History: Multi Peak Hikes in Charleston

It seems  like a long time ago, and I guess it was. During the spring of 1996, I called Eva with a crazy idea: Let’s try to hike to Mummy, Charleston, and Griffith Peaks in one day. She thought I was kidding. I wasn’t. On July 28th, 1996, Eva, Susan, and I did the first Multi Peak Hike in Mt. Charleston. It has always been my favorite. 
Fast-forward to July 6, 2003. It's now time for the 8th Annual Multi Peak Hike. This year we had more participants than any other year. Beside Susan and me, (we have done all eight Multi-Peak Hikes) Nick, Debbie, Anna, and Valentina joined us for a “little” walk in the mountains. 

I wanted to do something different this year. We decided on Mummy’s Forehead, Chin, Tummy, Charleston Peak, and Griffith Peak. The route was approximately 18 miles and over 7,000 feet of elevation gain. The first half of the route was cross-country. The hike was essentially Mummy Head to Toe without the Toe, but adding the Forehead. Once at Mummy we would descend to the North Rim Ridge and followed it to Devil’s Thumb. A quick climb of  Devil’s Thumb and then on to Charleston Peak. After taking a break at the highest point in southern Nevada, we would descend the South Loop Trail, bagging Griffith Peak on the way down. 

A perfect Sunday morning in early July found six hikers (Anna, Debbie, Susan, Valentina, Nick, Myself) at the trailhead just before 7 asking themselves: Why am I doing this? After preparing for the hike, we followed the standard route through the woods and into the drainage. After ascending the drainage within 100 yards of the saddle, we encounter the first Class 4 climb. Once up, we continued to the summit of Mummy’s Forehead. 

The route from Mummy’s Forehead to Mummy’s Chin has never been good, and, in my opinion, it still isn’t. It’s either a descent of hundreds of feet only having to make it up or traverse along very loose scree chutes. Since we would gain over 7,000 feet, we opted for the traverse. It’s not pleasant. (I will try to find a better route later this summer.) Some 45 minutes later we were standing on Mummy’s Chin. 
In the past when hiking from Mummy’s Chin to Mummy Mountain (highest point on Mummy), we have descended hundreds of feet into a gully only to ascend back up. We took a gamble and stayed high near the east wall. After negotiating one easy Class 4 downclimb, the gamble paid off. We were now at the start of a long ascent to Mummy. Valentina and I decided to climb, instead of following the traditional route. After some fun Class 4 and a short Class 5 pitch, we were on the summit plateau. We all met at Mummy and signed the book. Valentina started her collection of animal-looking logs here, which she carried all the way down to the top of the scree slope! 

In my mind the physically challenging part was over, though I knew the long walk down the South Loop Trail would be a challenge for my feet. It was now a scenic walk along the North Rim Ridge to Devil’s Thumb. One of the oddities along this route is The Landing.  I swear you could land a small plane on it. (Dave disagrees, but he did not fly in the Civil War like I did.) Once beyond The Landing, we picked up the North Loop Trail and followed it about 0.5 mile to Devil’s Thumb. It was along this point Valentina left the group. Only being to elevation once before and hiking boots that were giving her trouble, she decided to walk down to the trailhead at Trail Canyon. We gave her a two-way radio and said goodbye. I wasn’t worried about her. Having a black belt in karate and been a professional boxer and kick boxer, she could whip anyone’s butt on the mountain.  

The route from Devil’s Thumb to Charleston Peak is a classic and avoids the tedious switchbacks of the North Loop Trail. Once up the initial climb, we got spread out. Some of us climbed, others avoided the climbs, and others just took off. Just before the steep part of the summit ridge, there’s an idyllic camping spot in Mt. Charleston; however, it would be a challenging hike with a full pack. 
Debbie, Susan, and I reached the peak and relaxed for a few minutes. Nick and Anna had already left. After a bite to eat and a change of socks, we took off down the South Loop Trail. Though it’s an easy walk, it’s boring.  To make time go by I tried to coordinate how we were going to get everybody back together and get the cars. I really wasn’t sure where Valentina would end up: the trailhead, the wrong trailhead, Vegas, or Moscow! The 2-way radios were indispensable. We met Nick and Anna at the junction before Griffith Peak and confirmed our plans. They took off down the South Loop Trail and Debbie, Susan, and I went to bag Griffith Peak, the final peak. Some where along the path to Griffith Peak the altitude got to Susan and me as evident in the summit photo. 

A non-eventful walk down the Old South Loop Trail had us standing at the trailhead around 8 pm. We had completed another Multi-Peak Hike in Mt. Charleston without incident. 

Lessons Learned:
Duct tape works great for preventing blisters.
Eat and drink often to keep energy up and stay hydrated.
Two-way radios are vital when attempting long hikes with several hikers. Even the best plans can change.
  
History of the Multi Peak Hikes in Mt. Charleston
1996 Mummy, Charleston, and Griffith  Route: Up Mummy Springs to Mummy, over to Charleston, down South Loop to Griffith, continue to saddle, down drainage to summer homes.  Hikers: Susan, Eva, and Me.
1997    Mummy, Charleston and Griffith. Route: Trail Canyon to Mummy, over to Charleston, down South Loop to Griffith, and down to the trailhead. Hikers: Eva, Richard Baugh, Susan, and me.
1998  Eva, Richard Baugh, Susan, and me. Rained out after reaching Mummy. Hikers:  Eva, Terri Melquist, Susan, and me.
1999  Griffith, Charleston, Mummy, Charleston, Griffith. Route: South Loop to Griffith, continue to Charleston, down North Loop to scree slope, up scree slope to Mummy, back to Charleston and Griffith, down to trailhead. Hikers: Len Zane (first three peaks), Susan, and me.
2000    Cancelled bad weather.
2001  Mummy, Charleston and Griffith Mummy via the southern route, North Rim Ridge to Charleston, South Loop to Griffith, and down to trailhead. Hikers: ???
2002   Mummy, Charleston and Griffith. Route: Mummy via the Southern Route, North Rim Ridge to Charleston, South Loop to Griffith, and down to trailhead. Hikers: Nick Nelson, Susan, and me.