EISPIRATEN

Originally Jeff and I had planned to celebrate his birthday by camping at Highline Saddle, with others joining us the following morning for a summit of Mendenhall Peak. But a Santa Ana wind warning interrupted this plan. So we nixed the camping and started a day hike from Burma Road instead of Dillon Divide. Hopefully there would be less wind on the south side of Mendenhall Ridge, as the road from Dillon turns to the north side, where the northeast wind should be strongest.

Jeff, Cecelia, JJ and I met at Burma Road in Little Tujunga at 7:15 AM. We experienced the wind immediately. It wasn't very bad, but occasionally gusts were strong. Apart from the wind, the weather was clear and cold. We all bundled up in winter clothing, except Jeff, who stuck to his shorts and gloveless hands. He did at least wear a windbreaker.



Most of our time on Burma Road was spent in the shadow of the ridges, with sunlight hitting the mountains above us.



The road remained clear until intersecting with a firebreak, then it became unmaintained. We pushed through brush and climbed over rocks and landslides. We had to take extra care at one slide with bad exposure.



Other road features included a service ladder for the electrical towers,



sheer rock faces,



and the Holy Wall of Mendenhall.



At Highline Saddle the power lines crackled and the wind howled. We took shelter behind some brush and ate a snack. Between periods of light wind, gusts would roar to life and almost knock us off our feet. The gusts, however, were infrequent enough and did not deter us. We marched straight up the steep ridge toward the peak, taking a break at Point 4403.





The wind really blew us around on that first section of the ridgeline. A few times we crouched low to avoid being pushed off the side. Thankfully we could see our destination now and we willed ourselves to the top.



The summit contains ruins of a fire lookout station. We huddled around a small structure and tried to block the wind so Jeff could cook the grilled cheese sandwiches. He needed to relight the stove several times, but he got the job done. Next time we'll have to increase the obstacles and provide a tougher challenge for him.

Pesto and sun-dried tomatoes have become mandatory toppings on the grilled cheese. JJ brought spicy pickles, which tasted great. I brought Hostess Cupcakes for the birthday party desert, but we also put some on a grilled cheese sandwich, because we crazy like that.




I gave Jeff a photo album with pictures from all the hikes we've done together. Then it was time for our summit group shot.



Cecelia signed the register for everyone, and we left an EisPiraten flag as well.



Jeff made these awesome flags for us. So in addition to grilled cheesing summits, we're now going to flag them too. I'll start handing out these flags at forum hikes.

We returned via the lookout service road and Mendenhall Ridge Road. The wind died down a little in the afternoon and finally we were allowed to remove some layers. Aside from the persistent view across Pacoima Canyon toward Magic Mountain, I enjoyed the fancy rock outcroppings along the road.




We reached Dillon Divide. The girls waited there while the boys walked down the highway to our cars at Burma Road. Jeff found extra gifts in the gutter, one dirty shirt and a hat. Happy birthday, Jeff!

Happy Birthday Jeff. A fun, windy day.

Welcome to my home turf, guys! I can almost taste the sandwiches when I see the photos....

I did Burma Road just last March - at that time I passed no fewer than 7 separate streams with waterfalls coming down the east face of The Pinnacle and crossing the trail. That spot with the rockslide was fresh and a bit tricky at the time.

Thanks to the Sand Fire, lots of exposure to Santa Ana winds along there... glad you guys didn't get blown off the ridge. Trivia info 4403 is my profile photo, been looking forward to tackling that ridge for a while now. I can see all those peaks from countless locations around my neighborhood every day. They are my buddies.

That a prime exposure of 1.4 billion-year-old Mendenhall Gneiss you are looking at there, Sean. It took that long to get it as mangled as you see. Its the oldest rock I've catalogued.

Hope you enjoyed your time in the Western Gabes, Jeff! It can be a great area to scramble thanks to the recent fires, with smaller but still rugged peaks. Its also generally pretty quiet with not a lot of hikers. Just be careful of the sun exposure. And I guess on this occasion, wind!

Here's a little taste of what the gusts were like on the ridge.

I didn't realize this was Jeff's bday hike. I would have braved with wind had I known that (which didn't really look too terrible from Sean's vid).

Sorry Jeff.

Uncle Rico wrote: ↑I didn't realize this was Jeff's bday hike. I would have braved with wind had I known that (which didn't really look too terrible from Sean's vid).

Sorry Jeff.

About halfway up the ridge I was ready to send you a message saying you were right to stay home. It knocked me over once - the uneven footing made it pretty unstable in the gusts.

First off, thanks Sean, CC and JJ for coming out on a birthday hike! There was a couple places going up the first ridge that we all were laying down trying to avoid some wind, inevitably when we got up to walk again the wind would pick up. Still a fun day, it feels like you can almost see forever from the summit.

Sunrise.



Cool rocks.


Upper ladder - the combination of brush and wind kept me from going further.


Burma Road. We parked at the open spot across this valley. Holy wall on the lower right.


Mendenhall summit, that is the easier ridge.


Slightly less wind on this side.


Chocolate cupcake oozing out of the grilled cheese. Yum.


Magic Mountain was distracting enough on the way down so we didn't really notice the boring fire road.