As usual, I like to do a little hike on New Year's day and this year I also got to include a little snow. I thought it would be very crowded on Baldy plus I had a time limit so today I decided to visit Sunset Peak, which is one of my faves up there. I was not expecting to see a lot of snow, but despite some on the ground where I parked I still chose to go up my standard route, following the ridge trail. This way is a total of 1.8 miles up, and taking the fire road/trail down is a little over 3. Five miles is never too hard, right? Anyway, it was a bit slow going up, taking just over an hour. I had to stop a few times for photo opportunities, which also allowed me to catch my breath some. With all that effort, I was actually pretty warm while trudging uphill. My thermometer showed about 45 at the trailhead and about 38 degrees on the summit. Only a little breeze and some scattered sun made it comfortable.
There were some footprints ahead of me but I did not see any people until I was nearly at the bottom of the trail a few hours later.
It's always nice to have the summit alone, and I spent about an hour fixing up some noodles and tea and also chatting with my sisters and niece. Lots of fun… The walk down was of course uneventful, but when I got to the bottom a family asked if I had heard any large animals in the brush. Umm, no I hadn't…but they had turned back because it sounded big and they also saw some large footprints. Oh well, we all survived to hike another day.
I was glad to get a somewhat early start when I saw the line of cars backed up all the way below Baldy Village, lots of people out to see a little snow for the new year. Glad I was on the way down by then!
A few pics from the day:
Trailhead at Cow Canyon Saddle
Flat spot - trail goes over one peak, down a saddle and back up.
Summit in sight, and the snow makes the trail easy to see from here.
This stuff can be a little interesting when icy. Not today but I didn't want that to be the case on the way down.
Summit plateau. I was the first to sign the register this year.
Great day in the mountains.
Baldy before things got a little cloudy.
Winter scenery on the way down.
Happy new year everyone.
