KOFA Pinnacle from the north-east

KOFA National Wildlife Refuge

The Sierra Club's Desert Peaks Section (DPS) list includes two peaks in KOFA National Wildlife Refuge. These are the highest points in the two major mountain ranges, Castle Dome in the south and KOFA (also called Signal) in the north. The KOFA the DPS guide refers to is not KOFA Pinnacle but instead the massif at the western end of this northern range.

KOFA Pinnacle has not been climbed by anyone I know of, although Patsy and I did find evidence of a previous ascent during our first expedition there when we hiked in from Big Dick Canyon. A rusty old piton in a chimney and we rapped off the same yucca!

Unfortunately, the long hike in from the canyon on the south-east, the weather (we were hailed on mid-climb), and our lack of adequate climbing gear forced a retreat. We made it back to the car an hour after dark.

The second attempt went even worse. Full of gusto, I brashly led up the wrong route, an exceedingly rotten chimney. So close and yet so far!

But the mountain calls again.

... to be continued ...