Slate Mountain 8215′
Total Time: 1:45
Distance: 4.7 miles
Elevation Gain: 900′
Crux: Class 1
Trailhead: Slate Mountain TH, high clearance, no services
With the Coconino National Forest closures, the number of alpine summits to climb in the early summer was limited. Having climbed Kendrick Peak the day before, there were very few summits open for recreation above 8,000′. Most of them were small cinder cones that would be short and loose cross country endeavors without providing much additional acclimatization. After running through the remaining options, we settled on a climb of nearby Slate Mountain, one of the larger cinder cones with a trail to the top. After breakfast in town we headed north on US 180, turning onto the signed dirt road to the base of the peak. There were surprisingly a few other cars at the trailhead starting out, and we started up the dusty trail.
There were a number of interpretive signs along the hike pointing out the various plants where the high Arizona desert blended with Ponderosa Pine forest. The trail followed an old road as it switched up the slopes, and considering the distance from Flagstaff compared to the numerous other closer trails, I was pleasantly surprised with how well maintained it was.
I couldn’t help but feel like I was hiking in the Long Valley caldera east of Mammoth Lakes, CA and we hiked up the packed dirt road through the pines. The trail looped a bit around the high point before bringing us to an open area on the top. Holly had left over Sosoba on the top for an early lunch, which I’m pretty sure was a first ascent on Slate Mountain with left over ramen. One for the books.
Once she was done, we headed back down the trail to the car, the entire hike only taking under hours. From there we headed back to Flagstaff to see the Alpaca at the ‘shearing festival’ (yeah that’s a thing) and grab a beer before heading home, our last bit of acclimatization before Gran Paradiso.
