McKnight Mountain 10,165' Two Points - (Sierra and Grant County Highpoints) 11/29/03

My father agreed to join me on yet another hike. This was quite easier than our last outing together to take on the State highpoint of Texas. We arrived from the Silver City route, and drove for quite some time on the dirt road. We finally made it to the trailhead after about an hour on this road. The hike was very gentle and soon we could see our first target - the Sierra County highpoint (photo on right). We kept at it and followed the trail to what appeared to be near the highest point on the trail, and noticed higher ground not too far north from the clearing above it. We bushwhacked up the slope and were clearly at the south summit.
	The north summit in Grant county was apparent from here, but an interesting bushwhack was in the works from the saddle. We followed trail to a point before it started to descend, and began our sojourn through the fallen trees and debris. Staying on the higher terrain on the bushwhack led us in the right direction, though we were never clear about the highest ground until we arrived at it. Though not visible until upon it, the area was well cairned; surrounded by fallen trees. Below my Dad signs the tiny notebook register. Our hike out was expedient, and I decided to try a different route home descening to I-25. Here is a view of the twin summits on the return. The alternate driving route to El Paso ended up taking a little longer, and was annoying with the abundance of hairpin switchbacks.