March 12, 2021 hike: Finger Rock Canyon to the top of Mount Kimball.
This was a tale of two hikes. The first half was cold, cloudy and sometimes rainy. The top was literally freezing. The descent turned warm and sunny, a glorious climb down.
Finger Rock is the steepest, hardest and most scary hike that I've done in the Catalinas. It is an incredible workout, but mercifully, not too long. The views from Mount Kimball are great, although it was quite cloudy at the top this time.
Photo 1 shows the early day weather looking up at Finger Rock (shrouded by the clouds). This is maybe one third of the way up.
Photo 2 is from about an hour later looking down the canyon from the upper reaches. I thought the weather was finally improving, but ...
Photo 3 is near the top of Mt Kimball. The clouds were hung up on the high mountains with strong gusts making it freezing cold. The picture shows some burned trees that were coated in ice. I ate lunch up there, admiring the view while shivering. Lunch was a quick affair! Then I got lost on the way down, adding to the misery. But, ...
Photo 4 shows the backside of Finger Rock as I came down from Mt Kimball. I'd reconnected with the trail after zig zagging down a burnt face of Mt Kimball in the clouds and freezing wind and then the clouds cleared for good. Suddenly, everything was blissful!
Photos 5 and 6 are from the very top of Finger Rock Canyon looking down the canyon. The views are really incredible from there.
Photo 7 is a replay of photo 1, but showing Finger Rock in the beautiful afternoon sun. It was truly idyllic by then, with low 60s temps, warm sunshine and no wind.
Overall, a great workout and beautiful for the second half of the hike.
Hike stats: 10.2 miles with over 4,100 feet of vertical to a peak of 7,258 feet in 6.5 hours.
