Date: January 2, 2025 • Elevation: 5,175 feet • Prominence: 1,535 feet • Distance: 6.6 miles • Time: 2 hours, 30 minutes • Gain: 1,255 feet • Conditions: Sunny and mild

Arizona • Main • AZ P1K • PB • LoJ • USGS BM Datasheet

Table Mountain Plateau rises in northwest Arizona, north of the community of Dolan Springs, between Kingman and the Hoover Dam. It's a big volcanic uplift with west-facing cliffs and gentle slopes to the south and east, all covered in black volcanic boulders. A road gets about halfway up the peak, and the remainder of the hike is easy overland through light grass and plenty of joshua trees.

This part of Arizona is far from Bisbee, over 400 miles, so I don't get this way often any more. However, I was making a special trip to Henderson, Nevada, and built in a couple peaks along the way, this one being of primary interest due to its high prominence.

I was here three years ago, but on that trip, a winter storm had just passed through the region. When I showed up, the day was sunny and very pleasant, but the snow line was just about at Dolan Springs' elevation. The dirt roads in were sticky and slick due to the moisture. After getting almost stuck more than once, I bailed. This would be my first time back since then.

I left Bisbee on New Years Day, figuring traffic would be light. I had no intention to get all the way to Henderson in one push. Instead, I planned to camp somewhere near Wikieup and climb a couple easy peaks in that area.

I arrived in Wikieup about 9:30 p.m. yesterday and camped, then early this morning, hiked Aubrey Peak, which took less than an hour. Then I had about a hundred miles to drive, going through Kingman, now aiming for Table Mountain Plateau.

The drive went well, traffic being reasonably light. The road conditions, especially that of Interstate-40 in Kingman and long stretches of US-93 north of Kingman, were awful. They're working on a massive redesign of the US-93/Interstate-40 interchange in preparation of what will eventually be Interstate-11. I imagine this will go on for years. My guess is that they won't repave or maintain these current highways unless absolutely necessary, as some my be torn down and rebuilt anyway.

I exited onto Pierce Ferry Road and went through Dolan Springs. I went in a little over ten miles, turning north onto Mesquite Road, which is a bladed dirt track. This whole area is a checkerboard of mile-square sections, alternating between private and BLM. Mesquite aims north, with Table Mountain Plateau dead ahead.

I was on Mesquite for 1.3 miles. Then at the intersection with 21st Avenue (no sign, this was by the map), I took a track that went northwest, this being on one of the BLM sections. This track wandered through an arroyo and its banks before connecting to Laurel Road (again, so sign). This track was sandy and I had to keep up speed for fear of getting bogged in it.

I went north on Laurel past a compound homestead, then where the road went west, I passed through a wire-stick gate (no prohibitive signs). I followed this road north and east about another mile, until I was high up enough on the slopes to be out of sight from the nearby compounds residences. I parked in a clearing that conveniently was lower in elevation with the surrounding hills, so my car was hidden. The road quality was marginal, but I got my Subaru in without any issue. I just had to go slow.

The day was mild and sunny with temperatures in the high 50s. I started walking at roughly 9:30 a.m., just following the road uphill. It wiggles in and out with the terrain, sometimes level, but I made good time despite this added extra distance. Finally, the road makes a turn to the northwest and barges up about 450 vertical feet, ending in a turnaround with a small solar-power antenna (?) structure at its end.

The road walk covered about two miles and wasn't difficult. The tread was sometimes loose with fist-sized cobbles that rolled with most steps. A couple of spots would have been trouble for the Subaru, but a beefier truck with better clearance should be able to get all the way up.

At the end of the road, I followed any tracks I could find that continued upward toeard the summit. Cattle get up here and they beat in some useful paths that I followed for about a half mile. The terrain itself was wide open and sparsely vegetated. There were joshua trees everywhere but spaced out. Otherwise, it was mainly low grass and occasional low cactus. I was in shorts and had no problems, no need to push through any of the plants.

I kept generally close to the western rim of the plateau, and aimed north, always going up. The slopes are gentle the entire way. The top was not visible until near the end. I went up one "big" slope, and once atop it, could see the top in the near distance, about a half mile away to the northeast.

I was soon on "top", which was broad and almost flat, covered in large boulders of which any one of twenty could have been the highest point. I tagged any that looked promising. It had taken me 1 hour and 20 minutes to get here, covering 3.6 miles. The nature of the hike was such that I barely broke a sweat.

I found the benchmark, stamped "Yucca Springs", and then signed into the register. I sat for about fifteen minutes, also exploring the summit area to kick rocks and snap some photographs. There was a breeze, but the air temperature was mild, almost balmy for early January, in the 60s. I wasn't uncomfortable at all, and took time to appreciate the views and solitude.

As for what I could see: north were more peaks, with trapezoidal Senator Mountain being the most notable peak that way. To the east were the Grand Wash Cliffs abutting the Grand Canyon. To the south, into the sunny glare, was Dolan Springs, then the main peaks of the Cerbats such as Mount Tipton. There was a structure fire going on somewhere that way and the smoke was intense. I could even see flames. To the west were the Black Mountains such as Mount Perkins and Mount Wilson.

The hike down went quickly, just over an hour, in which I took a shortcut down one ridge that bypassed some of the road, cutting off about a half mile. I was back to my car just shy of noon. I was very happy to be successful on this peak. This is a worthy summit and I was happy to be able to hike it after being forced away from it in 2021.

I rumbled back down the same roads and onto Pierce Ferry Road, for another tour of downtown Dolan Springs. I had a hotel room reserved in Boulder City and no other peaks on the agenda. Yesterday evening I discovered one of my front headlights was out, so I stopped at the Chevron at the corner of Pierce Ferry Road and US-93, and parked off to the side.

I was able to make an appointment with a service station in Boulder in about an hour to get my headlight lamp replaced. Meanwhile, some sporty vehicle had parked next to me and the driver got out for a smoke or, more accurately, a toke. We were way off to the side, well apart from the gas pumps and the entrance of the minimart. Another vehicle parked nearby had its hood up and two guys were working on it. The whole region feels like a Mad Max movie set.

So I was able to get my headlamp replaced. Now it's about 3 p.m. so I drove to my hotel, the Hoover Dam Lodge, near the new bridge, and checked in. I showered and napped. This is one of those "off strip" casinos that, when it was built (1958), was the closest casino for drivers coming in from Arizona over the Hoover Dam. Its current appearance (the main hotel tower) dates from the early 1990s, and looks it. I liked it, but with the new highway bypass, it does not get the business it used to. I most enjoyed the open parking. The big adjoining lot has no lines, so you park wherever the mood strikes you. Most people tried to park orderly.

I was in Henderson for a reason. I was visiting someone very important to me. The visit itself would not take more than an hour and it did not matter when I showed up. After my nap, I decided tonight was the best time, and drove to the facility, about 20 miles away, and had a one-hour visit. It went as well as I was expecting. It was bittersweet, but I felt I needed to do this. Chances may not be forthcoming in the future, and I realize that.

Back at the casino, I just wandered around. I didn't gamble anything. I got something to eat, then got an early night. I wanted an early start for tomorrow, as I had another peak on the docket, Salt Spring Mountain.