November 2020
By Les Conklin
Was it a Native American, Soldier, Prospector, Homesteader, Construction Worker, Little Girl Or … ?
Pinnacle Peak Emerges from Mist. Courtesy Les Conklin.
Who made the first ascent of Pinnacle Peak Mountain? There has been plenty of time to try and it stands out? The mountain was formed more than 18 million years ago, and its distinctive shape attracts attention from 25 miles away. Humans are curious beings and surely some must have wondered what it would be like to stand on top of Pinnacle Peak. Who might have tried and possibly succeeded?
Prospective Climbers
There are rock shelters in the area that were used by Archaic People from 5000 BC to AD 600. In all that time, did one of them make it to the top?
How about one of the Upland Hohokam residents who lived in the area until about 1200 AD? Pinnacle Peak Village, a major Hohokam archeological site, is less than two miles from the mountain. If a Hohokam did not summit Pinnacle Peak, then perhaps a nimble Yavapai or Apache hunter gatherer did. They ranged over the surrounding land until the second half of the 19th century.
It seems likely that U.S. Army soldiers who used the military supply road that passed about one mile north of Pinnacle Peak must have at least discussed the possibility of reaching the top of the pinnacle. Did any succeed?
The creation of the military supply road and the presence of the Army made the Pinnacle Peak area safely accessible to prospectors and ranchers. In the 20th century, the passage of the Homestead Act and the construction of Bartlett and Horseshoe Dams, about 13 miles northeast also brought prospective Pinnacle Peak summiteers to the area. If any of these many, many people, lacking proper equipment and training, made it to the top of Pinnacle Peak, they did not leave any evidence of their achievement.
But in 1947, Pinnacle Peak Mountain would finally meet its match.
Attempt Ascent
Bill McMorris. Courtesy Katchina Archives.
On the morning of Sunday, December 14, 1947, members of the Katchinas, Arizona’s first organized rock-climbing club, took on the challenge of climbing Pinnacle Peak. All the Katchinas, Ray Garner, Win Akin, brothers Ben and Lee Pedrick, Charles Lidner, Ed George, Dick Hart, and Bill McMorris participated in the climb.
In 1944, three years before attempting to summit Pinnacle Peak, the group was trained by Ray Garner. Garner was the advisor of the Kachinas Explorer Post No. 1, of the Boy Scouts of America in Phoenix. Before World War II disrupted their training, they climbed every one of the Four Peaks in one day and had pioneered several climbing routes on the Head of Camelback. The Katchinas also pioneered climbing routes in the Superstitions, Kofas, Saddle Mountain, and Eagle Tails. They were the first to climb what they called “the Dork” in the McDowell Mountain, i.e. Tom’s Thumb.
Pinnacle Surprise
All that training paid off and on that Sunday in 1947, the Kachinas bested Pinnacle Peak’s 2000 ft. summit. However, what must have been their joy of accomplishment turned to chagrine when they discovered a neatly stacked pile of rocks, which was obviously human made.
They removed a few of the rocks and found a note and some orange peels. The note, written by a girl in second grade, stated that she had reached the summit with her Sunday school class. Could it be true, that the first human to summit Pinnacle Peak was a little girl, not a Native American, U.S. Army soldier, prospector, cowboy, homesteader or construction worker?
The Answer
Ed George. Courtesy Katchina Archives.
It did not take long for the truth to be revealed. There was no little girl. The note was a fake. Two of the Katchinas, Bill McMorris and Ed George had climbed Pinnacle Peak the day before to play a joke on their friends. They had stacked the rocks and McMorris had written the note.
So, the first documented ascent of Pinnacle Peak was made on Saturday, December 13, 1947 by Bill McMorris and Ed George. The event’s documentation is a phony note and a pile of stones.
Current Information from MountainProject.com
“Pinnacle Peak is the crown jewel of the Phoenix granite crags. Nearly lost because of development, the area was closed in 1994. Eight years later, local climbers were finally able to leverage the park out of the developer through a loophole in the land deal. It reopened as a Scottsdale City Park in 2002. The area features fun gear and bolted climbing on desert granite spread among the array of formations within the park. More information: scottsdaleaz.gov/parks/pinn…: Please do not attempt to climb on the Lower East Wall! Access to this area is closed!However the park staff are very friendly to climbers and have resources including a hand drawn topo that they’ll let you photograph to help you find your way around and to get some beta.”
Getting There
Pinnacle Peak Park is located in northeast Scottsdale near the intersection of Alma School Road and Dynamite Rd. Park in the lot near the visitor’s center.
Additional Information
Book: Images of America: Pinnacle Peak by Les Conklin, Arcadia Publishing, 2011. Available from Amazon and major book sellers.
Web; City of Scottsdale, Pinnacle Peak Park Information – : https://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/parks/pinnacle-peak-park
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