Fort Robinson State Park: Walter Reed Butte (and beyond)

After the day's earlier hike up to the Cheyenne Buttes, I got back in the car, drove the rest of the Scenic Road and then headed over to the Mexican Canyon Trailhead for my hike up to Walter Reed Butte. If you're wondering, yes, Walter Reed Butte is named after the famous Army doctor. Walter Reed was the post surgeon at Fort Robinson in the 1880s.

The hike started in a very scenic area.

 I hiked up a ridge on the west side of Mexican Canyon. 

There were great views down into the system of canyon and side drainages. 

As I hiked further and further up the ridge, I didn't see any obvious high points. In addition, the snow was starting to get deeper.

I decided I must have gone too far. I quick look at the GPS coordinates on my phone confirmed my suspicions. I turned around and made my way back towards where I had come. After a while I saw this bump on the right side of the trail. 

I had found Walter Reed Buttes and had walked about 4 extra miles in my search for it. I climbed up to the summit, took a photo 

and admired the view for a few minutes. 

Then, I started my return trip back to the car. On the way back I decided to hike a different way.

I hiked down into Mexican Canyon and hiked through the canyon and its tree cover back to the car.