EISPIRATEN

Thanks for the report and access update. I'd like to get Alamo some day and I think there might be one or two more HPS relatively close.

The area looks really nice with those pines.

Your dedication to this target is amazing! Cool ongoing pet project to have. I've never hiked in the Santa Anas but that Chaparral looks brutal. Some of the dead stuff is a pain to lopper cut, too. If I lived in the OC I would have joined you in the project!


Thanks, Nate. It became dumb at some ...

Sorry, very long report...

My fascination with this mountain began in 2021. I found it studying the 2016 Forest Service topo maps around Black Star Canyon. The map showed a benchmark symbol at elevation 2829' near the end of ridge above Baker Canyon, but it had no assigned name. I wanted to explore ...

JeffH wrote: Sat Mar 22, 2025 8:30 pm Love that view of the jagged rock peaks.

This one has a huge ROI. Easy hike and amazing views.

My first attempt at Palo Verde was April, 2024. I turned back at the knife edge ridge, still a little shaken from stepping directly over a rattlesnake in the approach gully. I had run out of risk taking brain juice for the day. On the bright side, I had solved all the route finding problems and ...

I met up with my buddy Ben Baumann, a rare time our schedules and locations synced, to tackle Signal Peak, AZ (DPS #70), a P3K. It's in the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge, set up for bighorn sheep. The refuge's name (KOFA) was derived from an acronym for one of the area's notable mines, the King of ...

Damn, that's beautiful. Hardcore beautiful. Thanks for sharing.

Nate U wrote: Tue Mar 04, 2025 7:54 pm WTF! I wonder if the tailgate you receive to replace it with is one stolen from someone else.

It would not surprise me if the collision shop buys my tailgate from a salvage yard. At least the paint would match. Ha!

Fantastic hike and I'm glad I was able to tag along. The brush on the ascent ridge was bad, but not as bad as I expected. It was no match for "4 loppers and a hand saw", which, if I ever pen a rom-com will be the title. Thanks for organizing it, Nate.

After the group split up, Matt, Frank and I ...

Well done! Sorry I could not make this one. This mountain looks awesome. I like that it's kind of surrounded by dunes.

Yes, "sandier" and "sandiest" are the correct comparative and superlative forms of the adjective "sandy".

I've found most desert peaks are more difficult than non-desert peaks ...

I was looking around for a quick HPS peak and decided to go for San Sevaine. I checked the 1N34 road status and it was only going to be open until 3/1, then closed until September. The drive took about an hour to get to the radio towers. I recommend 4x4 for the ruts, rocks, and mud puddles. I found ...

I don't know anyone else with night vision goggles. Unique.

That's a great way to do it, and a tough way to do it. Well done!

It doesn't change the magnitude of the feat, but did you pre-stash any food or water or did you carry it all from the start?

Thanks for the report. Looks like a pretty mountain. I guess the road went to a mine?


Arlington Road Mine goes just north of the McCoy Mountains. I could see several adits from the road and stopped to check one out on the way back. It was an 8x5' entrance sealed with steel bars. I could see it ...

Another epic peak bag. The pink rock is such a deep, rosy pink/red. I could take a guess as to its composition from pictures but it would be a shot in the dark.

Drone footage is always so epic. If you want, bring that bad boy on Sunday! Could be a some cool group shots!


The pink boulders ...

My goal was the Palen Mountains High Point (DPS #85). This is another small range about 25 miles west of Blythe, CA. I was uneasy attempting this solo, due to the combination of a long approach on a rough dirt road, difficult terrain, and isolation. From Blythe, I drove up Midland, then took ...

There is a Boney Peak between Sandstone and Inspiration Point. It's on the Sierra Club lower peaks list #62.

The Boney Mountain on the topo, the one far left on your map, is a different peak. I haven't attempted it, but every report I've read mentions bushwhacking and scrambling.

Nice type 2 fun! I chuckled about some of things you wrote. That could have been me a long time ago (I was younger but still still old).

I used to come back bloodied quite often. If I do that now, it's unintentional, haha.

As a fellow brush ninja, you might enjoy reading about David Stillman's ...

Looks like a fine peak. I like the gully filled with black lava rock.

The 404 trail name is apropos. Being a web geek, 404 is a "not found" error, and you guys apparently were not found.

I am not sure about adding GPS tracks since that would have to come from a different data source (GPX files vs the CSV data imported for the hikes).

The map is using a program called Leaflet via a plugin called datasette-cluster-map ( https://datasette.io/plugins/datasette-cluster-map ). A ...

Very nice! Except for the ticks. Not nice at all.

I've been geeking out on a new hiking map over the last couple of months. I'm as excited about the tech as I am about the map.

I created an interactive map of my hikes ( https://ironhiker.cloud/hikes ) using the powerful Datasette tool by Simon Willison. The result was an intuitive, easy-to-use map ...

One of my favorite plants. I like that they don't sneak up on you like cholla.

Sean wrote: Thu Jan 23, 2025 11:20 am Do you think there's a dude called "Eagle Hiker" who only hikes Eagle Peaks?

I don't know, but I think there should be.

Thanks for the report. When you're done with the Irons, can you do the Sugarloafs? There are twenty of them in California alone.


Haha, I don't think so. Sugarloafs are so common!

There are also 20 Eagle Peaks in CA (without variations or Eagle Mountains).

Granites are also very common. I ...

[I can't find confirmation online that there are wild pigs roaming the Santa Susanna's, but with that high forehead and big teeth, its not a domestic pig skull we came across...


Your skull looks like a wild boar to me. I would not be surprised if there are some around. Sure wouldn't want to get ...

There are about 14 "Iron Mountains" in CA. One of my side projects is to climb all of them. These are strictly named "Iron Mountain", not including variations like Old Iron, Ironspring, North Iron, etc. I haven't researched all of them, but I doubt even the ones in the Sierra will be as difficult as ...

Nice to see all these hikes he has completed! He will have some great memories of the outdoors with you.

My son used to go hiking with me until he was about 12, then devices took over. I wish you better luck :)

Re: boar, I've never seen one here. I've seen photos other people have taken north of ...

Wild colorations. Looks awesome. Thanks for the photos.

Sweet! I was going to ask about the brush, but your comment was that it was not too bad. Didn't look too bad, but photos can be misleading.

Amazing feat! I didn't think anyone else would ever attempt that ridge. It's hard enough from the regular trailhead (when it's open). The cool weather helps, but you used less than half the water Stillman did. Wow.

My main complaint about Los Padres is how often the roads are closed and how long ...