36/50 – April 27, 2023: Little Mountain Shoulder (~7,671 ft, 8.6mi, 2,911 ft)
BYU Badger Professor
Saturday, May 4, 2024
50 Peaks by 50 Part 5 - 35-?
Sunday, June 5, 2022
50 Peaks by 50 Part 4 - 26/35
26-28/50 - January 17-20, 2022: Warmi Wañusqa 13,829 ft, Runkuraqay 12,795 ft & Machu Picchu 7,872 ft: 27.3 mi over 4 days. I was lucky enough to go on an amazing trip to Peru and to spend four days hiking the Inca trail to Machu Picchu with my adventurous niece Emily. It was so interesting to learn the history of the Inca and to see what they had built so long ago. And the mountains in Peru are more green and steeper than you can imagine. In places is it hard to imagine how one would pass if it weren't for the camino that they had built.
32/50 - July 25,
2022: Boxelder Peak (11,172 ft),
11.65 mi, 4,754 ft
This trail is not spoken
of a lot, but it was relatively easy and I really enjoyed the views along the
way. The grassy meadow and wildflowers
up on the saddle were probably my favorite part. Most peaks in Utah require a scramble over
boulders at the top, but this one had a trail (although steep at the end) the
whole way.
33/50 - Aug 22,
2022: Hihimanu Summit (2,279
ft), 6.0 mi, 2,467 ft
This was one of the most
unique hikes that I’ve ever done. About
80% of the island is inaccessible except by air, and after hiking this trail I
understand why. The trail was often just
a slit through the jungle, with just enough brush cleared to make it
through. Then, it transitioned to a
trail along a knife edge that fell off extremely steeply on both sides, yet the
slopes on the sides were so full of trees and bushes that there was not much
risk of falling. Then the trail became so steep that the only
way to advance was hand over hand on fixed ropes that had been set, using the
dirt for footholds.
34/50 – Sept 10,
2022: Lone Peak (11,253 ft), 15.6
mi, 5,554 ft)
This has the reputation
of being one of the hardest hikes on the Wasatch front, and while it didn’t
feel particularly difficult to me on the way up, I could feel it on the way down and the rest of the day. We started really early to beat the heat,
which was a good idea, and it was nice seeing the lights of the city and then
the sun rising on the first part of the hike. The upper valley and sheer granite cliffs were truly beautiful and worth all of the effort to get there.