Recommendations for a loop in Gabrielino/Brown Mountain/Millard Canyon area?

[bcrowell]

Now that the Gabrielino Trail is open and the temps are cooling down at the low elevations, I'm thinking of working out a trail-run loop in this area. I've only visited the area once, which was kind of a disaster because I entered without realizing it was closed after the Station Fire. I blundered through a lot of brush and poison oak, then after hiking all day got turned back by a ranger who wouldn't let me exit to my nearby car.

I'm pondering two possible ways of doing a loop.

Idea #1: Start near JPL. Gabrielino Trail to Switzer Falls junction, Bear Canyon Trail to Tom Sloan Saddle, Dawn Mine Trail, Sunset Ridge or Millard Canyon Trail, Brown Mountain Truck Trail to the start.

Idea #2: Similar, but from Tom Sloan Saddle, take the firebeak up and over Brown Mountain, then down Brown Mountain Fire Rd.

Can anyone tell me if this seems doable, or recommend what would be a good route in this area? Since I'm doing it as a run, I might prefer a simple straightforward route (e.g., the Brown Mountain Fire Road might be fine, even if it's not particularly scenic). Since the Millard Canyon area is so close to the city, I'm imagining that it might be pretty crowded with people, so that might be a good reason to go with #2...?

Is this area burned out and ugly? Is there poodle dog bush? Are there reliable water sources?

Info I was able to get about the condition of trails:

Brown Mountain. https://www.summitpost.org/brown-mountain/231294 Restrictions lifted in 2011. "The west ridge presents a little bush-whacking"

Gabrielino: Open.https://mwba.org/news/gabrielino-trail- ... s-release/

Bear Canyon. Seems to be open: https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/angeles ... ecid=42046

Sunset Ridge/Millard Canyon: https://nobodyhikesinla.com/2014/12/09/dawn-mine/ As of 2014, sounds like it was difficult to get through, some brush and wading...?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

[dima]

Maybe you already know this, but #1 is all on trails, while with #2 you'll be hiking some of it. From Tom Sloan saddle to the top of Brown Mt is steep in places, but the trail is good. Dropping from the peak west towards the Ken Burton/Brown Mt Road junction is an old firebreak. It's very steep, not entirely solid, and definitely not a route that has ever been maintained by anybody. Passable for sure, but you will not be running that section.

[Sean]

What kind of mileage and gain do you want? How many miles can you run before you need a water source?

There is a fountain near the Gabrielino/Brown Mtn Rd junction. If you start at Switzer's, then you'll have a fountain approximately midway in the loop. Otherwise, you'll probably have to rely on stream water.

If you go on a weekend, you're likely to encounter lots of bikers, especially on the Brown Mountain Road-El Prieto-Ken Burton-Gabrielino loops. The west ridge of Brown Mtn. is not for running. You'll be bushwhacking on a steep slope. There are jugs of water on the Tom Sloan Trail right now--about half a mile east of the saddle. These are primarily for trail workers, but you're welcome to use them if you want to go that way. And the area is looking a lot better than it did a few years ago. The trees are coming back and there isn't much poodle dog around anymore.

[Uncle Rico]

Here's pic of the west slope of Brown from the water tank at the saddle. This was taken in April, 2016. Don't know if it looks any better now.

[bcrowell]

Thanks, all, for the helpful info!

Sean wrote:
> What kind of mileage and gain do you want? How many miles can you run before you need a water source?

I mapped loop #1, and it looks like about 18 miles, which is fine: https://www.mapmyrun.com/routes/view/2226696166
One water source would be OK, especially if it's near the middle, but more would be better.

> There is a fountain near the Gabrielino/Brown Mtn Rd junction. If you start at Switzer's, then you'll have a fountain approximately midway in the loop. Otherwise, you'll probably have to rely on stream water.

I was thinking of starting from the south end, so that it's an up-down route rather than an "upside-down" one. I'm fine with stream water. Is there reliable water at Switzer Falls, as implied by the name? Is Arroyo Seco often dry, as implied by the name? On my only previous visit to the area, my vague recollection is that there was a lot of water in Arroyo Seco, but I can't remember what time of year it was, or whether it had been a wet or dry year.

Uncle Rico wrote:

> Here's pic of the west slope of Brown from the water tank at the saddle. This was taken in April, 2016. Don't know if it looks any better now.

Looks like the firebreak no longer exists? I think I'll avoid that route, then.

[Uncle Rico]

Is there reliable water at Switzer Falls, as implied by the name? Is Arroyo Seco often dry, as implied by the name? On my only previous visit to the area, my vague recollection is that there was a lot of water in Arroyo Seco, but I can't remember what time of year it was, or whether it had been a wet or dry year.

I was at Switzer last weekend and followed the Gabrielino trail down to Oakwilde. I didn't go down to the falls, but by and large the arroyo is dry. There was a little flow just below Switzer and a few shallow pools, but I'd be surprised if there is any water coming off the falls. There may be some pools here and there below the falls, but I'd have a back-up plan. The arroyo at the Gabrielino trail junction was dust dry.

[bcrowell]

Ah, thanks for the beta on water, Uncle Rico. I guess I either need to do this as a springtime run or "upside-down."

[bcrowell]

I went down Gabrielino Trail today with my dogs and a friend who's recovering from knee surgery. We did it one way, from Switzer Falls to JPL, with a car shuttle. My general impression is that it's very pleasant and shady. There were very few mountain bikers, which surprised me.

Uncle Rico wrote:

I was at Switzer last weekend and followed the Gabrielino trail down to Oakwilde. I didn't go down to the falls, but by and large the arroyo is dry. There was a little flow just below Switzer and a few shallow pools, but I'd be surprised if there is any water coming off the falls. There may be some pools here and there below the falls, but I'd have a back-up plan. The arroyo at the Gabrielino trail junction was dust dry.

I'm not sure if I'm misunderstanding what you were describing (don't know where/what Oakwilde is) or if conditions have changed recently, but there was a large amount of water along the entire section of the trail south of the Paul Little picnic area. There was quite a bit of flow, and I didn't see any obvious reason not to drink from it -- it was flowing fairly well, didn't appear stagnant, and there was no horse poop or other obvious contamination in it.

There was also the drinking fountain outside the fence of the ranger's house near where Arroyo Seco Road intersects Fern Truck Trail, but the flow was pretty slow, and it would probably have taken a long time to fill a half-liter water bottle.

The dogs tell me that they want to check out the eastern half of this loop next.

[Uncle Rico]

I'm not sure if I'm misunderstanding what you were describing (don't know where/what Oakwilde is) or if conditions have changed recently, but there was a large amount of water along the entire section of the trail south of the Paul Little picnic area. There was quite a bit of flow, and I didn't see any obvious reason not to drink from it -- it was flowing fairly well, didn't appear stagnant, and there was no horse poop or other obvious contamination in it.

Oakwilde is at the mouth of Dark Canyon near the intersection with the Ken Burton Trail. (https://caltopo.com/map.html#ll=34.2456 ... =15&b=f16a). You would have passed it on your way down the Gabrieleno Trail.

I didn't go as far south as Paul Little so can't explain why you might see water there, but not further north. Maybe someone else can explain why that is so. Perhaps water flows in the Arroyo underground for a spell.

[Sean]

The Brown Mtn Dam has allowed sediment to build up for quite a distance upstream, causing the flow from Dark Canyon to go underground much of the year.

The water below the dam might be fine to drink, particularly after being filtered through the sediment. But keep in mind that you're collecting water that has travelled past several campgrounds and trail crossings. Plus, the canyon is fed by many tributaries that drain the garbage-filled highway.

[Tom Kenney]

When I passed Paul Little ~2 weeks ago, there were people swimming (wading?) in a pool below the dam. Also, the water from the fountain at the fenced residence is very foul and metallic.

EDIT: clarity