Crystal Lake to Windy Gap: 16 April 2011 & Thanks SGMTB!
Posted: Sun Apr 17, 2011 9:49 am
Much has been written about the trail up to Islip and Windy Gap. I thought I'd throw in a few photos about current conditions. We need to give a big shout out to the SG Trailbuilders. They were clearing the Windy Gap Trail between the two crossings of the S. Mt. Hawkins Rd. Basically the trail is completely clear of deadfall and logs between the trailhead and the second crossing of the S. Mt Hawkins Rd.:
Here are the guys working on the trees:
On our return trip - here is their handiwork:
From the second road crossing, the trail is quite nice but there are quite a few downed trees and rockfall. The wood retaining walls did a great job of mitigating trail damage.
FWIW... snow pictures at Windy Gap. What a difference a week makes...
Total trip time for Crystal Lake to Windy Gap and back was three hours on a hot day. (Time includes chat breaks with trailbuilders, hikers and 10 minute snack break at the gap.) We didn't have near the amount of bugs as described on Smith Mtn - just a few small swarms in moist areas within the first mile or two.
MOST IMPORTANTLY: Huge thanks to the San Gabriel Mountain Trailbuilders for their hard work and dedication!
Here are the guys working on the trees:
On our return trip - here is their handiwork:
From the second road crossing, the trail is quite nice but there are quite a few downed trees and rockfall. The wood retaining walls did a great job of mitigating trail damage.
FWIW... snow pictures at Windy Gap. What a difference a week makes...
Total trip time for Crystal Lake to Windy Gap and back was three hours on a hot day. (Time includes chat breaks with trailbuilders, hikers and 10 minute snack break at the gap.) We didn't have near the amount of bugs as described on Smith Mtn - just a few small swarms in moist areas within the first mile or two.
MOST IMPORTANTLY: Huge thanks to the San Gabriel Mountain Trailbuilders for their hard work and dedication!