One-Way Mileage: 1.5 miles
Elevation gain: 1,200 feet
Experience: Recommended for experienced hikers only
Difficulty: Strenuous
Parking: Not Great
Street parking is available on a limited basis on Invergordon near Cholla Lane. Park on Invergordon and walk up the south side of Cholla Lane. Dropping off hikers on Cholla Lane is prohibited.
Pets: Yes you can bring them, but bring ample water for the poor poochies
Hours: I wouldn't want to hike this in the dark so stick to daylight hours. From Oct. 1 to April 30, the Cholla Trailhead is open from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. From May 1 to Sept. 30, the hours are 5:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Safety: Cholla Trail is the more exposed of the two Camelback summit trails. There are steep, rocky sections with drop-offs on both sides. Loose and slippery rock can cause precarious situations in human traffic jams. No real wildlife to watch out for and it's highly travelled by other hikers so main safety is concern for your vehicle and for your balance.
People Meter: High traffic on weekends and in good weather. I prefer to hike this on a weekday off of work when I have no other plans so I don't get frustrated at the parking situation.
My experiences: December 2006 was my first time on Camelback Mtn. We only made it 1/2 way because we were using a holiday gift that involved a guide from the Phoenician and our time ran out before we made it past the halfway point. But by that time I already knew I was hooked and had to go back!
Here you can see some of the terrain. This is before it gets hairy with hand over hand action. (August 2008)
I find that New's Year Day is a great day to go hiking and set your year off to a great start... (2009)
Be quick or you'll get stuck in the dark... but the sunsets & moon rises can be awesome (taken from old school camera phone Oct 2008)
No comments:
Post a Comment