Because you like the views, the flora, the difficulty, sense of achievement, the trail, or whatever combination, the basic premise is what trails are you most likely to return to again and again?
There are so many I haven't done yet so my list can't nearly be complete, but for me
1. Baldy via Ski Hut Trail
2. Hastings & Jones Peaks via Bailey Canyon
3. Strawberry Peak via Colby Canyon
4. Inspiration Point & Mt Lowe via Castle Canyon
I've done other front range hikes multiple times, but for instance Old Mt Wilson trail is nice but not as appealing for some reason. Other back range hikes I haven't done multiple times (or even once for some) so its hard to get a feel for the 'returnability' factor.
Y tu?
What are your favorite hikes in the San Gabriels?
As far as hikes and not climbs...
-East Fork San Gabriel to the Narrows
It's a beautiful place, even though there's often plenty of trash for a while, and people. There are a couple of good boulders to do some bouldering on along the way. I just like the area.
As far as a climb, Boulderdash on Baden Powell was just awesome.
-East Fork San Gabriel to the Narrows
It's a beautiful place, even though there's often plenty of trash for a while, and people. There are a couple of good boulders to do some bouldering on along the way. I just like the area.
As far as a climb, Boulderdash on Baden Powell was just awesome.
I like hikes that are in forested areas, rather than chaparral. I like pine trees, big boulders you climb, fallen logs that you can walk across bubbling creeks and stuff like that. So I tend to hike in the eastern and northern parts of the SGM because the front range hikes in the central and western SGM are mainly in dry chaparral. I don't have a lot of experience with hikes in those areas.
My favorites hikes in the SGM:
My favorites hikes in the SGM:
- Baldy via Ski Hut Trail. I keep going back to this one, maybe out of nostalgia. This was the hike that introduced me to hiking. It's like an old friend, even though it has tried to kill me a couple of times. Never a dull moment on Baldy. I've had a lot of adventures here.
- Baden-Powell via Vincent Gap. This is short but great hike. It's not as dry as the Ski Hut trail and it actually smells like a pine forest. The first part has cool red colored soil. Awesome views of the desert on a clear day. The breezes here feel like air conditioning.
- Icehouse Canyon. It's like a real-life Adventureland with a rushing creek, fallen logs, old cabins and a canopy of trees.
- Three T's. Walking the traverse between the peaks feels like real exploration in a remote wilderness.
- Cucamonga Peak. Probably the best city views from any SoCal mountain peak. I'd like to camp here one day to see the city lights.
- Pine Mountain from Guffy. The 'other' DBB section is pretty cool.
I like the hikes others have mentioned already.
I would like to add Mt. Baldy from Wrightwood via the Acorn Trail and the North Backbone. I also like some of the big Baldy loops.
My favorite is probably the 6 Peaks loop, starting at Ice House Canyon parking lot, walking along the road to the Ranger Station, heading up to West Baldy via Bear Flay, tagging Baldy and Harwood on the way to the notch, then taking the 3T trail to Ice House Saddle before heading for the cae via Ice House Canyon.
We have made that a 9 Peaks hike by adding Bighorn, Ontario, and Cucamonga. We have ambitions of throwing in Etiwanda and Sugarloaf as well.
I would like to add Mt. Baldy from Wrightwood via the Acorn Trail and the North Backbone. I also like some of the big Baldy loops.
My favorite is probably the 6 Peaks loop, starting at Ice House Canyon parking lot, walking along the road to the Ranger Station, heading up to West Baldy via Bear Flay, tagging Baldy and Harwood on the way to the notch, then taking the 3T trail to Ice House Saddle before heading for the cae via Ice House Canyon.
We have made that a 9 Peaks hike by adding Bighorn, Ontario, and Cucamonga. We have ambitions of throwing in Etiwanda and Sugarloaf as well.
-
JMunaretto
- Posts: 370
- Joined: Thu Feb 07, 2008 11:03 am
Nice!
I will very soon be doing the Old Baldy Trail, don't worry Fight On. I don't know about doing it alone, if I do that then I'll attempt to as hard as possible and attempt a 3 mi/hr pace! I don't know if that's feasible.
Cucumonga Peak I am planning on doing in a few weeks as well. Always heard great things of Icehouse canyon.
I will very soon be doing the Old Baldy Trail, don't worry Fight On. I don't know about doing it alone, if I do that then I'll attempt to as hard as possible and attempt a 3 mi/hr pace! I don't know if that's feasible.
Cucumonga Peak I am planning on doing in a few weeks as well. Always heard great things of Icehouse canyon.
Yeah, you are stuck with bringing your own water on substantial portions.TacoDelRio wrote:That 9 peak + sounds like fun. I'd be up for that soon, with Etiwanda and Sugarloaf, or more. The more the merrier. Just gonna carry water and a camera. 8)
Pretty much bare till ya hit Icehouse! 8)
For once I actually wanna do something like this. Go up Bear Flat Whatsitsname Trail to W-Baldy. See if ya could keep up a good running/jog pace to Baldy, Harwood, be careful on the thin section of DBB, run down the rest as usual, up Thunder, down to Tele, down Tele to the slow part, then onto Timber real easy-peasy, to the saddle, out to Cucamonga which always takes longer than last time for some strange reason, slow up the switchbacks, fast to Etiwanda, faster coming up Cucamonga from that way for some reason, then down to Bighorn, slowly, then move along the ridge to Ontario, and scree ski down to Sugarloaf. Top it off with a few rappels off of garden-twine in the mixed areas on Sugarloaf's North Face.
A run-on sentence. Badum CHING!
For once I actually wanna do something like this. Go up Bear Flat Whatsitsname Trail to W-Baldy. See if ya could keep up a good running/jog pace to Baldy, Harwood, be careful on the thin section of DBB, run down the rest as usual, up Thunder, down to Tele, down Tele to the slow part, then onto Timber real easy-peasy, to the saddle, out to Cucamonga which always takes longer than last time for some strange reason, slow up the switchbacks, fast to Etiwanda, faster coming up Cucamonga from that way for some reason, then down to Bighorn, slowly, then move along the ridge to Ontario, and scree ski down to Sugarloaf. Top it off with a few rappels off of garden-twine in the mixed areas on Sugarloaf's North Face.
A run-on sentence. Badum CHING!
I prefer pines to chapparal too, but there are some really lovely canyons in the front range.
OK, some favs:
1. Chantry Flats/Mt. Wilson area. Where do I start? So many trails. Love sylvan Santa Anita Canyon area. Sturdevant Falls is always a fun one to take non-serious hiking friends. Hermit falls has some great pools. Good short loop: Winter Creek Loop (Chantry Flats to Roberts Camp, ascend lower Winter Creek trail, return to Chantry Flats via upper Winter Creek trail). Good intermediate loop: Mt. Zion loop (Chantry Flats to Spruce Grove Trail Camp to Mt. Zion to Hoegee's to Chantry). Another good intermediate loop: Mt Wilson - Newcomb Saddle loop (Mt Wilson to Sturdevant Camp to Newcomb Saddle, ascend Rim Trail to Mt. Wilson). Longer loop: Chantry Flats to Sturdevant Camp to Mt. Wilson, descend Toll Road to Manzanita Ridge/Mt. Wilson Trail, take Mt. Wilson Trail to Upper Winter Creek trail, take Upper Winter Creek trail back to Chantry Flats.
2. OK, this may be lame, but I actually like the Switzer Falls area. Overused as it is, I like the walk down from the picnic area to the pools below where the trail descends after climbing around the falls. Bear Canyon is also cool and has a nice trail camp. A fun loop is Eaton Saddle to Tom Sloan Saddle to Bear Canyon to Arroyo Seco to Switzers Camp to the picnic area, ascend Gabrieleno trail to Red Box, descend Gabrieleno trail to Valley Forge Camp, ascend Valley Forge Trail to Eaton Saddle.
3. Bailey Canyon to Mt Wilson Trail to Mt. Wilson Trail trailhead to Bailey Canyon. I used to do this before there was a trail. A lot of poison oak when you get into shady areas, but a lot easier now that there is a trail. A nice half day loop.
4. Mt. Waterman from Buckhorn. A fun hike. An easy snowshoe. A good XC ski area (on top). Twin Peaks makes a good combo if you're with serious hikers or just Mt. Waterman if you're with light to moderate hikers.
5. Cooper Canyon Falls. Not a big falls, not a good swimmng hole, but it's always been very green down in the sort of grotto area that has been carved out over the years below the falls. Quite popular, but if you go mid week or early in the morning, there's still a lot of solitude. You can enter via Buckhorn CG or from Cloudburst Summit. Lot's of large old grow cedar and white fir. Generally far larger than in other parts of the range. Nice moderate loop: Cloudburst Summit XC to Winston Peak, XC to saddle N of Winston Peak where the PCT passes through, drop down drainage to service road for Cooper Canyon Trail Camp, take road to Cooper Canyon Trail Camp, descend down Cooper Canyon to Cooper Canyon Falls. On return leg, ascend the trail coming down from Buckhorn, walk through the campground and then walk a mile or two west on the ACH to Cloudburst Summit. More serious loop: start at Mt. Williamson west trailhead (PCT), ascend Mt Williamson, follow (XC) Pleasant View Ridge NW and then WNW over a couple of bumps to Pallet Mtn. Descend from Pallet Mtn to Burkhart Saddle. From saddle, descend SSW on Burkhart Trail to PCT, take PCT west to junction with trail from Buckhorn CG. Ascend to CG, proceed west through the camp to the ACH. Walk ACH to rejoin PCT near Eagle's Roost Picnic area. Take PCT east back to your car. An all time favorite. A lot of nice XC terrain. If they ever reopen the section of the PCT that goes east from Cooper Canyon to Eagle's Roost, that's actually a much nicer route than walking the road. Trail closure.
6. Mt. Islip. Dunno why I like this one so much but I come back to it year after year. I guess maybe 'cause I can take friends up into a higher altitude environment with a lot of nice coniferous forest and "bag" a relatively easy peak with great views. Been up from all three trails and have taken XC routes in every season. Once was up on summit in Feb in serious snow. Every tree was encased in rime ice. Beautiful blue sky and great views out to sea, etc. Blue sky, bright sun, pure white snow. Out of this world!
7. Mt. Baden Powell. From Vincent Gap is interesting. Can do a side trip to the Big Horn Mine which is fascinating. I personally prefer the 16 mi RT route from Islip Saddle on the PCT. You go through a lot of nice pine forest, get to bag 4 good sized peaks (Hawkins, Throop, Burnham, and B-P). It's a really nice high country ramble.
8. Icehouse Canyon. Of course. Are there people that don't like this one?? Beautiful stream. Reliable water at Columbine Spring. The gateway to the interesting and fun Three T's trail. Access to Ontario, Bighorn, Cucamonga, and Etiwanda. What's not to like? An overlooked option is to descend from Islip Saddle to Comanche Trail camp. Beautiful site with large cedars, a lot of greenery, and reliable water. Doesn't get a lot of traffic 'cause the Middle Fork Trail from the East is pretty badly washed out in 2 or 3 places.
9. The "Other Devil's Backbone" approach from Blue Ridge to Baldy via Pine and Dawson. Has really nice wild and remote feel to it. Very high country with two 9000+ summits en route and then climaxing at Ol' Baldy. Feel's like ya really done some hikin' when you ascend from Dawson-Baldy Saddle. Steep and loose. Good Big Horn Sheep viewing area. One can extend the hike a bit by starting at the Acorn Canyon trailhead in Wrightwood. Be really careful on this one. A lot of north facing stuff which can be quite icy. This is where my father died. He didn't bring crampons/ice axe. As much as I admire my father, don't follow his example. If you've got crampons/ice axe and are quite proficient with them, go for it. If not, stay the heck off the mountain until everything's melted. There's still a lot of snow up there right now. An interesting alternative is to descend from Dawson into the Fish Fork area. It's a nice little canyon that doesn't get a huge amount of traffic 'cause it's kinda remote. A very nice water fall can be reached by descending down the canyon maybe a mile from where the trail from Dawson drops in. I crawled out to the edge of the falls on my belly and stuck my head over the lip. It was really cool to see the water shoot out over nothingness and then drop out of sight.
From fish fork, follow the trail out to Prairie Fork, and then take the dirt road that ascends back to Blue Ridge. I usually cut up a NE trending side canyon instead of following the road all of the way up to cut off some miles. Nice country.
Mt. Pacifico Great desert views from this one. Nice little camp area on top although it can be reached by cars, so go mid week for solitude. Pretty conifers on much of the N face. Mill Creek Summit is a good route. I personally prefer taking the PCT from the east. My route is: park at Alder Saddle which can be reach via the Santa Clara Divide Road that spilts off ACH at three points. Take the old road, now completely impassible by vehicles, west from Alder Saddle. The road comes to a draw shortly after the wash out. From this draw, ascend the steep use trail to a saddle where you join the PCT. Take the PCT to a prominent ridge that descends N directlly from the summit of Pacifico. Follow the N ridge to the summit. From the summit, descend the fire road to a point where an old road can be seen heading east from where there is a major switch back to the west. Follow the old road east. The road eventually turns into an old almost imperceptible jeep trail. Follow the jeep trail down the east ridge of Pacifico. At some point the jeep trail will peter out. Descend ENE back to the PCT. It's a little brushy in a couple of places but it's really not bad. Retrace your inbound route back to your car. A pretty moderate loop. Some nice solitude on that back side of Pacifico unless you're in PCT Through Hiker season. The XC route along the N ridge of Pacifico to the summit is kind of fun too. Really easy nav and pretty easy going. A pretty good "intro to XC hiking" route. The XC route down the E ridge is a more serious Nav and route finding problem. If you screw up, tell SAR Hikin' Jim sent ya.
Seriously, don't do this as a first time XC route. Just go back down the N ridge and take the PCT back to your car if you're not quite comfortable with nav and route finding (now you guys who do this stuff all the time are going to think "what's the big deal?" when you do it; it's not horribly hard, but I wouldn't do it as an introduction to XC hiking).
11. Strawberry Peak via the west ridge My favorite training hike. Love the nice solid class 3 scrambling stuff (this is more low end rock climbing than hiking). You can make a nice loop: Park at the Colby Canyon trailhead. Ascend to Josephine Saddle. Follow the west ridge to the summit of Strawberry. Someone has painted green (older) and purple (newer) arrows to mark the route. It's generally a good idea to stay on route. It can get a little gnarly off route. There is quite a bit of exposure. Not recommended for those with a fear of heights. From the summit, descend the trail to east to the Red Box - Strawberry Potrero trail. Turn right (south) and take the trail to Red Box. From Red Box, take the Gabrieleno National Recreation Trail to Switzers Picnic area. From the picnic area, ascend to ACH and walk the road east back to the Colby Canyon Trailhead.
12. Mt. Hillyer Not a particularly difficult hike, but I take friends on this one for that very reason. Indistinct summit, so no "mountaintop" feel to it, but there are a lot of cool rocks. It's a very different look than a lot of the San Gabs. Hikin' Jim says "check it out."
OK, there you have it, HJ's top twelve. I could easily write another top 12, maybe even two sets more, but this'll hopefully give you a few ideas. Looking forward to your ideas as well.
OK, some favs:
1. Chantry Flats/Mt. Wilson area. Where do I start? So many trails. Love sylvan Santa Anita Canyon area. Sturdevant Falls is always a fun one to take non-serious hiking friends. Hermit falls has some great pools. Good short loop: Winter Creek Loop (Chantry Flats to Roberts Camp, ascend lower Winter Creek trail, return to Chantry Flats via upper Winter Creek trail). Good intermediate loop: Mt. Zion loop (Chantry Flats to Spruce Grove Trail Camp to Mt. Zion to Hoegee's to Chantry). Another good intermediate loop: Mt Wilson - Newcomb Saddle loop (Mt Wilson to Sturdevant Camp to Newcomb Saddle, ascend Rim Trail to Mt. Wilson). Longer loop: Chantry Flats to Sturdevant Camp to Mt. Wilson, descend Toll Road to Manzanita Ridge/Mt. Wilson Trail, take Mt. Wilson Trail to Upper Winter Creek trail, take Upper Winter Creek trail back to Chantry Flats.
2. OK, this may be lame, but I actually like the Switzer Falls area. Overused as it is, I like the walk down from the picnic area to the pools below where the trail descends after climbing around the falls. Bear Canyon is also cool and has a nice trail camp. A fun loop is Eaton Saddle to Tom Sloan Saddle to Bear Canyon to Arroyo Seco to Switzers Camp to the picnic area, ascend Gabrieleno trail to Red Box, descend Gabrieleno trail to Valley Forge Camp, ascend Valley Forge Trail to Eaton Saddle.
3. Bailey Canyon to Mt Wilson Trail to Mt. Wilson Trail trailhead to Bailey Canyon. I used to do this before there was a trail. A lot of poison oak when you get into shady areas, but a lot easier now that there is a trail. A nice half day loop.
4. Mt. Waterman from Buckhorn. A fun hike. An easy snowshoe. A good XC ski area (on top). Twin Peaks makes a good combo if you're with serious hikers or just Mt. Waterman if you're with light to moderate hikers.
5. Cooper Canyon Falls. Not a big falls, not a good swimmng hole, but it's always been very green down in the sort of grotto area that has been carved out over the years below the falls. Quite popular, but if you go mid week or early in the morning, there's still a lot of solitude. You can enter via Buckhorn CG or from Cloudburst Summit. Lot's of large old grow cedar and white fir. Generally far larger than in other parts of the range. Nice moderate loop: Cloudburst Summit XC to Winston Peak, XC to saddle N of Winston Peak where the PCT passes through, drop down drainage to service road for Cooper Canyon Trail Camp, take road to Cooper Canyon Trail Camp, descend down Cooper Canyon to Cooper Canyon Falls. On return leg, ascend the trail coming down from Buckhorn, walk through the campground and then walk a mile or two west on the ACH to Cloudburst Summit. More serious loop: start at Mt. Williamson west trailhead (PCT), ascend Mt Williamson, follow (XC) Pleasant View Ridge NW and then WNW over a couple of bumps to Pallet Mtn. Descend from Pallet Mtn to Burkhart Saddle. From saddle, descend SSW on Burkhart Trail to PCT, take PCT west to junction with trail from Buckhorn CG. Ascend to CG, proceed west through the camp to the ACH. Walk ACH to rejoin PCT near Eagle's Roost Picnic area. Take PCT east back to your car. An all time favorite. A lot of nice XC terrain. If they ever reopen the section of the PCT that goes east from Cooper Canyon to Eagle's Roost, that's actually a much nicer route than walking the road. Trail closure.
6. Mt. Islip. Dunno why I like this one so much but I come back to it year after year. I guess maybe 'cause I can take friends up into a higher altitude environment with a lot of nice coniferous forest and "bag" a relatively easy peak with great views. Been up from all three trails and have taken XC routes in every season. Once was up on summit in Feb in serious snow. Every tree was encased in rime ice. Beautiful blue sky and great views out to sea, etc. Blue sky, bright sun, pure white snow. Out of this world!
7. Mt. Baden Powell. From Vincent Gap is interesting. Can do a side trip to the Big Horn Mine which is fascinating. I personally prefer the 16 mi RT route from Islip Saddle on the PCT. You go through a lot of nice pine forest, get to bag 4 good sized peaks (Hawkins, Throop, Burnham, and B-P). It's a really nice high country ramble.
8. Icehouse Canyon. Of course. Are there people that don't like this one?? Beautiful stream. Reliable water at Columbine Spring. The gateway to the interesting and fun Three T's trail. Access to Ontario, Bighorn, Cucamonga, and Etiwanda. What's not to like? An overlooked option is to descend from Islip Saddle to Comanche Trail camp. Beautiful site with large cedars, a lot of greenery, and reliable water. Doesn't get a lot of traffic 'cause the Middle Fork Trail from the East is pretty badly washed out in 2 or 3 places.
9. The "Other Devil's Backbone" approach from Blue Ridge to Baldy via Pine and Dawson. Has really nice wild and remote feel to it. Very high country with two 9000+ summits en route and then climaxing at Ol' Baldy. Feel's like ya really done some hikin' when you ascend from Dawson-Baldy Saddle. Steep and loose. Good Big Horn Sheep viewing area. One can extend the hike a bit by starting at the Acorn Canyon trailhead in Wrightwood. Be really careful on this one. A lot of north facing stuff which can be quite icy. This is where my father died. He didn't bring crampons/ice axe. As much as I admire my father, don't follow his example. If you've got crampons/ice axe and are quite proficient with them, go for it. If not, stay the heck off the mountain until everything's melted. There's still a lot of snow up there right now. An interesting alternative is to descend from Dawson into the Fish Fork area. It's a nice little canyon that doesn't get a huge amount of traffic 'cause it's kinda remote. A very nice water fall can be reached by descending down the canyon maybe a mile from where the trail from Dawson drops in. I crawled out to the edge of the falls on my belly and stuck my head over the lip. It was really cool to see the water shoot out over nothingness and then drop out of sight.
From fish fork, follow the trail out to Prairie Fork, and then take the dirt road that ascends back to Blue Ridge. I usually cut up a NE trending side canyon instead of following the road all of the way up to cut off some miles. Nice country.Mt. Pacifico Great desert views from this one. Nice little camp area on top although it can be reached by cars, so go mid week for solitude. Pretty conifers on much of the N face. Mill Creek Summit is a good route. I personally prefer taking the PCT from the east. My route is: park at Alder Saddle which can be reach via the Santa Clara Divide Road that spilts off ACH at three points. Take the old road, now completely impassible by vehicles, west from Alder Saddle. The road comes to a draw shortly after the wash out. From this draw, ascend the steep use trail to a saddle where you join the PCT. Take the PCT to a prominent ridge that descends N directlly from the summit of Pacifico. Follow the N ridge to the summit. From the summit, descend the fire road to a point where an old road can be seen heading east from where there is a major switch back to the west. Follow the old road east. The road eventually turns into an old almost imperceptible jeep trail. Follow the jeep trail down the east ridge of Pacifico. At some point the jeep trail will peter out. Descend ENE back to the PCT. It's a little brushy in a couple of places but it's really not bad. Retrace your inbound route back to your car. A pretty moderate loop. Some nice solitude on that back side of Pacifico unless you're in PCT Through Hiker season. The XC route along the N ridge of Pacifico to the summit is kind of fun too. Really easy nav and pretty easy going. A pretty good "intro to XC hiking" route. The XC route down the E ridge is a more serious Nav and route finding problem. If you screw up, tell SAR Hikin' Jim sent ya.
Seriously, don't do this as a first time XC route. Just go back down the N ridge and take the PCT back to your car if you're not quite comfortable with nav and route finding (now you guys who do this stuff all the time are going to think "what's the big deal?" when you do it; it's not horribly hard, but I wouldn't do it as an introduction to XC hiking).11. Strawberry Peak via the west ridge My favorite training hike. Love the nice solid class 3 scrambling stuff (this is more low end rock climbing than hiking). You can make a nice loop: Park at the Colby Canyon trailhead. Ascend to Josephine Saddle. Follow the west ridge to the summit of Strawberry. Someone has painted green (older) and purple (newer) arrows to mark the route. It's generally a good idea to stay on route. It can get a little gnarly off route. There is quite a bit of exposure. Not recommended for those with a fear of heights. From the summit, descend the trail to east to the Red Box - Strawberry Potrero trail. Turn right (south) and take the trail to Red Box. From Red Box, take the Gabrieleno National Recreation Trail to Switzers Picnic area. From the picnic area, ascend to ACH and walk the road east back to the Colby Canyon Trailhead.
12. Mt. Hillyer Not a particularly difficult hike, but I take friends on this one for that very reason. Indistinct summit, so no "mountaintop" feel to it, but there are a lot of cool rocks. It's a very different look than a lot of the San Gabs. Hikin' Jim says "check it out."
OK, there you have it, HJ's top twelve. I could easily write another top 12, maybe even two sets more, but this'll hopefully give you a few ideas. Looking forward to your ideas as well.
-
Dudley Heinsbergen
- Posts: 109
- Joined: Tue Jan 22, 2008 9:02 pm
mine would have to be Pine Mountain from the Acorn Trail in Wrightwood.
it is very very steep but definitely has some of the greatest views!
it is very very steep but definitely has some of the greatest views!
reading this thread makes me realize i need to get out more.
there are so many trails to do..
each trail has something unique to offer.its hard to pick a favorite.
im going to have to vote for EAST FORK SAN GABRIEL RIVER
it has a lil bit of everything thats needed for a good adventure
there are some good runs for inner-tubing and swimming
you can camp wherever you like and if you know the area
there are some good spots..
there are so many trails to do..
each trail has something unique to offer.its hard to pick a favorite.
im going to have to vote for EAST FORK SAN GABRIEL RIVER
it has a lil bit of everything thats needed for a good adventure
there are some good runs for inner-tubing and swimming
you can camp wherever you like and if you know the area
there are some good spots..
-
Terry Morse
- Posts: 126
- Joined: Mon Mar 03, 2008 8:55 pm
A favorite hike that I haven't seen posted yet is the cross country/use trail from Three Points up the west ridge of Mt. Waterman to it's summit. I then take the Waterman trail down towards Twin Peaks and continue on back around to Three Points. Great loop hike though some beautiful open forest with a lot of big granite boulders.
Interesting! Haven't done that one. I'll have to try it.Terry Morse wrote:A favorite hike that I haven't seen posted yet is the cross country/use trail from Three Points up the west ridge of Mt. Waterman to it's summit. I then take the Waterman trail down towards Twin Peaks and continue on back around to Three Points. Great loop hike though some beautiful open forest with a lot of big granite boulders.
Another favorite of mine is off limits right now because the Crystal Lake area is closed: Soldier Creek/Lewis Falls. This a pretty, short hike (2 miles RT?) in a lovely canyon. Lewis Falls is nice and makes a good turn around although you can scale the falls (class 3) and continue up to the Crystal Lake area (if and when they reopen it) and climb up to the main road (Hwy 39). Then you can walk/hitchike/shuttle back to your car. Note: The upper portion of Soldier Creek has some sections with a lot of trash. Hwy 39 runs above the creek in some places and people dump stuff out the window as they drive.
Speaking of Crystal Lake, the Windy Gap Trail is fun one. You can go up from the Crytal Lake area to Windy Gap, and then summit Mt. Islip. From the summit you can descend west on the Big Cienaga Trail (I think that's the right name) back to the Crystal Lake area to your car.
A longer loop turns right from Windy Gap and then right again on the trail that goes down the ridge on which Hawkins, Sadie Hawkins and South Hawkins lie. From South Hawkins, walk the fire road back to your car. Kinda long as I recall. But good country. I guess you could also do this from Islip Saddle, although that would add an extra 6 or so miles.
-
Terry Morse
- Posts: 126
- Joined: Mon Mar 03, 2008 8:55 pm
I was first taken to this place in the early 70's by an entomologist friend of mine. He was studying something about ladybugs that nest in the area.Hikin_Jim wrote: Soldier Creek/Lewis Falls.
Haven't been back since the late 80's, but I remember it being a very beautiful creek to hike through.
While we were almost to the waterfall, we came upon a young maiden sunning herself au nautural on a big boulder. We waited and stared as she covered herself up. Imagine a couple of 18 year old kids seeing their first nudist in the mountains! I'll never forget it.
-
Terry Morse
- Posts: 126
- Joined: Mon Mar 03, 2008 8:55 pm
Not at 18!FIGHT ON wrote:Terry Morse wrote:We waited and staredHikin_Jim wrote: Soldier Creek/Lewis Falls.
you could have turned around and faced the other way dude.
-
tinaballina
- Posts: 182
- Joined: Thu Jun 18, 2009 11:28 am
I found that after doing multiple peaks around baldy my most favorite is Dawson-there was something majestic about it.
As for climbs-manker was my first and i will always hold that special memory for that climb.
As for climbs-manker was my first and i will always hold that special memory for that climb.
Class 3? Class 4? Class 5? Climbed only when snow/ice or all year?TacoDelRio wrote:Dawson climbed by Give a Dog a Bone is an excellent outing. Nice backcountry route with great ski/board opportunities.
Yus.Hikin_Jim wrote:Class 3? Class 4? Class 5? Climbed only when snow/ice or all year?TacoDelRio wrote:Dawson climbed by Give a Dog a Bone is an excellent outing. Nice backcountry route with great ski/board opportunities.
http://www.summitpost.org/route/396211/ ... 3-AI2.html
Class 3, but can vary a lot if there isn't enough snow to cover the waterfalls.
-
Richard N.
- Posts: 91
- Joined: Tue Feb 12, 2008 9:47 pm
The majority of the best hikes are now moon scaped. Bear Canyon , Idlehour, Upper Trails Canyon as well as Trails Canyon in Gold Creek. Strawberry Paek burnt as did the back side of the Middle Merrill. Millard canyon is wiped out like so many others.
May the person who started this be .....
well now I must contain MYSELF!!
May the person who started this be .....
well now I must contain MYSELF!!
or it could be titled "What's left of your favorite hikes"Hikin_Jim wrote:This thread has the wrong title. It should be called: What were your favorite hikes in the San Gabriels?
It will be years before it's worth going back to that end of the forest - Looks like Baldy, San J and San G are gonna get busy 
Or head to the NW portion of the San Gabs or further north to the mountains in Ventura County.lilbitmo wrote:or it could be titled "What's left of your favorite hikes"Hikin_Jim wrote:This thread has the wrong title. It should be called: What were your favorite hikes in the San Gabriels?
Dang it. Dang it. Dang it.
My favorite hikes are in the Cucamonga Wilderness, which has so far been untouched by fire!Hikin_Jim wrote:This thread has the wrong title. It should be called: What were your favorite hikes in the San Gabriels?
Nunc est bibendum
Knock on wood or what's left of it.
With more people going into that end it's only a matter of time before someone does something stupid and that end goes up in smoke
Yeah, and then they'll say it hasnt burnt in years...ooopslilbitmo wrote:Knock on wood or what's left of it.
With more people going into that end it's only a matter of time before someone does something stupid and that end goes up in smoke
2003 - The Padua/Grand Prix fire - 80,000 acres.
Thanks, Simonov. We're all a little freaked out, especially us guys who live close to the fire. A little perspective is just what we need. The NW section above the 14 hasn't burned. The Santa Monica Mountains are still there, the Santa Ana Mountains are still there. The eastern half of the San Gabriels proper is still there. San G and San J are still there. J Tree is still there, the mountains of Ventura and Kern counties are still there, the Santa Rosas are still there. The Tehachapis and the Sierra are still there. I could go on.
So many hikes, so little time. The San Gabs are a loss, but all is not lost, thank God.