Trail Conditions:
- The first part of the trail up to the start of the series of bumps is fine. No problems here.
- The middle part with all the bumps up to the helicopter landing zone is fairly overgrown. Brush is enchroaching onto the trail the entire way. It's passable but if you wear shorts (like I did), you're going to get scratched up.
- The final part is full of yucca plants everywhere. I spent some time trimming a few of them with my knife but I couldn't get to all of them.
- There are tons of flies and bugs. I was tormented by a swarm of flies that followed me the entire way from the helicopter pad to the top. At the summit they went away and they didn't bother me too much on the way down, maybe because I was moving faster. Check for ticks and other hitchhikers because you're constantly in contact with the brush.
- I met two guys who turned back at Allison Saddle and a Sierra Club HPS group of 15 who made the summit. No one else that day.
- This is a very difficult and challenging trail--definitely the hardest hike closest to L.A. So for people who like tough hikes and live in L.A., Pasadena, Glendora, etc., it's more convenient than going to San G or San J, etc.
- The vegetation is very diverse. There are a lot of wildflowers and the aroma is often very pleasant.
- The views at the summit are great. It feels like SGM center stage with all of the other mountain peaks surrounding it.
- It has a very well kept summit register. I read entries going back to 2002.
- Not a lot of people on this trail.
- It feels remote.
- The hike is pretty much entirely in chaparral. Some people might like this, but I really dislike brush. I'm a coniferous forest kind of guy.
- All the bumps and saddles. There's probably a dozen of them? But I guess it is a ridge route.
- The last part is just too steep. I know some of you guys like that, but I don't like it that steep on a hike. It gets annoying trying to maintain your footing on the loose soil and even more annoying descending it. I like steep, but only if it involves climbing (3rd class rock or alpine climbing).
- It's hot, dry and there are a lot of bugs in the summer. You might want to bring a headnet.
- It's a use trail so it's not maintained as well as some other trails. If I ever go again, I'm bringing some garden shears to help maintain the trail.
Brushy:
Views of the Baldy traverse:
Views of the Baldy traverse:
Views of the Baldy traverse:
