Upper Bear Canyon (between Mt. Lowe and Mt. Disappointment)
Posted: Sat Nov 06, 2021 2:38 pm
The trail from Switzer into Bear Canyon is in great shape all the way to Tom Sloan Saddle, we hiked it last week. This week, Guy Webster and I decided to see how far we could get up Bear Canyon past the trail camp and old Twin Spuce Camp (where the small stone shed is, and where the trail leaves the creek).
This time we parked at Eaton Saddle, took Mt. Lowe Road to the heliport, and the Bear Canyon Trail to Tom Sloan Saddle down to Twin Spruce Camp. That was about 3.6 miles in 1:45 time all on good clear trails except for one tree across the trail just below Tom Sloan Saddle that has come down in just the last week.
At Twin Spuce Camp we left the nice trail and followed the creek upstream but it took us about two hours to go about 1.2 miles. Guy pointed out that if we were going to go back the way we came we had to turn around then to finish before dark. But instead of doing that, we scrambled straight up the south bank, a miserable combination of brush and scree but it got us out in good time.
So we got about half way through upper Bear Canyon before bailing out. It was slow and tough, I wouldn't do it again or recommend it to anyone. GPS track and a few pictures attached.
We've done many off-trail adventures including lower Vasquez Creek (starting at Big T) and Royal Falls. Probably the best one was Grand Canyon; very pretty, a big well-preserved cabin, and a small-plane crash site with some major artifacts remaining. This was probably the worst one. Tangled logs and brush most of the way, a few waterfalls that were only about five feet high but still challenging, and not much open area where you can make better time. It is pretty in many spots, especially some of the small falls, and the bright yellow maple leaves.
https://cyclemeter.com/c5998a9c4f20187a ... 0841-60514
This time we parked at Eaton Saddle, took Mt. Lowe Road to the heliport, and the Bear Canyon Trail to Tom Sloan Saddle down to Twin Spruce Camp. That was about 3.6 miles in 1:45 time all on good clear trails except for one tree across the trail just below Tom Sloan Saddle that has come down in just the last week.
At Twin Spuce Camp we left the nice trail and followed the creek upstream but it took us about two hours to go about 1.2 miles. Guy pointed out that if we were going to go back the way we came we had to turn around then to finish before dark. But instead of doing that, we scrambled straight up the south bank, a miserable combination of brush and scree but it got us out in good time.
So we got about half way through upper Bear Canyon before bailing out. It was slow and tough, I wouldn't do it again or recommend it to anyone. GPS track and a few pictures attached.
We've done many off-trail adventures including lower Vasquez Creek (starting at Big T) and Royal Falls. Probably the best one was Grand Canyon; very pretty, a big well-preserved cabin, and a small-plane crash site with some major artifacts remaining. This was probably the worst one. Tangled logs and brush most of the way, a few waterfalls that were only about five feet high but still challenging, and not much open area where you can make better time. It is pretty in many spots, especially some of the small falls, and the bright yellow maple leaves.
https://cyclemeter.com/c5998a9c4f20187a ... 0841-60514