Granite Mountain — Monday, Sep. 8, 2025

I started out from the trailhead at 8AM with only a few cars parked in the lot. It was nice and cool with a heavy overcast that was forecast to end in a couple of hours. By 11AM I had climbed through the overcast but was high enough that it didn’t feel too hot. This hike would be darn hard on a clear hot day. I saw eleven other hikers on the trail even though it was a weekday. There were lots of small huckleberries that were ripe above the point where the main trail splits away from the bouldering route about three quarters of the way up. The views from the top are amazing and the granite rock near the top is a stark white against the colorful meadow plants. I watched a helicopter carrying sling loads at Alpental and felt envious. You can get good views of the lakes below if you walk a little ways northwest of the lookout tower.