Lookout Mountain (Phoenix Park Recreational Area)
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Click on photographs to enlarge
Total hiking distance covered (per the GPS) 1.94 Miles
Total time on trail 1 hour
Average hiking speed 2.1 MPH
Maximum elevation 2040 ft.
Starting elevation 1631 ft.
On Friday, February 09, 2007 I hiked the Lookout Mountain summit trail (the 150 trail) in the Phoenix Mountain Preserve and Recreational Area. The park is easy to find. Just take Bell Road to 16th street and head south about a half a mile to the end of the road. The Parking area is easy to see and the trail starts right at the south end of the parking area. The trail is well marked by posts and easy to follow for most of its length. After you hit the saddle the trail is less distinctive and there are a number of alternate trails that appear to approach the summit. I’m not sure that I took the right one, but I did reach the summit
Click on photographs to enlarge
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| Lookout Mountain Park | The Trailhead |
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| View to the north |
| Trail Markers | |
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| Looking toward the trailhead | A view from the saddle |
You start the trail from the parking lot and within a few hundred yards there is a junction. The trail post identifies which way to go to hike the 150 trail which is the fork to the left. For the first quarter mile the trail goes up in a gentle manner. It then starts switchbacks and becomes much steeper. After about a half a mile, the trail comes around to the left and you arrive at a saddle. At this point you could decide on a number of different routes to either of the summits. The summit to the east (left) is the higher of the two so I opted for that peak. A decent hiking pace can even be maintained in the steeper portion of the trail but from this point up, there are areas where the going is slippery and slow. Within a few hundred yards you come upon the first summit, which just happens to be a false one. Once you reach the top, you can easily see the main summit about a few hundred yards away. It only took me a little over a half an hour to reach the summit.
Click on photographs to enlarge
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| One of the trails to the summit | A view from the summit from the way you came up |
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| The trail down | Shadow Mountain |
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| The trail around | Steep and slippery |
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| A look back up to the summit | Back to the beginning |
Once you reach the summit, you have to reverse your direction to proceed back down. I wanted to return by one of the many trails that loop around Lookout Mountain so I took the first well marked trail that went off to the left. I do not feel that this trail is one of the regular trails to be hiked, but it was obviously well hiked. Here again, the trail is very steep and has even more loose rocks that could easily cause an ankle roll, a slip or other injury. Caution must be used on this trail. I continued on this trail all the way around Lookout Mountain taking all junctions to the left as I headed back toward the parking area. After about ½ mile you can again see the parking area where you started.
Although short, this trail is a moderately difficult trail and a very good trail to push your aerobic workout. It is also a decent trail for training or preparation for hiking the Grand Canyon.
Larry Wayt (gnhikn@cox.net)