That first hike of the challenge

We live in Prescott AZ and can see this peak from our house. This is not the first time we have hiked this mountain so we felt it was a good one to start with. I had to work a half day, so we did not get to start early in the morning. We arrived at the trailhead a few minutes before 2pm, temps were low 90’s but shaded for the first 2 miles. We (the locals) call the end of the first 2 miles The Gate, since there’s a gate, a trail junction and a nice place to rest before The Switchbacks. Along the way, we met a gentleman sitting alongside the trail, he had no gear, no water, no hat. We offered him water several times which he refused. We had a brief rest and hydrate at the Gate. Continuing along our upward journey, we now entered the Switchbacks and the sky had become overcast. The Switchbacks are 13 switchbacks which cover the majority of the elevation gain on this hike. Up until now, the trail was moderately easy, slow elevation gain, not much for rocks. The switchbacks are rocky, uneven and daunting to look at. But onward and upward we must go. 45 minutes later we reached The Saddle. Here you can look north toward Williamson Valley and Chino Valley. A little more elevation gain and we reached the relatively flat hike along the top ridge of Granite. The wind had definitely increased, which helped with the gnats, but it also brought some ominous looking clouds. While I had debated at the car about bringing my raingear, I left it behind. Picking up the pace, we made our way to the end of the trail. The trail end is not the actual peak. The peak itself is off trail, requires bouldering and scrambling to reach, and when returning a lot of people don’t mark where they left the trail and proceed downhill until they cliff out and call search and rescue. Back to our tale, we reached the end, had some protein, shared it with the ants, took some photos and hoped to beat the rain on the way down. Shortly after we moved in that direction, a young man (probably in his 20’s) came up behind us. We hadn’t see anyone else since the Gate and assumed we were alone on top. He said he came up the rock climbers route, then bounded off down the trail like one of the local deer. Watching the weather, we made our way back to the Switchbacks, then carefully (I have bad knees in my old age) down the uneven and rocky Switchbacks to the Gate. Another rest and hydrate, then into the wooded area where the gnats became more plentiful as it was approaching dusk and they were protected from the wind. We reached our car just before 8pm then headed into town for a Friday night date with the local cuisine.