Humphrey's Peak - Arizona's King Peak and the home of the Kachinas

View east from Humphrey's Saddle - Kachina Peaks Wilderness, Arizona

“The central theme of the Kachina cult is the presence of life in all objects that fill the universe. Everything has an essence or a life force, and humans must interact with these or fail to survive.”

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Not often is the chance that we get to realize a dream that we have had for many, many years. I got that chance one day in late October, 2012. For years I have driven past the San Francisco Peaks near Flagstaff on my way from Salt Lake City to Phoenix and back. As I have crossed the Grand Canyon on the South side of the Kaibab or descended the pink cliffs south of Page, it is always with much anticipation of my first glimpse of the San Francisco Peaks. Humphrey’s peak at 12,633 feet is the tallest of a half dozen high peaks that form the remaining rim of an ancient strato volcano that blew itself apart thousands of years ago resulting in a catastrophic collapse of the giant cone.

Looking up into a frosty sky - Kachina Peaks Wilderness, Arizona

This ancient volcano was enormous! Somewhere between 15,000 and 20,000 feet tall!! As you head south on US Highway 89 towards Flagstaff, the mountain builds on the horizon and once you are past Cameron it is quite a sight to behold. It rises up out of the plain surrounded by numerous other tiny cinder cones. The brown grasses give way to a thick green belt of Ponderosa Pine which in turn changes to Aspen, Douglas Fir and Spruce and White Fir higher up with a number of Bristlecone pine struggling to survive as they have for thousands of years at the tundra interface. In 1629 Spanish Padres named the peaks “Sierra de San Francisco” for the patron saint Saint Francis of Assisi (1181-1226) who is the patron saint of animals and the environment, and who coincidentally created the first nativity scene. The principle summit, Humphrey’s Peak, was named for General A.A. Humphreys who was Chief of Engineers, Department of the Army back in the 1800’s when the Wheeler Survey passed through the area. Native Americans and even those who came before have gazed upon the peaks with a sort of awe and reverence long before the white man presumed to label a name on them. According to a sign at the trailhead the Havasupai believed that the WiiHagnbaja (San Francisco Peaks) marked the rain heart of the world. The Hopi worshipped Nuvatukya’ovi (San Francisco Peaks) as the home of life giving power. The Navajos revered Dooko’oosliid (San Francisco Peaks) as the gleaming summit that bounds their harmony with the earth. These high peaks were also, according to Hopi culture, the place where the “Kachinas” lived. The basic premise of Kachina culture is that everything in nature has a life force and it would stand to reason that as a result of that, we should respect nature even more so that we do not harm the life force possessed by all things. When you are near the treeline in the Kachina peaks Wilderness among the green lichen covered ancient lava boulders, or walking through the deep cool forests – stepping over the intertwined roots of the trees it is easy to imagine that life force in all things. All of these things coupled with the dominating appearance of the Spanish Peaks have fired my imagination for years so finally on a cold day in late October of 2012, I met my brother in law Ken, and we drove up to the Arizona Snow Bowl from Phoenix. The temperature change between those two places was drastic.

Ken walking through the Coconino National Forest - Arizona

Our car thermometer read 18 degrees down in the early morning shadows of the peaks. There is a good parking lot at the trailhead and the signs there read “Humphrey’s Peak 4.8 miles”. Starting elevation is 9,300 feet at the parking lot and I though to myself……..under 5 miles one way and only 3,300 feet of elevation gain? Piece of cake right?? Wrong! This hike turned out to be a rough and physically abusive adventure. The trail starts by crossing a large open grassy meadow under the ski lifts of the Arizona Snow Bowl where you have fine views of the hulking mass of mountain jutting above the sea of trees. It then enters the forest of mixed Aspen and Fir and after a short while brings you to the boundary of the Kachina Peaks Wilderness Area. Along this stretch there were dark brown tangled roots all over the trail sprinkled with golden aspen leaves all around. The Aspens themselves were completely void of leaves as a couple of hard freezes and an early snow storm brought their golden treasure to the ground. The forest was in many areas a wreck – large logs and broken trees leaning this way and that and piled in impossible heaps of old dead trees. Live Aspen and Fir were still standing a midst this wreckage – fighting to survive. As we hit the trail before sunrise, it was very cold down in the forest. After many long switchbacks we found ourselves on the flank of the mountain looking out over the vast expanse of forest below towards 10,418 foot Kendrick Peak. The views only got better the higher up we went and as we rounded the mountain to the south 12,356 foot Agassiz peak came into view. This mountain looked like an interesting hiking target but upon further investigation, I discovered that the summit is closed to hiking to protect the San Francisco groundsel which is a tundra plant that grows nowhere else in the world. It is important to note that hiking off trail and camping above the 11,400 foot level in the San Francisco peaks is forbidden because this is the only Tundra climate in Arizona and there are fragile plants besides the groundsel that are likely found nowhere else. Agassiz peak is named for Louis Agassiz who was a Swiss born scientist, who accompanied the Wheeler expedition on their explorations in the early 1870’s. On this day Agassiz had a lingering coat of early season snow on its north facing slope which made its pyramid cone look very impressive. We finally reached the pass between Humphrey’s and Agassiz peaks. This pass is called “Humphrey’s Saddle” and the elevation here is 12,000 feet. The view to the East down to the inner basin was incredible. It was better than I had imagined. A secluded alpine bowl in the middle of a blistering desert complete with grassy meadows, tall pines and steep rock slides terminating in piles of boulders. What a respite this area must have offered to the pioneers and the ancients from the deserts far below. Ken was nearly all in by this point and I was feeling a bit whupped too but we had come too far to fail so we “rucked up” and headed north east through an area of jumbled boulders and rocks where the trail is often difficult to see but it is marked every so often with a polished wooden pole that has the word “Trail” branded into it. Up to this point the trail is a pretty reasonable grade but this area where you leave the last of the stunted trees behind is pretty steep. Soon you emerge near the top of a sub peak above the tree line. This is the first of 3 false summits before Humphreys. Near this point you have an incredible view straight down a terrifying looking avalanche shoot that ends several thousand feet below in the forest. Over the next minor false summit there is a high saddle that had a sign in it that could not be read because it was nearly covered in a 3 foot snow drift. Standing in this saddle on top of the snow I had a most excellent view south to the pine covered 11,489 foot Doyle Peak. It was surprisingly warm up there now. We were over 12,000 feet but it was 68 degrees………a full 60 degree temperature swing from the shadows of the morning! The air was very thin and there was not a cloud in the sky. It was a bit hazy though. Finally reached the summit and there was a rock half circle wind break around the sign that read “Humphrey’s Peak” 12,633 feet.

Ridiculous Avalanche Chute - Humphrey's Peak, Arizona

The view all around was amazing!! We hung out for a bit on top taking it all in. Humphrey’s Peak rises up from a seeming lake of pine that is surrounded by tan desert. There are dozens of smaller cinder cones visible from the top of Humphrey’s. The most impressive of which is Sunset Crater to the east with it’s dark black / red ashen dome. To the East was impressive 11,838 foot Abineau Peak. As I stood on the summit I gazed off to the east towards Wupatki National Monument far below and considered the rock houses on the plain that were abandoned long ago and wondered who those people were and why the left. I thought about the dusty trails and creak of the wagons as the Wheeler Survey made its way across the west, scaling these high peaks and measuring survey lines. We finished our lunch and headed down. It did not take long to cover that 4.8 miles as with every step, the novelty of the adventure wore off just a bit more as the feet made it known that they were not pleased with the abuse visited upon them that day. Humphrey’s Peak is a great hike! It is the veritable “Top” of Arizona. Round trip distance is 9.6 miles with an elevation gain of 3,333 feet. Plan on a good 3.5 to 4 hours up and about 2.5 hours to get down. The San Francisco Mountains are amazing and it is a wonderful thing to walk through the forests wondering if you will encounter a black bear or a cougar. The 18,960 acre Kachina Peaks Wilderness of the Coconino National Forest encompasses the high peaks here. To get there take US Highway 180 north out of Flagstaff and after awhile Forest Road 516 will break off to the right and north. There are good signs leading the way to the Arizona Snow Bowl. A few things to keep in mind if your are gonna tackle Humphrey’s (1) Weather can change very quickly up there…be prepared for cold, windy weather and dress in layers as it gets warm as you hike and you don’t want to soak yourself in sweat and then freeze and become hypothermic when you stop. (2) The atmosphere is very thin up there above 12,000 feet. It is difficult to breath due to scarcity of oxygen so pace yourself. If you feel sick turn around. (3) The sun is relentless above treeline and the UVs are very high. Sunscreen and sunglasses are a must. (4) Take plenty of water as there is no water anywhere along this trail that I observed. (5) Take more food than you think you will need, this hike will kick your butt and make you hungry. (6) Sign in at the hiking register and tell someone where you are going and when you plan to return. Cell phones do not work up there for the most part. For more information contact the Coconino National Forest in Flagstaff at (928) 526-0866. This was an amazing experience and I feel privileged that I was able to partake in the mystic and natural bliss of the Kachina Peaks. Now when I drive past em, I will remember the scenes along the trail and when I’m old and broken I’ll look up there and think…..Everything – all the objects in the universe, have an essence, a life force, and Humans must interact with the Kachina or fail to survive. A message that I will pass on to my children and their children too.

Jaromy D. Jessop

For more information on the Kachina Peaks Wilderness - Visit the USFS Webpage
http://goo.gl/ny7byY