Anyone reading through my blog may wonder why I didn’t hike in 2019 or 2020. Shortly after Batya and I returned from our vacation in Banff, we learned that she was expecting a baby. Because of morning sickness that lasted through most of the pregnancy, she wasn’t up for hiking, and while she encouraged me to go on my own (or with friends), I didn’t want to do so. On June 16, 2019 (Father’s Day), our daughter Shaina was born!
When Shaina was 3 months old, Batya and I decided to take her down to Florida to meet my mother. Unfortunately, my mother had a stroke as we were on the way to the airport. We were able to take Shaina into the hospital to meet her, and have a few photos of them together. Unfortunately, my mother never recovered, and after 6 months in a nursing home, she passed away at the beginning of the Covid pandemic, on April 1, 2020. I had primarily started this blog in order to share my hikes with my mother, and I’m sorry that she can no longer read about the beautiful places that I visit.
After successfully working remotely from Brooklyn for the first 9 months of the pandemic, I decided that I could just as easily work remotely from anywhere. We flew to Phoenix in January 2021, made an offer on a house, and moved to Arizona in April 2021. After the first boiling summer, and with Shaina in preschool, Batya and I decided to go for a short hike in Phoenix Mountain Preserve, which is only a few blocks from our house.
The most popular trail there climbs to the top of Piestewa Peak. Formerly known by the non-politically-correct term “Squaw Peak,” it was renamed to Piestewa Peak in 2003, in honor of Lori Piestewa, a Native American soldier killed in the Iraq war. This is an in-and-out trail climbing approximately 1300′ over a course of 1.25 miles, and is very popular. Some locals climb the trail daily. There are also trail runners, with some climbing and descending the trail two or more times per day. Others will make the climb barefoot. Because of the short distance, many hikers don’t carry any water. In the summer, though, hikers are most likely to be found on the trail in the early morning or late afternoon. With the extreme heat and the steep climb, there have been a number of emergency rescues.
Piestewa Peak Trailhead
Warning signs at the trailhead explain the risks involved. I think it’s silly to call a 1.25 mile, 1300′ elevation hike “extremely difficult,” as such a term brings to mind something like Yosemite’s Half Dome or the Grand Canyon’s Bright Angel trail. But in the summer, the heat warnings need to be taken seriously. Note that while dogs are not allowed on this trail, they are welcome on many other trails in the Preserve.
Piestewa Peak Warning Signs
Even though we were hiking on a (relatively) cool November day, Batya and I still took our time, enjoying the view, and we wore our typical hiking boots and carried plenty of water.
Batya beginning the hike
Scenery from the trail:
Phoenix Mountain Preserve
Sometimes I miss the forested hikes that I enjoyed in the mid-Atlantic states and elsewhere, but there is also a certain beauty to the desert.
Phoenix Mountain Preserve
A panorama:
Phoenix Mountain Preserve
Another panorama:
Phoenix Mountain Preserve
Our house is in the adjacent Biltmore Highlands neighborhood, clearly visible from the trail up to Piestewa Peak.
Biltmore Highlands
We almost made it to the top, but had to cut the hike short to go get Shaina from preschool. See our next visit to the Phoenix Mountain Preserve for images from the top of Piestewa Peak.
On the way down:
Batya descending
Some areas of the trail are dirt, typically sloped and rarely flat. Other areas of the trail are rocks, forming hundreds of uneven steps. The trail was developed in the 1930s.