Distance: 7.9 miles round trip cross country
Summit Elevation: 3064'
Elevation Gain: 1544'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 1.2
Round trip time: 4 hours 35 minutes
Recommended water: 112 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free at turn out on Highway S2
Difficulty: Moderate
With most national forests closed due to fire restrictions, I dared the desert before desert season. I wanted to finish by noon, so I aimed for Sundown Peak, an unofficial peak I missed while climbing Storm Canyon Mountain a couple of years ago. I parked at a turn out on highway S2. At 7:00 AM, it was already 80F. I cruised a couple miles of flat desert before reaching the base of Sundown. I considered going directly at it, but the upper ramparts looked sketchy and I wanted to avoid the sun as long as possible. Instead, I took the familiar gully up to the plateau shared among Sundown, Storm Canyon, and Square Rock Peak. This left only 400' of scrambling. By this time, the sun was mostly unavoidable.
The ascent was a fun scramble with some route finding. There were two blocks on the summit competing for the high point. I climbed what appeared to be the highest boulder first, 12' of class 3 friction. There was a metal post near the other boulder which was easier to surmount. I remember a metal post on Square Rock Peak, but no official marks on either. No register. I was feeling the heat, so only spent a few minutes on top before descending the same way. I ran out of water about half way across the flat section. My easternmost track was better since it went through holes in the two barbed wire fences. The temp when I got back to the truck was 95F. I am looking forward to more pleasant conditions in a month or so.
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