Laguna Mt. Cleveland Nat'l Forest, SoCal-camping/blade testing

thrillbilly

thrillbilly

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Went on a overnighter this week up at Laguna Mountain, 60 miles from my home in San Diego. I know some say a overnighter aint worth the effort, but with my wife and I's schedule...it was all we could do.

It was cold, WINDY and drizzling when we arrived Weds, but I set up our tent in a sheltered area and rigged a tarp windbreak for the campfire/seating area
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...it was worth the bad weather to be the ONLY people in the campground. Solitude is a rare commodity in SoCal LOL. Thurs was Cold (30 degrees when I woke up at 5:30, I built a fire QUICKLY), calm and clear...warmed up nicely to about 50 with warm sunshine, perfect weather to hike around a bit.


some pics of campground
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Took some ''toys'' some new and some old friends, along- Gerber sliding saw (needed no testing, used and loved it for a decade) Gerber Freeman, SOG FastHawk, Fiskars x7, Buck 110 (once again, no need to test) to test and break in.
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Gerber Freeman- owned it for a few years, Xmas gift from wife, never used it since I have Portland Gerbers and this is a newer taiwan model. I hacked it some, cut some feathersticks, drove it into some stumps, did some batoning thru dry scrub oak...it held up suprisingly well. Still sharp, no damage...it has earned a place in my gear.
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SOG FastHawk- I was TRYING to break it since I had a feeling it was more mall-ninja flea market gimmick then a real tool. I am in love! I hacked firewood, split firewood. dug holes with spike, hammered a wrist sized sharpened stake in the ground, threw it at least 100-odd times (never threw a 'hawk before so I banged the hell out of the haft a few times on the tree, I started out gently but I was HURLING it before I was through) and it is good as new. Not a serious mark on it, still VERY sharp, haft still solid. I think it was a very well spent 40$ IMO.
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Fiskars x7- Performed very well, I had high expectations for this axe after reading the reviews. I wasn't dissapointed, it took all the chopping jobs in stride and asked for more. After using it..I am removing the 550 wrap and leaving the lanyard on...the wrap feels good and looks cool but during use it feels too ''fat'' and I just didn't like it. Live&Learn! I give it 10 out of 10
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Survival practice.


Made a Figure-4 trap, never made one before...had a few false-starts with remembering all the cuts, but I got 'er done. It worked out well...I used the spring stick method for the ''Kill'' part of the trap, just jammed a decent-sized green limb under a log.


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Some pics from the drive out, just random images from Cleveland, some Sawtooth Mountains pics, and some pics from the fires of 2008.

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and last and probably least, a pic of my big ugly self.

(women and small children should be protected from this!)




last warning! look away!




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Great pics, looks like a good time. Glad to see the Cleveland NF getting more time here.
 
I like the picture of the rocks in the lake. Since I so often associate the San Diego area with either the coast range or, just to the east, with Anza-Borrego, scenery like this is different for that area.
 
I have driven through Cleavland nation forest about 10 times on my way to Laguna Niguel. Always wanted to spend some time there, thanks for the pics...
 
Laguna Mt./Cleveland NF was one of my favs for camping & hiking when I was stationed out in San Diego. Thanks for sharing!
 
Didn't know we had a place like that near OC.

Aren't there a lot of mountain lions in the area? What type of precautions do u use out there?

The place is so beautiful. I'll have to visit sometime
 
Junglas said:
Didn't know we had a place like that near OC.

Aren't there a lot of mountain lions in the area? What type of precautions do u use out there?

The place is so beautiful. I'll have to visit sometime
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there are cougars there, I didn't see any sign or see/hear one while I was there. Mt. Lions are kind of cowardly anyway, they (and all cats) only target the weakest prey they can find...they don't like struggle or even odds. Most cougar attacks are small adults or children, of course there is the chance of a rabid or starving cat who might try a grown man, I honestly would like to see one in the wild.

LOL I am 6'7'' 290pds so I wasn't too worried...I did put my food in my car at night and kept a 'hawk or hatchet near me. You should def come down and check it out though bro.
 
Great, I highly recommend. If you want to end up at the top of the falls, with fewer people, you'll need to take a left up a rocky trail when you come to the first major fork in the main trail. It gets a little confusing after that because there are a few ways to get to the top of the falls, but in general you're going to want to veer left to get down into the gulley and follow the creek to the falls.
 
thrillbilly said:
there are cougars there, I didn't see any sign or see/hear one while I was there. Mt. Lions are kind of cowardly anyway, they (and all cats) only target the weakest prey they can find...they don't like struggle or even odds. Most cougar attacks are small adults or children, of course there is the chance of a rabid or starving cat who might try a grown man, I honestly would like to see one in the wild.

LOL I am 6'7'' 290pds so I wasn't too worried...I did put my food in my car at night and kept a 'hawk or hatchet near me. You should def come down and check it out though bro.
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I'm going to leave the bear spray and firearms at home and hike with you from now on. You'll be able to A) defend me from hungry animals, or B) offer hungry animals a better food source (who wants a medium pizza when they can have a large?)
 
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What a cool natural shelter! Most of the work is done for ya. :thumbup:

Looks like a cool area to explore. Good work on your trap.
 
LOL 165 views and finally someone figgered out why I was interested in that bush! :)

And thanks, I was quite pleased with actually getting that trap together and having it work!
 
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