EISPIRATEN

Wow, there were a lot of people out on the trails last weekend. I wanted to get away for a night so after clearing my schedule at home I went up to Icehouse Canyon. Despite cloudy skies in the valley, at 3pm on Saturday afternoon I was relegated to the last available parking spot. This was also the maiden voyage of a new backpack and I learned that I still need some fine tuning before going on a longer trek.... Not knowing the exact conditions above I filled up with 3 liters of water at Columbine Spring and advised others on the trail to do the same. That turned out to be unnecessary as some water was flowing at the higher elevation. There was a little snow on the way to Icehouse Saddle and then enough so that I put on spikes for the last mile to the camp - the drifts were still about 4-5 feet deep. When I got there it was pretty crowded and also had snow covering most of the flat area but I was fortunate enough to get one that was mostly level. I had enough light to set up my tent and fix some dinner before watching the sunset colors high on the flank of Bighorn Peak. Although a bunch of other folks were nearby it was pretty quiet and I managed to drop off to sleep soon after retiring to the tent. In the morning I learned that I used up all my stove fuel the previous night as I had just enough to turn the water from cold to not-cold. (Actually I used most of it on the grilled cheese a few weeks ago) Oh well, pop tarts and stream water still make for a great trail breakfast so I found a bit of sunshine and had a grand feast. After talking with some others there and looking at the snow-covered slopes I decided against summiting either of the two nearby peaks and just headed down in the morning. Turned out this was a very popular time to be out as I ran into backpackers everywhere. There were 18 people camped at Kelly, 16 at the saddle and I talked to a guy on the way down who said at least 25 people stayed at Cedar Glen.
Just another great 20 hours in the San Gabriel Mountains, about 9 miles with 2400 feet of elevation gain. The best part was I got to spend it all above the clouds, it was once again a bit dreary heading back down the mountain.

Tall trees.

Wet trail

Wilderness

Up canyon view. Around here I saw my first snow patches.

New signage. It was hot going up this long hill.

The boot track weaves around trees and rocks, in places 50 feet below the actual trail. Slushy snow on this slope can be hazardous.

I briefly debated staying at this spot midway between the saddle and Kelly.

Buried sign.

Watching the sunset glow.

Headed home.

Brilliant!

Smart choice not to summit. I heard that you really need the right equipment to go to the peaks.

What pack did you get? We need the deets.

I got a ULA Circuit, it shaves more than a pound off my load. Been using my Osprey Atmos 50 since 2008, newer fabrics and fewer pockets make a difference. Of course with the changes I have to figure out how to pack things differently, for now I have some lightweight stuff sacks for various tasks. Water is the biggest concern, I traditionally have not done well without a Camelbak bladder so I'm going to have to change my drinking style.

All the traffic in the area definitely led to more trash. When I left on Sunday morning I saw a crew at the bathrooms above the village so I hope they managed to get something done at Icehouse.

Nice that the Adventure Pass dollars help to clean up, not so nice that they can't even afford to put a trash can here.


All of this happened between Saturday at 3pm and Sunday at 1030am.

Thanks for the report. Do we need a thread devoted to overflowing trash bins in the forest?

I got a ULA Circuit, it shaves more than a pound off my load.

I got a custom ULA Catalyst last year. Coupled with swapping out my bag for a blanket and ditching my water pump in favor of a Platy Quick Draw Microfilter, I was able to shave a couple of pounds from my load. Like you, I'm still adjusting to the lack of organization that is the price for weight-saving.

Btw, the squeeze-able Platy microfilter is game-changer. Filters water much, much faster that a Sawyer Squeeze. If you're going to be hiking by reliable water sources, its the ticket. I'm never pumping again.

What a neat trip. Surprised to hear there were so many people camping in the snow. At least they didn't bother you. The trash is shocking. Ice House is so crowded now. I used to find spots in the parking lot late morning on weekends. I guess that was a long time ago.

@Uncle Rico - I also switched last year to a squeeze bladder for filtering. I've only used it twice, but it was much easier to set up and use. Dumped the pump.