Iron Hiker: Butterfly Peak, Rock Point, and Gold Hill

Saturday, February 29, 2020

Butterfly Peak, Rock Point, and Gold Hill

Hiked: 2/28/2020
Distance: 9.2 miles round trip on trail and cross use trail
Summit Elevation: 6240' (Butterfly), 5280' (Rock Point), 5164' (Gold Hill)
Elevation Gain: 2962'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 2.4
Round trip time: 8 hours 30 minutes
Recommended water: 128 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free on Table Mountain Road
Difficulty: Strenuous (Route Finding, Class 5 summit)

These peaks are southwest of the desert divide and slightly lower. They are exciting, though, and tested me thoroughly. I drove to the trailhead on Table Mountain Road. The trail first goes up a paved road before cutting between two houses and meeting a dirt road that heads north. I started at 8:00 AM, a little late for me. Soon enough, the road becomes a sandy wide single track. The trails to each of these peaks intersect sort of in the middle. The order I choose to tackle these was Butterfly (HPS #170), Rock Point (HPS #254), then go back for Gold Hill if my energy level allowed. To get to Butterfly, I continued north past intersections with the other trails. I stopped at the intersection with the Rock Point trail to cache my rope and climbing gear. I passed some mining ruins and several sealed adits. A sign said the mine was sealed to protect local bats. At the final fork, I went right. The trail to Butterfly goes left. At the end of the trail, I had to scramble and plow through some brush before eventually getting back to the trail. There were a few cairns set up along the way so other people also came that way. I lost the trail a few more times in the last half mile and also brushed off two ticks. I highly recommend taking a GPS track for Butterfly. When I reached the summit, it took me a while to find the register in a white tube underneath one of the boulders. Didn't locate any benchmarks. I signed in then headed to the slightly lower Peak 6228 just to the west. Peak 6228 had a class 3 summit but no register. Magnificent views from both peaks. I had an easier time following the trail down but the trip took more time than expected. I went past the turn off for Gold Hill and took the trail to Rock Point.

Butterfly from the first trail junction

Caching 14 pounds and $400 worth of climbing gear

Old mining machinery

One of the sealed mine adits

Off trail scrambling

Butterfly summit

Register tube under a boulder

Looking over at Peak 6228

Class 3 summit of 6228

I picked up my rope and gear before heading south. The trail to Rock Point is relatively flat until you get to the base of it. Switchbacks take you up about 250' to the summit area. I did not find a register or any benchmarks. The high point is a daunting 25' boulder. Roughly 5% of people attempt the summit boulder. The standard route is class 5.3 up a crack on the north side. Strong rock climbers free solo it. I might have been able to get up, but was not sure I could get down, ergo rope. After surveying all sides, I decided to attempt an ascent on the south corner. I set up an anchor on a large rock on the north side, then tossed the rope over. It took a few tries to get it positioned where I wanted. The first solid hold was about 9' up. I set up two prusiks, one for my protection once I reached the boulder, and one to hold a Metolius ladder aider. This worked perfectly. I climbed the ladder high enough to mount the boulder, then attached myself to the other prusik. With great holds the rest of the way, it took less than a minute to reach the top. The top of the boulder was long and wide, with the high point on the opposite side. There were more excellent views from Rock Point. It felt great getting the summit boulder. After exploring the top, I climbed back down with prusik protection. It had warmed up to a very pleasant 60F and I lounged around the summit eating lunch and soaking up sun. The sun also brought butterflies, which were everywhere the rest of the day. I spent about 90 minutes on the summit before packing up and starting back. Energized by success on Rock Point, I decided to pick up Gold Hill.

Rock Point ahead

Massive summit boulder

Looking at Butterfly from Rock Point

New floppy hat for better sun protection

When I hit the main trail, I headed north for Gold Hill. Going back up added a little extra gain and distance compared to doing Gold Hill on the way back from Butterfly. The turn off was marked with a sign about gold mining in the local area. The trail climbed a couple of hundred feet to the north side where a use trail branched to the summit. The trail was marked with some cairns and required minor scrambling. The route finding took a little effort but was nothing like the top of Butterfly. At the top, I found a register placed in 2018 with very few signatures. Gold Hill had fine views and comfortable rocks. I finished the last of my food and water, then returned to the truck. This trip checked nearly every box of fun. Multiple peaks, bushwhacking, scrambling, route finding, a technical roped ascent, scenery, summit views, and perfect weather. Aces.