A Climb to the Top

My friend Aimee is really into hiking right now. I loaned her a copy of Wild, and all of a sudden she's ready to tackle the Pacific Crest Trail. I wasn't even sure she'd care for the book, but it turns out the PCT goes almost right through the area in which she grew up so she recognized quite a few places that are mentioned. It made her nostalgic, and now that she's an athlete she has the urge to explore that area like she's never done before.

She took the plan surprisingly far in her head, but practicality won out so we're sticking close to our new homes and hiking and climbing around here. For now. But who knows? Someday maybe we'll really go out into the wild. Yesterday, though, we hiked to the summit of Piestewa Peak. I'd done it when I'd first moved to Phoenix fifteen years ago, again with my parents later that year, and then with the kids three years ago. It's a good introduction to climbing as the trail is maintained, heavily traveled, and it's impossible to get lost. It's a good workout and the views are spectacular on a clear day, too.

So we embarked on our adventure early, leaving Chandler at 7:00 am for the Phoenix Mountain Preserve which is literally right across the street from my old Charles Schwab office. We arrived so early we scored a prime parking spot close to the trailhead and began our ascent. Aimee took this photo just as we started, and we laughed that it looks like one of those photos they'll show of Phoenix when the NFL breaks to commercials during the Super Bowl. There will be a cactus. There is always a cactus!

We took our time, stopping every so often to catch our breath (it's a 1200 elevation change over the course of a mile) and made it to the top in about an hour. The trail is fairly easy with carved out steps so it's known as Phoenix's stairmaster, but at the very top there's some hand-over-foot climbing. We were glad to make it to the summit, but it was so windy and freezing up there. Literally. Her phone proves it.

We had a quick snack, took some pictures, and headed back down.

It took us just as long on the descent because we were being careful not to fall. It's steep in some parts, there are loose rocks in others, and neither of us was up for an impromptu and expensive helicopter ride.There was no rush and we knew it, so we enjoyed each other's company, the scenery, and then breakfast.

Oh, breakfast! This was quite possibly the best part of the morning. I searched Yelp for an eatery in that area and Bertha's Cafe looked promising. It was a great choice, and we thoroughly enjoyed every single part of the experience from the breakfast sandwiches (which were the best breakfast sandwiches we'd ever had) to the little cup of bananas with honey and granola that came on the side. Aimee had the Breakfast Wrap and I had the Brioche Egg Sandwich, if you're curious. The coffee was delightful; we were both ready to order larges but the lady at the counter told us if we're eating there we could help ourselves to free refills and charged us for smalls. That was nice of her, huh? Everyone there was friendly and kind, and their music selection was just my style with familiar tunes by Coldplay, Mayer, Mraz, Adele, Colbie, and other faves. It was cozy and warm in there, too, which was a welcome change from our early morning on the mountain. I wish this place was right around the corner from my house. It's probably good that it's not, but don't you doubt for a moment that I'm already trying to talk Aimee and other friends into hiking Camelback very soon if for no other reason than to eat at Bertha's again.