We made a couple of stops along the way to admire the view and take advantage of various photo-ops.

Mindful of how early the sun would be setting, we kept our sights focused on moving onward and upward.

After taking in the 360 degree view, we made our way down to a semi-sheltered spot just below the summit for lunch.

From here, we began to make our way back down.

The gorgeous views inspired everyone to push on at a steady clip.

Reaching the summit, we were greeted by windy blasts of cold air and monumental cairns serving as trail markers

Given the immense expanses of rock at the higher elevations, there was no sense of being in a crowd

There's nothing like turkey sandwiches the day after Thanksgiving!

A seventh hiker was running late but joined our expedition at one of the first rock outcroppings with dramatic views of the valley below."

Given the steepness of the descent, our knees got quite a workout.