White Mountain Peak

Posted on June 20, 2012 by reidexplores

Trailhead Elevation: 11,675 ft.

Summit Elevation: 14,252 ft.

Total Gain: 3,015 ft.

Distance: 15.5 miles r/t

White Mountain Peak is considered one of the easier “14ers” in CA to summit, and it’s the third highest peak in the state. I figured it would be a great way to see how it feels to be at that altitude, without needing any technical skills. My buddy Phil and I set off from work in Hollywood around 6:30p, for the five hour drive north. The peak is in the White Mountains, just northeast of Bishop, CA. We arrived around midnight at a campground situated nicely at 8,500 ft. Four hours later, we got up and hit the road for the last hour drive to the trailhead.

When all was said and done, we started hiking around 7am. The approach to the actual peak was long, about 8 miles one way along a rough, rocky road. This hike is unique because it starts at 11k+ feet. Two miles into the hike we came across a scientific research station run by UC San Diego. It’s one of the highest research facilities in the country. We cruised past it and continued up at a reasonable pace. Even at 12,000 feet the altitude makes itself very apparent. I had spent the last 8 weekends hiking above 10k, but Phil had never set foot much higher than Los Angeles, about 400 feet above sea level. It felt like all of my training hikes were really paying off. Even though my breathing was much harder than normal, I never felt very fatigued.

Once we reached 13,000 feet, we took a lunch break. The final 2 miles of the hike were definitely the most difficult. Almost all of the elevation gained is in the last 2 miles up to the summit. At this point the road turned into more of a rocky trail, climbing steeply up the side of the peak. There were a few snow fields, but nothing to worry about. We made it to the top around 1pm. Once I relaxed for a few minutes, I felt great. Being at 14,000 feet was a big accomplishment for me, and I was very glad I made it. After taking some good photos and snacking on some trail mix, we decided it would be best to start the long trek back to the car. Going downhill was definitely a welcomed task. It still took a long while though, as we had about 8 miles to cover. The light at this elevation seemed magical, cascading through the clouds onto the barren, grass covered plains.

We made it back to the car about 6pm, quite a bit later than I had originally planned. Phil was on the edge of bonking for the last few hours, so we had to slow our pace down quite a bit. After changing out of our boots and shaking off the dust, we started the two hour drive to our next adventure…

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Mt. San Gorgonio via Vivian Creek

Posted on June 10, 2012 by reidexplores

Trailhead Elevation: 6,080 ft.

Summit Elevation: 11,500 ft.

Total Gain: 5,420 ft.

Distance: 18.5 miles r/t

Summit of Gorgonio on the left, with San Jacinto in the distance

This was the last of my “SoCal High Country” training hikes, and also the longest and most strenuous. I stayed the night in Redlands so an early start would be possible. This peak is the tallest in Southern California, standing at 11,500 feet. I started off strong and felt really good up until the last mile before the top, where I started to feel the elevation a little. Overall, I can definitely tell that my training is starting to pay off. 8 weeks ago, I would have been a wreck after this hike, but my legs feel great! There were quite a few people on the Vivian Creek Trail, since it’s the shortest and most direct route to Gorgonio’s summit. It was, by no means, short or easy though. In fact, it’s considered the most difficult route. Gaining over a vertical mile in roughly 9 miles, it was exhausting to say the least. After spending about an hour on the top, I began the long journey back to my car. It took a little under 6 hours to get to the summit, and about 4 to get down. I’m glad that I’ve bagged the highest peaks in SoCal, but I’m also sick of the hot and dry hiking. Time to move on to bigger and better things!

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Marion Mountain Trail

Posted on June 4, 2012 by reidexplores

Trailhead Elevation: 6,320 ft.

Summit Elevation: 10,834 ft.

Total Gain: 4,514 ft.

Distance: 13 miles r/t

This was the third time this year that I’ve been to the top of Mt. San Jacinto, although this time was much more difficult. Instead of taking the tram into the park and hiking to the top from there – I took a much harder trail from the opposite side. I got a nice early start at 7am, hiking in the shade for the first couple hours. Ended up hiking with a journalist/editor that worked for the LA Times, so I got to hear all about his crazy trips to Afghanistan and Iraq, when the wars started. We reached the summit in four hours, spent an hour chillin up top, and then made it back to my car in three hours. Another long day…

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Camp Muir

Posted on May 30, 2012 by reidexplores

Trailhead Elevation: 5,360 ft.

Top Elevation: 10,100 ft.

Total Gain: 4,740 ft.

Distance: 8.5 miles r/t

Nathan and I got up at 4am for this monster. Between pee stops and the long drive, it took us a while to get to Paradise. Permit in hand, we were on the ‘trail’ by about 1030a. It took us about 5 hours to reach Camp Muir – the arduous snow slog seemed to take forever (gaining about 1100 vertical feet for every mile travelled). Fifty steps, five deep breaths – this seemed to help keep a steady pace. We almost turned around about halfway up, due to the heavy cloud cover. At times, we could see only ten feet in any direction. This gave a very eerie, yet peaceful feeling to this hike. After much debate, we decided it was plenty safe to continue, since the guide services had placed wands every few hundred feet. Just when you thought you’d lost your way, a wand would come into view.

Once we made it to Camp Muir, the clouds thinned out and we finally got a glimpse of the looming summit. It was a grand feeling, being so close (yet, so, so far) from the top of Mt. Rainier. After boiling a couple water bottles worth of snow, we decided to head back down to the car. The trip down was more of the same, thick clouds. It only took us two hours to get back to the car though, plunge step after sloppy plunge step. I can’t wait until the next time this beast of a mountain graces my presence.

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San Bernardino Peak

Posted on May 21, 2012 by reidexplores

Trailhead Elevation: 5,920 ft.

Summit Elevation: 10,650 ft.

Total Gain: 4,730 ft.

Distance: 16.5 miles r/t

I set out early to conquer this beast of a hike. My pack weighed about 40 pounds, with lots of extra weight added for conditioning. The hike climbed steeply out of the valley, switchback after long switchback. It finally topped out in a meadow, and for about 10 minutes, I got to walk over flat ground! After that, it was a lot more of the same, UP! At about 9,500 feet I hit snow, so I put on my gaiters and kept on truckin!! After about 4 hours of hiking/scrambling, I made it to the top. My much anticipated pb&j and sweet potato chips were waiting for me, washing them down with some oh so tasty water. Overall, I drank 140 oz. of agua on this epic calf/quad burner. After spending an hour up top, I had to force myself to begin the arduous trek back to the car. Almost ten hours after I left the confines of my Subaru, I made it back to the trailhead. Stopping at A&W, I decided to grab myself a juicy burger, a reward for completing my toughest hike to date.

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Mt. San Antonio

Posted on May 13, 2012 by reidexplores

Trailhead Elevation: 6,160 ft.

Summit Elevation: 10,070 ft.

Total Gain: 3,910 ft.

Distance: 10.5 miles r/t

This was my first time hiking Mt. San Antonio (also known as Mt. Baldy), the highest peak in the San Gabriels. It was a very strenuous hike, gaining almost 4,000 vertical feet in just over 4 miles. My legs begged me to stop, especially when I almost stepped on a rattle snake. He/She gave a nice loud warning, as I stumbled backwards, avoiding a painful end to the hike.

I got a semi early start, hiking by 8:45am. It took me just under 4 hours to reach the summit. This is a very popular training hike, there must have been fifty people on top when I got there.

I chose a different route on the way down, “Devil’s Backbone”. This trail descends a ridge line, with steep shale cliffs on either side, dropping a couple thousand feet. If you get dizzy easily, this wouldn’t be the place for you! I was back at the car by 4 in the afternoon, tired & sore, extremely satisfied.

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Cinco de Mayo on Mt. San Jacinto

Posted on May 6, 2012 by reidexplores

Trailhead Elevation: 8,400 ft.

Top Elevation: 10,800 ft.

Total Gain: 2,400 ft.

Distance: 11 miles r/t

This was my second time hiking Mt. San Jacinto this year. The first time I did the hike as an overnighter, so this was my first time getting to the top in one day. The views from the summit are pretty amazing (at least for southern california standards).

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Mt. Baden-Powell

Posted on May 2, 2012 by reidexplores

Trailhead Elevation: 6,600 ft.

Top Elevation: 9,400 ft.

Total Gain: 2,800 ft.

Distance: 8 miles r/t

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Icehouse Canyon to Timber Mountain

Posted on April 22, 2012 by reidexplores

Trailhead Elevation: 4,900 ft.

Top Elevation: 8,300 ft.

Total Gain: 3,400 ft.

Distance: 9.5 miles r/t

The first of 9 training hikes for my Mt. Shasta climb at the end of June. This was a hike up Icehouse Canyon, near Mt Baldy. It was really hot out but felt great to be up in the mountains!!