Ten Trailblazers headed north to escape the heat. Unfortunately, Mother Nature had other plans. It turned out to be a very warm day with temperatures reaching the 90s at the conclusion of our hike.

After a brief introduction, we started our hike at 8:40 in the morning. Most of us hiked this trail, so we knew what to expect. This trail is actually an old jeep road that is still used to bring supplies to the lookout tower at the top of the peak. At first, the trail is relatively flat with a slight ascent.

About a half a mile into the hike we stopped to check out the lava flow that ran to the right of us. This lava flow ran for at least a mile alongside the trail. The temperature was pleasant as we continued on with our hike. As we started our climb the temperatures also started to climb.

After two miles of a fairly flat trail, the trail starts to get steeper and the beginning of the steep switchbacks. At this point our group started to separate into small groups of fast hikers, medium hikers, and leisurely hikers.

As we climbed, we are rewarded with stunning views of the area. We could see that there was still some snow on the east and north side of Humphrey’s Peak.

We spotted a variety of wildflowers along the trail to enjoy as we hiked up the switchbacks. The views and wildflowers kept our minds off the steep climb and the hot temperatures.

The road up to the lookout tower is very exposed with very little shade. As we climbed, we all were sweating bullets due to the direct exposure to the hot sun as we hiked. It made for a tough hike!

Ten of us started the hike, but as we hiked up, two of our hikers turned around because of the intense heat. The rest of us continued on toward the lookout tower.

After knocking out the last few switchbacks we made it to the lookout tower. We took a much earned break under the tower and enjoyed our snacks. Due to Covid we weren’t allowed to enter the tower. We could only climb the stairs to the bottom of the actual lookout tower and view the surrounding area. We also took some time to take photos.

After taking an hour break we headed back down. Although it was a hot day we all enjoyed our hike. The views, company, and enjoyable conversation made for an enjoyable hike. As a side benefit we all got a nice cardio workout!