san gabriels

I was hiking up Mt. Baldy when a wildfire started.

This was the Vista Fire of July 2024. I was on the Ski Hut trail and as you can see from the first photo there was the possibility that the fire would come over the ridge. So, rather than risk getting caught in its path, I continued to the summit.

Once I was on the summit I could see that they were working on the fire and trying to keep it on the other side of the ridge. Also, the wind was blowing towards the fire, not me.

I failed to bike Mount McKinley, failed a hike to the Pinnacle, but I did see the Aqueduct Cascades.

So, the plan for this day was three events: I'd bike Mount McKinley via Gold Creek (link), then I'd go see bison in Santa Clarita, then I'd cap it off by seeing the Los Angeles Aqueduct. Obviously, it didn't work out that way.

About a year before the devastating Eaton Fire, I hiked this front range peak.

You won't be able to hike to it for probably several years, but for future reference there are at least three different routes to the peak. The one I took was the Old Mt Wilson Trail up Little Santa Anita Canyon. Between First Water and Orchard Camp there's a trail that starts through a narrow canyon but it soon goes through clearer areas. While it's steep, when I did it it was not loose: the way back was a fast descent.

"Mt Bliss" has the sound of some Alaskan 17er, or maybe a neighbor of Mt Vinson. Set your expectations a lot lower...

In fact, it's a meh peak in the front range of the San Gabriels and it's just 3,720' or so. The hike to it is along a fireroad with zero shade. OTOH, it has mostly good sight lines so you'd probably see animals heading your way. And, it is or was on the LPC ("Lower Peaks Committee") list. There's a lot on its fire history etc here.

Mt. Baldy - highest point in L.A. County at 10,064' - is currently closed due to the Bridge Fire which, as you'll see in a later post, I saw happen from the summit of Baldy.

While waiting for Baldy to reopen, here are pics from the rather steep Register Ridge trail. It gains about 2500' in about 1.2 miles. The trail starts just after the metal register you see on the Ski Hut trail, and then it ends on the Devil's Backbone trail just below Mt Harwood. So, after climbing up the steep part, you still have about 700' of gain to get the Baldy summit.

On Feb 1, 2025, parts of the Angeles National Forest reopened after the devastating Eaton Fire. The next day I drove up the Angeles Crest Highway to Red Box and, aside from a faint smell of smoke in the air at Red Box and Mt Wilson Road being closed to vehicles, things were as they were before in that area.

No, the title isn't a law firm: it's five peaks near Mt Wilson that I biked and hiked.

I started at Red Box and biked up the Mt. Wilson Road. Just after the 0.3 mile marker, I arrived at the Bill Reilly trailhead (it's somewhat easy to miss). That's where the Mt Disappointment Road starts. It's asphalt and closed to vehicles.

Just before the 2.0 mile marker and a cistern, there's a use trail for Mt. Deception (5,796'). I locked the bike here and started hiking. The beginning of the use trail is steep and loose, but it's a short trip to the summit. I didn't see a benchmark.

Pacifico Mountain (7124') is in the back range of the San Gabriels so, generally speaking, it's more of a pristine environment than the front range peaks.

I biked it using the fire road that goes almost all the way to the top, but I can't yet claim the peak.

While you wait in suspense to find out why, I'll point out that the road is most gravel. There's a gate across the road and it's currently open. It's also hunting season. And, it was a Saturday. That meant there were several cars on the narrow road. I pulled aside and stopped for them rather than risking a sideswipe.

I'd hiked Josephine Peak in the Angeles National Forest a few times, but this was the first time I'd biked it. It was very windy at times. On the switchbacks I'd have the wind at my back one moment, and then it'd be pushing me backwards the next.

Once on the north side of the mountain the wind wasn't as bad. The north side is also good for snow hiking; there will usually be accumulation there after it's snowed even if the rest of the trail is dry. The north side also practically screams, "you're about to run into a bear" yet I haven't so far.

If you want to amuse and amaze your future ex-friends, let them know that it snows each year in the City of Los Angeles. Yes, that's right, it snows here each year!

That's because the highest point in the City (not the County) is Mt Lukens, an imposing edifice that rises to a Himalayan 5,075' in height.

OK, so it's not that great and it's full of communication towers. So, if you hope to have kids, don't hang out there too long.