In May 2007, I climbed West Twin Butte in Sedona, Arizona. Hiking up to a minor saddle on the way to the peak, I was inspired by a fin of rock jutting out from the low mesa to the north. I'd later be told this fin of rock is known as 'Battlement Mesa.'
Not to take away from its appeal, but Battlement Mesa is a small enough peak that it hardly qualifies as a day's objective. But after a fun day of bagging Scheurman Mountain and Loy Butte, we had a late lunch, then DB, Harlan and I headed to Battlement Mesa in search of a late afternoon scramble. We were not to be disappointed.
With a very short approach, we worked through a few short cliff bands to gain a final ridge leading to the base of the aesthetic, narrow summit fin. Class 3 scrambling got us on it, then a final walk out the narrow ridge to a highest block, which required a couple class 2-3 moves to surmount. A stunning summit! One of the best (that can be accessed by hikers/scramblers) around.
The Fine & Tiny Summit of Battlement Mesa
