by Guillermo Mijares
Early Sunday, January 31st, a group of Outdoors Pursuits members took a trip to Hualapai Mountain for a snow hike. It was back in August when we went on our first Hualapai Mountain trip of this 2015-16 school year. It was in incredibly fun. The sun was shining, the fresh air was blowing, and the great smell of pine was present.
On this January trip to this same location, we had a little different experience. We found out that snow was going to be waiting for us. The snow was a big reason why we decided to make this trip happen in the first place. Considering the fact that we see sun for the most part of the school year, we thought that hiking on Arizona snow would be a great opportunity before it's gone.
Early Sunday, January 31st, a group of Outdoors Pursuits members took a trip to Hualapai Mountain for a snow hike. It was back in August when we went on our first Hualapai Mountain trip of this 2015-16 school year. It was in incredibly fun. The sun was shining, the fresh air was blowing, and the great smell of pine was present.
On this January trip to this same location, we had a little different experience. We found out that snow was going to be waiting for us. The snow was a big reason why we decided to make this trip happen in the first place. Considering the fact that we see sun for the most part of the school year, we thought that hiking on Arizona snow would be a great opportunity before it's gone.
*On our way to Hualapai...
We hit the road no later than 8:30a.m, and it didn't take long for some good ol' country music to wake us up through the radio on our way through Kingman, AZ.
We didn't want to arrive too late, so we skipped breakfast. Painful, we know.
Thankfully, Matt, our driver, had a box of granola bars to go. We all had one granola bar on our way over there. Eventually, the entire box was gone. Now I, take full responsibility for the disappearance of the rest of the box.
We didn't want to arrive too late, so we skipped breakfast. Painful, we know.
Thankfully, Matt, our driver, had a box of granola bars to go. We all had one granola bar on our way over there. Eventually, the entire box was gone. Now I, take full responsibility for the disappearance of the rest of the box.
• Arriving to Hualapai
Passing through the entrance of our destination, the scene completely blew us away. The pines looked pretty, but seeing the snow sitting on top of the mountain was even more exciting.
The moment you know you're getting closer to the area is when you start to sense the fresh pine smell along with rushes of wind...
or when you have to pay for your parking ticket.
The moment you know you're getting closer to the area is when you start to sense the fresh pine smell along with rushes of wind...
or when you have to pay for your parking ticket.
• The Hikers
This trip consisted of four members who decided to wake up early in the morning to enjoy this hike.
This is Garret Hansen. Garret is the dormitory residence assistant, and one of our Biology majors at ASU-LHC. He is an outdoors geek. Garret has been with our O.P club at most, if not all, the hiking trips we've had since the beginning of the year. He is our club's Historian. When I asked him about what separates our Hualapai Snow Trip compared to our last visit in August, he said, "During the winter trip I couldn't help but to be captivated by the photogenic appearance of the rounded granite outcroppings, framed by pure white snow and line trees. It was like something out of a magazine." |
This is Matt McFall.
Matt is a Criminology major. He is also a board member within our club.
Matt was kind enough to volunteer to drive us to this trip. He enjoyed every bit of this hike.
I asked him what was his favorite part of this
morning hike, he didn't hesitate to admit that this hike was quite rough on the way up due to the amount of snow we had to step on with every motion.
"... the commitment, and drive we gave to accomplish a fairly difficult hike."
Those were the words Matt said to me after the hike when I asked him about his favorite thing about this trip.
• A frosty route
Just a few days before this trip, a couple of friends who conquered the same hike on the same week mentioned that we should expect about 3 to 4 inches of snow on our way up and down. Knowing that this would be the case, we expected this hike to take longer than the usual.
As we started taking our first few steps on the mountain, we realized it was about 8 to 10 inches deep. Through some areas, we went through at least a foot deep of snow. And that's when our pace slowed down tremendously.
Every frosting step caused a struggle because of its depth, and also because of how slippery some areas were starting to get. It takes a mind of a genius hiker to know what to do in that situation.
Sam and I decided we were going to find broken branches lying near the trees, so we can use them to prevent any slippery situations. Those pieces of wood saved us from rolling down backwards with a bad step on a slippery slope.
You've got to do what you've got to do to get it done.
As we started taking our first few steps on the mountain, we realized it was about 8 to 10 inches deep. Through some areas, we went through at least a foot deep of snow. And that's when our pace slowed down tremendously.
Every frosting step caused a struggle because of its depth, and also because of how slippery some areas were starting to get. It takes a mind of a genius hiker to know what to do in that situation.
Sam and I decided we were going to find broken branches lying near the trees, so we can use them to prevent any slippery situations. Those pieces of wood saved us from rolling down backwards with a bad step on a slippery slope.
You've got to do what you've got to do to get it done.
• Conquering the top of Hualapai
Finally, we get to the top of the mountain. Near the radio tower is where we peaked. There were only a few hikers at this time of day. Therefore, as soon as we ran into our first one, we had to make sure this moment is captured.
I asked a random hiker to stop what he's doing and take a 10 second break to take a picture of the four of us.
• Rushing down
We realized that time was getting tight, so we agreed to hike down the mountain by 1:20pm.
The way down the mountain was when things started to get interesting. First, we realized that the path we chose to go down on was actually the longer way. We had no other choice but to speed things up going back down, and that's when we spent more time laughing than struggling.
The way down the mountain was when things started to get interesting. First, we realized that the path we chose to go down on was actually the longer way. We had no other choice but to speed things up going back down, and that's when we spent more time laughing than struggling.
“You must fall before you walk” - Sam Miller
Those were the wise, legendary words from our dear friend, Sam Miller, as he kept slipping on snow.
Not to pick out on our friend, Sam, again, but the man just kept having a stronger relationship with the ground with every step he took.
See for yourself.
See for yourself.
• Making a friend
On our way down the mountain, we ran into this creature. We saw him from a long distance as we made our way back to our vehicle, but Garret didn't hesitate to capture this face-to-face photo.
These awesome creatures average the weight of 500 to 750 pounds, so we were hoping Garrett didn't get any closer than this. And to joke around with Garret, I thought it would be funny if when he walked towards us, Me, Sam & Matt would act like if this animal was chasing Garret by running to our car before he did.
Garret didn't fall for it. He calmly walked and met us at the parking lot.
Garret didn't fall for it. He calmly walked and met us at the parking lot.
• A Frosty Perspective
Even with the laughs and challenges we had during this adventure, I couldn't help but to enjoy & observe the commitment the four of us had with each other through the 4 hours we spent together.
With every spectacular piece of scenery we saw, and every step we took on Hualapai, it was all worth it. We then drove to Starbucks in Kingman, AZ. This great, cold adventure could not have ended without a hot beverage.
When you attend an adventurous place like this outdoors location, and you go back to your city, Lake Havasu City in our case, you are quickly reminded how lucky you are to live near a destination such as the Hualapai Mountain.
We did not take one second for granted on this Frosty Sunday.
We will not take our future Outdoors Pursuits adventures for granted either, and we recommend fellow Sun Devils to be involved in upcoming outdoors events to share the same experience.