I should entitle this trip report "birds of prey" as I'm not sure I have seen as many Golden Eagles and Hawks, and I've seen on my drive this morning. There isn't anything special about my time of travel, the road I'm on seems to be as busy as usual, but the moment I left Enoch, UT, I spotted a golden eagle on a fence, driving a relatively straight road which follows a series of telephone poles, I saw two golden eagles, one on each side of the "T," the next pole contained a single golden eagle, skip a pole I see a hawk. As the road turns away from the power lines, another hawk swoops by in the field to my right. Amazing.

The drive from Cedar City, to Minersville and then west on Thermal road, is becoming commonplace. Jockey road is dry as I note the giant dust storm my jeep leaves in its wake, and I nod in appreciation at each peak I have reached the summit of as I pass. One of the real joys of peak bagging is this constant ability to relieve a climb. Even pictures of mountain peaks hold the thoughts of the rise in your mind.

I've made a note of several peaks I want to summit today, starting with the drive to the summit of Iron Mountain. The road I've highlighted on my GPS is ahead as I turn right. It is a well-traveled road that follows a wash. Skirting the foothill peaks, Iron Mountain sits directly to the east. It is a beautiful mountain and has a few rugged rocky outcroppings along the western face. It's not a large mountain, but this is the most common size of a peak in the area, topping out at 340' feet of rise.

Iron Mountain; Beaver County; Blue Mountain-UT quad; Rise: 340’; UT Rank 2,729

I stay right at the next fork in the road and keep an eye out for another dogleg right, which is supposed to connect me to the way going to the summit. No road exists. I can see the road cut on the side of the mountain, as I continue to drive down the road. I finally stop and take a closer look. From this angle, it doesn't appear as if a route exists through the small valley. I continue to follow the road, hoping that some tracks appear. The way connects with a cattle pen and water trough, and a path through the valley to Iron Mountain. It's not a long-distance, but it soon becomes evident that the road up the hillside will not be passable.

I park and exit my jeep. It's not a long distance to the summit, so I gather my pack and hiking poles and walk up the road. I note several tailing piles dot the hillside. At the first switchback is a hole in the ground that doesn't go far. I wouldn't want to fall into the old mine, as it would be difficult to extract oneself. The tailing pile has been moved and spread over a wide area. The shadows were making the opening of the shaft that much more challenging to see.

I turn at the switchback and continue to hike up the path, more mines are evident, some larger than others, but all open with tailing piles spread out. The road is barely visible at this point, so I wander from hole to hole, looking in without getting close to the edge. On this western face, the mines are dark with shadows; it would be important not to run or jump over any bushes on this hillside as the mines are numerous. I'm not sure exactly what they are mining, but it doesn't appear to be iron ore.

Following the rounding ridgeline, I soon arrive at the summit. The summit is elongated, so I check my GPS to see if I am near the coordinates provided by the website. But no signal is being received, which is strange. I checked the battery charge and sent a text with coordinates on where I parked the FJ to my wife, but in looking at the GPS, it is dead. Pressing the power button does not bring it back to life. I switch my phone to the self-GPS mode and wander back and forth between rocky outcroppings trying to determine the highpoint. I settle on the northern point and begin the hike back down the mountain. Car to car, the trip takes 1h:45m, but my GPS does not power up when plugged back in.

Rounding ridgeline to summit of Iron Mountain

I carry the GPS due to my solo travels and document my hike for Linda to know my location at all times. With it no longer working, I don't have a choice but to head for home. Rather than driving back through Minersville, I follow Fisher Wash road, connecting with Blue Mountain road to Mountain Springs road and Lund. A shorter day than expected, but beautiful none the less.