As we headed to Pacoima Creek we stayed on the fire road for a quarter mile until we came to the fork in the road. The trail (an overgrown fire road) to the creek was the left downhill fork, whereas the right fork headed up towards Mendenhall Ridge.
We reached Pacoima Creek 1.2 miles from the road fork. Much of the fire road and trail along the creek had been recently worked and was in good shape.
Heading upstream took us further up Pacoima Creek where the trail was less distinct but quite passable. There were many water crossings and lots of boulder walking.
Our destination, Dagger Flat, was a large brushy bench just north of the creek.
We had lunch east of the flat and then returned the same way. Overall, we had a 7 mile trip. Not very far... but enough to get people in better hiking shape. The flowers were spectacular and I would consider trying this trip as a through backpack to Mt Gleason.