EISPIRATEN

A couple of months ago, I was reading old trip reports on this forum and when I came across Bill's post about a crash site near the Bighorn Mine , I almost fell over. In it Bill described walking to the mine, scrambling down the steep slope to the creek bed (which sounded pretty hairy), and then dis...

I’d hoped to do this route when Kurt and I were walking from his place in Glendale to the Magic Mtn. area, but the Gold Canyon Trail, though it appears on the Tom Harrison map, seemed sketchy. I wasn’t even sure you could even get to it without trespassing. It starts at Big Tujunga Canyon Rd., about...

I keep all my small stuff (including maps, when I use them) in ziplocks to protect from moisture, food spills, and general wear and tear, and to keep it all grouped.

Thanks for chiming in! After reading your replies I think I'll add this stuff: Aquamira tablets Bandana Pencil Spare shoelaces Head net A copy of my driver's license with phone numbers, email address, emergency contacts added. Maybe some kind of cord, still thinking about that. And maybe a mylar spa...

Thanks for the write up! It brings back memories. A few years ago, in the middle of hiking the Backbone Trail (in sections) with my wife, I noticed Castro Peak and envisioned walking up to it. A few days later I put together a loop route, combining a chunk of Backbone Trail with fire roads that I sa...

Kurt and I had planned to hike from the Aliso Canyon Rd. / power line road junction to Mill Creek Summit but road closures and icy conditions put the kibosh on that, so I planned an alternate route from Vasquez Rocks up to Bouquet Canyon. I hadn’t given much thought to that area before, but since we...

I tend to overdo things and pack too much stuff. As a backpack traveler I was the butt of many jokes, but nearly always had what I (or others) needed in a jam. After getting serious about hiking over the last year, here's my current emergency kit: Aspirin, Advil, glucosamine Assorted bandages, moles...

My wife and I enjoyed searching for trilobites with Dima last week and it's an interesting area. Let me mention some tricks we learned about finding them. We tried a few little spots, not far from each other, with no success. Then Dima started looking at a sort of concave area on the hillside, where...

Thanks, I appreciate the heads up.

Dima, good question about the fire. I wasn't paying close attention, but we did see fire evidence while going up the break. In that photo of the telephone cable you can see that the ground is sort of blackened and ashy. A lot of the larger / older vegetation looked burned, and the cable itself was b...

After hiking David R’s two fire break routes down from Magic Mountain Summit and up to High Point , Kurt and I were ready for more. We’ve been working our way east through the MM Wilderness area and though there are lots of intriguing old fire roads and long wide fire breaks, many of them can’t be a...

Late reply and a little off topic, but a hiking buddy who's my age (67 now) told me that many people become less sensitive to altitude sickness when they grow older. In my Himalayan trekking days I always started at lower elevations, took it slow, and had rest days. I drank lots of water and tea and...

Thanks to David R’s very helpful report here, Kurt and I followed in his footsteps yesterday and hiked from the little canyon west of the Conservation Camp up to High Point, then down to the Indian Canyon trailhead via the Indian Creek (Discovery) fire road. We always start these Saturday hikes well...

Dumb question; I was never any sort of technical climber... For short steep drops, especially on slippery ground, I keep thinking it might be nice to carry maybe 40’ of lightweight rope and some kind of handheld clamp or clutch gadget. Loop the middle of the rope around a tree, root, or rock, use th...

Interesting comments about poodle dog bush! A month ago I’d never heard of it, now I’m quite curious about this weird plant. David R’s description of being in “a forest” of it really struck me because up there last Saturday, that’s just what Kurt and I were thinking…that we were in a forest of poodl...

Thanks for the feedback. It was 12.6 miles, 2849 feet of climbing. Here's my recording: https://www.strava.com/activities/4556852297

Yesterday my buddy and I walked from the Santa Clara Divide / Little Tujunga intersection to Magic Mountain, then down to Capra Road via the route that David R posted about . The hike went well and it was a fun day. We started walking just before 5. (We like early morning starts and sunrises. A lot ...

A few years ago I was hiking solo in the mountains of Reunion Island (a very beautiful place). On the way out I passed many trail junctions, and keeping to the correct route was tricky. Mid-hike, a thick fog rolled in and before I knew it, visibility was about zero. I was in a foreign, cold, damp, u...

Hi Sean. Actually I walked part of our local Burma Road a few weeks ago as part of a loop around The Pinnacle on a recent San Gabriels hike. The name gave me a laugh and I guess there's a slight resemblance. The real Burma Road passes through part of the lower Himalayas, going across the grain of th...

Hi, new member here, and thought I'd introduce myself. I learned of this forum through Dima, who I’d known through a local cycling group for many years. On weekly rides Dima often answered my “What have you been lately” question with a humble recap of some local adventure, often in the San Gabriels,...

I did a little scouting out there. The northern end of the pink/purple route at near Soledad Cyn. Rd. in AW's link was easy to access and I walked the first mile or two, which was pleasant enough. Kind of a weird area with train tunnels on both sides, some random old structures, and what looked like...

Thanks for the helpful replies. I'll probably still drive out to Soledad Cyn. Rd., to scope out the northern part of the "pink" route and its end point at the highway. Since we'll be walking from the Magic Mtn. side I think I want to get a sense of the route and where it comes out before w...

Hi, new member here; lifelong hiker in my 60’s. I’m not quite as adventurous as many of you but have racked many exotic journeys over the years, and have been spending more time on the trails over the last few months. I’m about to start a long series of walks in the San Gabriels with a friend. Basic...