Granite Mountain

This is a very off-the-beaten path adventure and will require good route finding. The trailhead begins at the Independence Mine State Historical Park. You follow the main trail that circles around the mining ruins and relics, but you then hike on top of the tailings until you come to the caved-in mine entrance for the Independence Mine. You will zig-zag on the mountain from here until the top. It is steep in some places so please be careful. There isn't a set trail to Granite Mountain, but if you are looking for a fun and difficult adventure to a seldom visited mountain, you have found it. The views from the top are incredible and worth the effort you put into this hike. To begin this hike you will need to get on the Mill Trail at the Independence Mine State Historical Park. You will find tons of interesting mining artifacts from the state park. Follow this trail until you come up to the top of the mill and then look west to where there is a giant pile of orange-ish mine tailings. You will see another small trail that goes up to these tailings so follow that up! The entrance to the Independence Mine is right here too. It has been caved but it would have been amazing to explore if it was still open. To begin your ascent, look to the right of where the rail tracks are. There is a narrow trail that zigzags up the mountain - follow this one. Keep a watchful eye because the trail will disappear and then reappear. It seems like the miners created this path because it appears to be cut out from the mountain. It has long since been overgrown but you can see that it was used years ago. After about a quarter mile of hiking, you will find a random cable hanging from one side of the mountain to the other. You will also see a prospect and some other mine artifacts. The trail from here will continue to be steep and it will mostly disappear again. After you follow the trail you will come to the ridge. Follow the trail north until you come to a spot where you can easily scramble to the top. I kept going until I could see the actual summit and see a wooden cross at the top. Be careful if you hike to the north side. I found some blasting caps still stuck in the granite. You may also notice several places where someone piled rocks together. As for wildlife, I didn't see much on this hike. Not a whole lot of animals prefer the steep cliffs but I did see some hoary marmot and pika.