Teewinot Climb - Grand Teton National Park, WY HikingEngineer 2025-10-04 | Teewinot is a short and very steep mountain that is easily accessible from the Lupine Meadows Trailhead in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. There is some class 3 and 4 scrambling and one class 5 section, and you most likely will encounter some snow. This is also the start of the Grand Traverse if you are summitting all the peaks (experts only!)
Cloudveil Traverse (Tetons, WY) - Middle Teton to Nez Perce HikingEngineer 2025-10-02 | The Cloudveil Traverse is more or less the second half of the much more difficult Grand Traverse, ocated in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. The Grand Traverse starts with Teewinot and ends at Nez Perce, whereas the traditional Cloudveil goes from South Teton to Cloudveil Dome. On my adventure I hit Middle Teton first, then South Teton, Ice Cream Cone, Gilkey, Spalding, Cloudveil Dome, and finally Nez Perce, starting and ending at the popular Lupine Meadows Trailhead.
Rainbow Peak, Mountain and Wall - Red Rocks, Las Vegas, NV HikingEngineer 2025-09-28 | Rainbow Peak, Rainbow Mountain, and Rainbow Wall are high peaks in the Red Rocks Conservation Area west of Las Vegas, NV. These peaks are located between Bridge Mountain and Wilson Mountain, but in my opinion are better than both as they kind of combine elements from both of those hikes. I went up Oak Creek Canyon but there are other offtrail approaches.
Mount Borah - Summitting Idahos Highest Point HikingEngineer 2025-09-24 | Mount Borah (or maybe Borah Peak) is Idaho's highest Peak and located in the Lost River Range. It's very steep but is a relatively easy hike compared to some other state high points like Gannett, Granite, Rainier, and Whitney. I started this hike late as I had driven a ton and bagged another peak earlier that day, so started at 5:15 pm and got down right after dark.
Loowit Trail - Running 30 mi around Mount Saint Helens HikingEngineer 2025-09-20 | Mount Saint Helens is an iconic mountain that famously erupted in 1980. It's a fairly easy mountain to summit without technical gear (see video here: youtu.be/brFSX5nIahs?si=Ya4jA63XfyzAzkpx), but you can also do the Loowit Trail to circumnavigate the mountain. I accessed the Loowit Trail via the June Lake Trailhead on the south side of the mountain and then went clockwise, as the tougher terrain seems to be southwest of the mountain with several boulder fields. You cross the south fork of the Toutle River at about mile 12 (30 miles total) then hit Windy Pass on the northeast corner of the loop.
Crater Lake National Park (OR) - Sun Notch, Cleetwood Cove, and Overlooks HikingEngineer 2025-09-17 | This video is a compilation of several short hikes and overlooks in Crater Lake National Park in southern Oregon.
Smith Rock State Park, OR - Eagles Nest and Misery Ridge HikingEngineer 2025-09-15 | Smith Rock State Park is a popular destination located north of Bend, Oregon and near the town of Redmond. There are lots of easy trails here but you can link them together and do some spurs to summits some of the higher points around the loop.
Crater Peak - Crater Lake National Park, OR HikingEngineer 2025-09-11 | Crater Peak is a short easy hike located right off of the main ring road on the south side of Crater Lake, in Crater Lake National Park, OR
Yosemite Diving Board - Famous Ansel Adams Photo of Half Dome HikingEngineer 2025-09-08 | The Diving Board is a less traveled semi off trail route that visits an exposed rock fin at the base of Half Dome, where Ansel Adams famously took a picture. You approach Little Yosemite Valley either via the Mist Trail or the John Muir Trail, and then branch off it to go past Lost Lake and then wrap around the Half Dome base.See link to the Half Dome portion of this hike:youtu.be/JJwVitbjrIs?si=B5SHhVDf9XqtfZlk
Garfield Peak - Crater Lake National Park, OR HikingEngineer 2025-09-06 | Garfield Peak is an easy hike located in a very crowded area of Crater Lake National Park in southern Oregon.
Half Dome - FULL Cable Footage - Yosemite NP, CA HikingEngineer 2025-09-02 | Half Dome is an iconic granite monolith located in Yosemite National Park in California, in Yosemite Valley. The standard way to hike this is to start at Happy Isles down in the valley, go up the Mist or John Muir Trail, pass Vernal and Nevada Falls, then go through Little Yosemite Valley before gaining elevation in the woods before emerging up on the ridge. Then you hike steeply up subdome and Half Dome. Note a permit is required for this during certain months of the year when the cables are up. You can also do this hike from Tenaya Lake area and Tioga Pass Road.
Mount Bailey - Umpqua National Forest, OR HikingEngineer 2025-08-30 | Mount Bailey is located on the west side of Diamond Lake, across from Mount Thielsen, in Umpqua National Forest just north of Crater Lake National Park.
Mt Thielsen, OR - Lighting Rod of the Cascades! HikingEngineer 2025-08-27 | Mount Thielsen is located just north of Crater Lake National Park in the Umpqua National Forest. This is a very pointy aesthetic summit and has class 3/4 scrambling at the summit block. It's located to the east of Diamond Lake and across from Mount Bailey.
Cactus To Clouds C2C (Mt San Jacinto) - My 4th time! HikingEngineer 2025-08-23 | Mt San Jacinto is the imposing large mountain that rises above the town of Palm Springs, CA. This is widely listed as one of the hardest day hikes in the country, because of the large vertical gain, but I don't find it to be that much as it's a nice trail all the way up. You can always cheat and take the tram up to save yourself 8000' of vert. I generally do this once a year when I'm in the area for work.
Sunset Crater National Monument - Flagstaff, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-08-20 | Sunset Crater National Monument is located north of Flagstaff, AZ and has lots of easy walking trails/hikes. In this video I did the short 1 mile loop up to Lenox Crater and also checked out several lava flow trails and signs.
Granite Peak Day Hike - Montanas Highest Point HikingEngineer 2025-08-16 | Granite Peak, the high point of the state of Montana located in the Beartooth Mountains, is widely considered one of the toughest state highpoints to hit, and I would rank it either 3rd or 4th (behind Denali, Gannett and then debatable with Rainier). I accessed the mountain via the Mystic Lake Trailhead and took the route up and across the Froze to Death Plateau.
Telephone Trail - Sedona, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-08-13 | The telephone trail is on the east side of Oak Creek Canyon, north of Slide Rock State Park, and ascends to the Coconino Plateau somewhat steeply.
Gannett Peak, WY (via Tourist Creek) - The Hardest State High Point and Day Hike in the Lower 48 HikingEngineer 2025-08-10 | Gannett Peak is widely regarded as the hardest state high point to hit in the US outside of Denali in Alaska. There are several routes up Gannett but all involve 40 to 50 mile hikes and the west side routes, starting at Green River Lakes, involve many miles offtrail and lots of boulder hopping. Gannett is located in the Wind River Range in Wyoming. This was the hardest day effort of my life.
Witches Mountain, Keyhole Cave, Sugarloaf - Sedona, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-08-06 | Witches Mountain is an offtrail peak located above Keyhole Cave and next to the bigger Capitol Butte (aka Thunder Mountain). I combo'd this with Keyhole Cave and then walked on top of the smaller Sugarloaf on the way back to the car.
Miller and Carr Peaks - Huachuca Mtns, Sierra Vista, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-08-02 | Miller and Carr Peaks are the two highest points in the Huachuca Mountains, located in southeastern Arizona, very near the Mexico border and also near the town of Sierra Vista, AZ
Mae West Peak - Little Dragoon Mountains, Benson, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-07-30 | Mae West Peak is an offtrail adventure located north of I-10 near Benson, AZ. It is the high point of the Little Dragoon Mountains.
Beehive Peak (Class 5) - Tucson, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-07-26 | Beehive Peak, or Beehive Rock on some maps, is a small pinnacle located southwest of Tucson, AZ. The rock is fairly crumbly but there is a fixed rope on the north side to aid climbers up some tough sections.
Tumamoc Hill (Tucson, AZ zoo) FULL hike footage HikingEngineer 2025-07-23 | Tumamoc Hill is a paved trail and a very crowed summit, right near downtown Tucson, AZ. Great views of all the bigger mountains in the area, including Wrightson, the Catalinas (Lemmon), and the Rincons (Mica and Rincon)
Green Mountain - Catalina Mtns, Tucson, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-07-19 | Green Mountain is a peak not too far off of the Mount Lemmon Highway, located near Guthrie and Bigelow. It's a very short hike from the main road but also steep. This is one of many peaks in the Santa Catalina Mountains, running East - West north of Tucson, AZ.
Guthrie Mountain - Catalina Mtns, Tucson, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-07-16 | Guthrie Mountain is a peak on the way up the Mount Lemmon Highway. While not as high as some of the other peaks in the Catalina Mountains it's still worth taking the time to summit!
McFarland Peak - Spring Mtns, Las Vegas, NV HikingEngineer 2025-07-14 | McFarland Peak is one of the high peaks in the Spring Mountains located northwest of Las Vegas, NV. This is a steep class 2 gully to gain the summit ridge and is not for your everyday average hiker.
Mount Baldy - White Mountains, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-07-10 | Mount Baldy (or maybe Baldy Peak?) is the highest point in the White Mountains of Arizona, located near the towns of Greer and Pinetop-Lakeside.
Clam Beds and Red Basin - Petrified Forest National Park, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-07-06 | The Clam Beds and Red Basin is an offtrail loop located in Petrified Forest National Park in northwestern Arizona.
Blue Hills and Blue Mesa - Petrified Forest National Park, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-07-02 | This is an easy hike in Petrified Forest National Park in northwestern AZ. The hike starts on the main park road and climbs to the top of the Blue Hills and Blue Mesa formations. You can also access it from the spur road as well, but either way it's short and easy.
Mt Lindsey (CO 14er) - Northwest Ridge HikingEngineer 2025-06-28 | Mt Lindsey is a 14,000 (14er) peak in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of Colorado. This mountain is located near Little Bear/Blanca/Ellingwood Pt, but the approach to drive there is way different with a rough road. The hike is pretty basic but I opted to go up the Northwest Ridge (Class 4) rather than the steep loose northwest gully.
Devils Playground - Petrified Forest National Park, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-06-26 | Devil's Playground is a mostly offtrail hike in Petrified Forest National Park in northeastern Arizona. It requires a free permit and is located a remote section of the park that few visit.
Marthas Butte - Petrified Forest National Park, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-06-22 | Martha's Butte is a cool formation about 1 mile off the main park route that you can easily walk to and around, but getting to the top is a bit steep and loose
Pilot Rock - Petrified Forest National Park, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-06-19 | Pilot Rock is the high point of Petrified Forest National Park in northeastern Arizona, east of the town of Holbrook. This is mostly an offtrail hike and requires navigation skills and traversing the badlands, which are difficult to get through, as you can see in my video! I did summit this back in 2020 and the thumbnail is from the summit.
Seven Warriors Traverse - Sedona, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-06-17 | Seven Warriors is a ridge formation west of Highway 179 and directly across from Bell Rock. This is an mostly offtrail route aside from a half mile to a mile or so on either end and requires class 3/4 scrambling.Luke's video: youtube.com/watch?v=HNMEqQ2wgrMLuke's channel: youtube.com/@lukerockwalker
Fay Canyon and Arch - Sedona, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-06-12 | Fay Canyon is an easy trail with an arch slightly off the main canyon path up near the cliffs. If you want to get adventurous you can climb around!
Eagle Mountain - Joshua Tree National Park, CA HikingEngineer 2025-06-07 | Eagle Mountain is an offtrail summit located above the popular Cottonwood Campground area and Lost Palms Oasis near the southern entrance of Joshua Tree National Park in California (Sonoran Desert section)
May Peak - San Gabriel Mountains, CA HikingEngineer 2025-06-03 | May Peak is a short steep hike, accessed from Liberty Park northwest of Pasadena and close to Santa Clarita. It's located in the far western part of the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument. I did this as a loop, going up steeply but then taking the gradual road down.
Kennesaw Mountain - Marietta, GA HikingEngineer 2025-05-30 | Kennesaw Mountain is a small mountain with historic significance as it was involved in Civil War battles. This is a popular hike in Marietta, GA, just north of Atlanta.
Windows and Peak 5200 - Sedona, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-05-26 | In Sedona, the Windows and Proboscis Arch are common formations up on the ridge near where the Hangover Trail hits its furthest west saddle. You can hit the high point of part of the ridge if you are comfortable with some exposure and some class 3/4 moves.If you wish to see the bigger loop I referenced in the video, see the link here:youtu.be/NBW3lIyl1g4?si=sKlbz9AYUbNmVXef
Cocodona 250 - The Longest Run of My Life (2025) HikingEngineer 2025-05-22 | Cocodona 250 is a very long trail ultra marathon. I've had my eye on this race since it first started in 2021, and I've volunteered multiple years and actually filmed the winners near the finish in 2024. My main goal was simply to finish and enjoy the experience without getting hurt, so I could've shaved time with sleep and aid, etc, but the time and place didn't matter much to me. Excited to share my journey and met a ton of awesome people along the way!Luke's youtube: www.youtube.com/lukerockwalker
Camel Head Rock - Sedona, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-05-16 | Camel Head Rock is a small formation up on a ridge that is pretty easy to access by going offtrail from one of the main parking lots off Schnebly Hill Road. There is a some class 3/4 and arguably easy class 5 on this route, so take care.
Arizona Trail Passage 16 - Gila River Canyon HikingEngineer 2025-05-10 | This showcases part (15 of 26 miles) of the Arizona Trail (AZT) Passage 16, starting out northbound (although really running west). This starts south of Superior, AZ in a fairly remote area near some mining.
Arizona Trail Passage 18 - Montana Mountain (Superior, AZ) HikingEngineer 2025-05-03 | This shows most of Passage 18 of the Arizona Trail, starting at the Picketpost Trailhead near Superior, AZ and heading north to the high point of the passage, then turning around and coming back some trail and some forest roads. Great views in the heart of the Superstition Wilderness.
Cocodona 250 (2025) Scouting - Buffalo Park and Trinity Heights HikingEngineer 2025-05-01 | This represents 4 miles or so of the Cocodona 250 course after your descend down Mount Elden and wrap around the front side of the mountain and through Buffalo Park
Cocodona 250 Training - Foxboro Ranch to Munds Park (Flagstaff, AZ area) HikingEngineer 2025-04-27 | This section represents roughly Mile 177 to Mile 193 on the Cocodona 250 Course for 2025, going from Schnebly Hill Road near Foxboro Ranch to Munds Park, and then back on Highway 17.
Mount Elden (via Little Elden, New Heart, Sunset Trails) - Flagstaff, AZ HikingEngineer 2025-04-22 | This was a scouting mission to see some of the Cocodona 250 course, specifically the back way up Mount Elden, which I had never done before. Mount Elden is a small peak that sits well below the higher San Francisco Peaks but is a good short local hike, and very steep if you take the standard Lookout Trail up, or better yet, the Elden Slabs!Elden Slabs: youtube.com/watch?v=i6-72rt5rTM&t=3sElden Lookout Trail (standard route up): youtube.com/watch?v=uH9NpLSP2dM&t=4s
Grand Canyon R2R2R w/ Tonto and Rim Trails HikingEngineer 2025-04-18 | This was my 7th time doing a version of the Rim to Rim to Rim (aka R3 aka R2R2R), and this time I worked in the Rim and Tonto Trails and it ended up being the most mileage and elevation gain of any of the versions.
Mingus Mountain - Black Hills (Prescott Valley/Jerome, AZ) HikingEngineer 2025-04-13 | I was doing a training run/hike to scout out part of the Cocodona 250 course, specifically, the climb and descent off Mingus Mountain, which is the high point of the Black Hills in Arizona which separate the Prescott Valley from the Verde Valley. The town of Prescott Valley sits on one side where Jerome, Clarkdale, and Cottonwood lie on the other.
Cocodona 250 (First 37 Miles) Training Run - Black Canyon City to Crown King HikingEngineer 2025-04-09 | The Cocodona 250 (256 miles this year in 2025) is an ultramarathon that runs through central Arizona, highlighting many historic towns and the diverse terrain Arizona has to offer. I am attempting to run/hike this race in early May 2025, so did a training run to scout out the first 37 miles or so of the course. This is widely regarded as the toughest part of the course, as there is quite a bit of elevation gain on very rugged and remote terrain. This starts in Black Canyon City and heads up into the Bradshaw Mountains, passing near Lane Mountain around 7000' and then ending in the town of Crown King.
Damonte Canyon, Louse, Camelback - Reno, NV HikingEngineer 2025-04-06 | Damonte Canyon is an area to the southeast of downtown Reno, NV leading up into the hills. If you go all the way up the canyon there are are various hills you can summit. This is mostly an offtrail route.
