EISPIRATEN

We belatedly celebrated the forum's anniversary, and simultaneously had a birthday weekend for Jeff, by spending Saturday and Sunday at beautiful Lupine Campground. Between drinking tequila and eating cake, some hiking was also accomplished, one trip to Cabin Flat and Native Son Mine, and another to Pine Mountain Ridge. Oh, and it rained during the freezing cold night.

I had heard that the road to Lupine was open and in decent shape, but I called the Forest Service on Friday to see if this was still the case. The lady who answered told me it was closed due to bad conditions. Trusting this information, I immediately informed John and Jeff that we'd have to hike in from Guffy Campground. But John, who went up a day early, replied that the gate was open and he already had claimed a camping spot for us. This was a relief, but now I have zero confidence in what the Acton Work Station tells me.

Saturday morning I picked up Jeff in Claremont and we were on our way by 7am. After a stop in Wrightwood for last-minute items, we took the dirt road to Lupine. This was Jeff's first time on the Blue Ridge Road and we stopped for a couple photos of the views.

The descent into Prairie Fork had two interesting sections, a spring crossing with large puddles and the Prairie Fork crossing itself, which was dry but very rocky. My Honda Pilot made it with no issues. I'd caution against taking a sedan down this road, but we actually saw people in a sedan at Lupine, so it's possible. I still don't recommend it.

We met John at the campground. He had picked out the best spots away from the toilets. After hanging out a bit, we put our packs together and started hiking down the road to Cabin Flat.




There were hunters around, but we didn't see anyone en route to Cabin Flat. Below Lupine the road deteriorates, with rough bypasses for downed trees. The tire tracks ended fairly quickly, as trees and brush narrowed the path in some sections. I attacked a few overhanging branches with the machete, but really the trail is fine for hikers, pretty much a road the whole way.

It was a gorgeous day, and at one point we could hear the stream flowing again. The road made a u-turn and approached Cabin Flat, which used to be a large, developed campground. The outhouse is still standing.



And further down the road remains a picnic area with several tables.



Someone had left a suitcase here. We used it to pack out a bunch of garbage.



A path led down to the stream, which was flowing nicely.



I found an abandoned wildlife camera with corroded batteries, so I hauled it out. It died in 2020, having accumulated 15 gigabytes worth of pictures and videos--mostly of deer and squirrels, some humans, a couple shots of a bear's hindquarters, but nothing truly amazing.



After our break at Cabin Flat, we went hunting for the Native Son Mine and found it. You have to crawl inside, but after fifteen feet or so you can stand upright. It goes back a few hundred feet at least. We stopped once the water level reached above our shoes.

Getting to the mine required more machete work and some easy scrambling up and down a steep slope.



We made it back to Lupine and celebrated Jeff's birthday with cake and tequila.



I guess I liked the Cazadores tequila because I got fairly plastered. Jeff made a Ramen bomb so I could eat something hot, and John helped me set up my tent before the expected rain began falling. I remember trying to say words during dinner, stumbling a lot, and then crawling into my tent. Then I passed out drunk.

To be continued...

I woke up needing to pee in the middle of the night. Still a bit tipsy from the tequila, I recall being blasted in the face with wind-driven rain, doing my business, I guess, and then returning to my sleeping bag. But I failed to get inside the bag, because I later regained consciousness and found myself using it as a blanket rather than a bag. My feets were wet and cold, and they stayed wet and cold the rest of the night. I was now basically done sleeping, with several more hours of freezing darkness to endure. Thankfully the storm had passed.

At the very first light I arose and started moving around to get warm. I watched three hunters head up the Fish Fork Trail by headlamp. I dug a hole and filled it relatively easily, considering the temperature was in the low 30s. John was up by the time I returned to the car with my shovel. Then Jeff got up and we had breakfast.

The freezing weather slowly became nearly freezing, and we could finally remove a layer or two of clothing. Instead of waiting for the sun to pop over Pine Mountain Ridge, we decided to hike up the trail to the sunshine.





At the ridgetop we found a spot to sit out of the wind. We snacked and watched puffy, white clouds creep up the East Fork of San Gabriel Canyon, encircling Rattlesnake Peak.



We signed the register.



And took a selfie.



We returned to camp, drank a little, and ate stuffed olives.



Then we drove to Wrightwood for cheeseburgers at the Yodeler. Another successful forum hike. Good times.

Thanks for the report! I wanted to join this one, but was doing other stuff. Next time

Thanks for the great write-up, Sean! I can't really add a lot to that, except that we had a fun time.

After our hike to Cabin Flat and the mine, the puffy clouds of the day became a solid, threatening mass. It got windy and much colder without the sun. It didn't stop us from eating cake and wishing Jeff a happy birthday. But eventually it got to the point where even the tequila couldn't keep us warm enough, so we headed to bed fairly early. Luckily we all had the right gear to stay warm in the night, but I have to admit that I was glad to see that Sean didn't die of exposure! Maybe the tequila helped? We'll never know.

My car said that it was 33 degrees Sunday morning, and it sure felt like it. There was frost everywhere, and all the droplets from the rain were frozen. But at least the gusty winds had died down overnight. After a hot breakfast, we packed up camp and had a fun (uphill and warming) hike to the ridge, which had great views. The weather after storms is almost always beautiful, and this was no exception. Pine Mountain Ridge seemed like a very central spot. We could see many familiar peaks: Pine and Dawson to Baldy on the left, plus the long ridge to Iron in front of us, and around to the right was Baden Powell.

I'm going to have to add another post with photos, but I always take too many. I'm still in the process of deciding which ones to post, so they may have to wait until tomorrow.

Caltopo Map of the hike: https://caltopo.com/m/KH0B1



It was also my first mine exploration. Yay! I can see why this is an addictive hobby, with curiosity and danger in equal proportions. Here's my GoPro video of the mine:

Here's one of three multi-photo posts

Here's two of three multi-photo posts

Here's three of three multi-photo posts

I can't add much to the stories, except maybe the others actually downplayed the wind on Saturday night while we were at camp. It blew pretty hard for a while, then would subside at ground level for a bit while still roaring up in the trees.
The view walking up to the high part of Pine Mountain Ridge will stay with me for a long time - new growth trees among the older pines, clouds moving around the top of Rattlesnake Peak - it's a reminder of why I do this stuff.
Thanks again to John and Sean, you guys helped to make it a great weekend.

Standing in the mine.

These numbers were written on the walls.

Celebrate good times c'mon!

Mine from the upper road.

Anyone know what this sign originally marked? Looks like WEST P is remaining.

Obligatory shot of the clouds.

OMG I took a photo of the WEST P sign when I was up there a few years ago.