Gridley Trail To Nordhoff Peak
Posted: Wed Jan 13, 2010 6:59 pm
Saturday was going to be another day of beautiful weather, so I decided to drive over to Ojai and hike up to Nordhoff Peak. This is one of the peaks on the Sierra Club's Lower Peaks Section list. At 14 miles RT and 3500' of gain, it was going to be a good workout.
Arriving at the trailhead at 8:00 AM, I was soon off on a very rocky trail. This lasted for about 3 miles and took a lot of concentration so as not to sprain an ankle. Once past Gridley Trail Camp (water trough and hitchin' post), the trail smoothed out and climbed to the Nordhoff Ridge Fire Road. A left turn and one more mile brought me to the summit. There is a large metal tower that used to support a fire lookout and a picnic table with a fire pit. Very nice place to have lunch with incredible views out over the Ojai Valley to the Channel Islands. On the way back, I ran into a Sierra Club group whose leader was far behind tending to an out of shape participant. The guy should never have attempted this hike, as he looked miserable. Another two hours brought me back to my car and the long drive home in time to watch the Dallas-Philly playoff game.
Arriving at the trailhead at 8:00 AM, I was soon off on a very rocky trail. This lasted for about 3 miles and took a lot of concentration so as not to sprain an ankle. Once past Gridley Trail Camp (water trough and hitchin' post), the trail smoothed out and climbed to the Nordhoff Ridge Fire Road. A left turn and one more mile brought me to the summit. There is a large metal tower that used to support a fire lookout and a picnic table with a fire pit. Very nice place to have lunch with incredible views out over the Ojai Valley to the Channel Islands. On the way back, I ran into a Sierra Club group whose leader was far behind tending to an out of shape participant. The guy should never have attempted this hike, as he looked miserable. Another two hours brought me back to my car and the long drive home in time to watch the Dallas-Philly playoff game.