of our hiking buddies.  Oh, the nostalgia and the beauty of this mountain!
I'm grateful that I can still be hiking it 31 years later - let's say that the Advil this time was very helpful!

La Verkin Creek Trail to Kolob Arch - Zion NP
This long hike features attributes found in Zion National Park's main canyon, including an arch, sandstone cliffs and a river but without the throngs of people.  It's in the northern Kolob Canyons section, has a spur trail to impressive Kolob Arch, and also meets up with the Hop Valley Trail, a route to the main Zion Canyon.  We hiked 7 miles in to Kolob Arch and back for a total of 14 miles, the same distance as Grand Canyon's North Kaibab Trail.  It drops down from the parking lot at Lee Pass Trailhead into the La Verkin Creek drainage.  The same mileage as our Skyline Trail hike, but not nearly the same elevation gain.  

We've got one more training hike on Zion's West Rim Trail this week with Lindy and Jeff, and then we should be good to go for the Grand Canyon.  We are lucky to have such inspirational places, some of the most beautiful on Earth, in which to train!

Strengthening exercise for powerful hill climbing:  Goblet Squats 
I have found that since I started doing CrossFit and working on strengthening my legs, I have more stability and power for steeper hiking.  Goblet squats can be done with a kettlebell as well as two dumbbells, each resting on your shoulders.
Strengthens your core (trunk) muscles, glutes and hips.  Points to remember:

• Feet hip-to shoulder-width apart with toes pointed slightly outwards.
• Hold dumbbell or kettlebell at your chest with your elbows pointing down.
• Pull in and "zip" up your abdominals, raise  your sternum up, squeeze shoulder blades together.
• Look forward:  inhale as you squat, holding weight against chest - don't lean forward - keep trunk upright.
• Lower hips to below knee level, then squeeze your glutes as you push to stand through your mid-feet and heels.
• Keep your knees tracking over your toes.
• Exhale, repeat and know you are that much stronger to climb hills!

​​The First Cactus to Clouds Challenge - October 1993
Summit of Mt. San Jacinto, 10,804'.
From left to right:  Sue Birnbaum, (don't remember his name), Roger Keezer, Maria Keezer, Ray Wilson, and Vickie Kearney seated in the middle.