high-noon on Mt. Aire

I was at the trailhead at exactly noon.  

Yes, not the greatest planning on my part but it was how it worked out.

...And the bottom section was good.  

Mt. Aire is steep and usually a trail I do in the snow or at least in the remnants of snow. A trail I tend to leave soaking wet & covered in mud.  

Not today.  Today the trail was so dry the ground was splitting.  It crumbled underfoot. The fine dry dust made it extremely slippery.

It was so hot the air burned my eyes.  

And I went up anyway.  

So considering the heat and the time of day I could have settled for the saddle (2-miles) that looks over Parley's but instead, I walked right by heading to the ridge above.

 To the exposed south face. 

 And this what it sounded like: 

Whose idea was this? 

Fuck.

I'm going to turn around at that next bend.

I mean the next.

Yeah, the next one for sure this time.

Fuck.

Not past that tree. I'm turning around there.

What the hell, this is way past that tree!

I need to turn around.

Next bend, I promise....

All the way to the top. Above Millcreek, above Parley's, with a small corner of SLC & the Great Salt Lake peeking out in the hazy distance, high-noon above Mt. Aire.

...of course coming down was easy.