Mt Baldy Summit -10,068 ft (3,069 m)

bearthedog · May 23, 2011

Finally hiked Mt Baldy (Mount San Antonio) which is the highest peak in the San Gabriel Mountains here in Southern California, and the highest point in Los Angeles County.
http://www.simpsoncity.com/hiking/baldy.html

The prize
From far away the summit entices us

On the trail

San Jacinto seen in the distance

Getting close

Gear worn on belt loop and kept in pocket

In Pack

Tools

Lonely at the Top

…and then the weather turned

From this

To this in minutes

It’s a long way to the bottom

This is actually a trail

San Antonio Falls

BRL · May 23, 2011

Awesome! Great shots and that must have been a great trip. Did you anticipate the big weather change and did you feel you were prepared?

bearthedog · May 23, 2011

BRL said:
Awesome! Great shots and that must have been a great trip. Did you anticipate the big weather change and did you feel you were prepared?

It was a good trip although my friend gets altitude sickness bad.

One thing we know is that the weather in CA is fickle, especially in the mountains here. We had cold weather gear like fleece, beanies, and rain gear.

-RB

Junglas · May 23, 2011

Cool pics man. I've done Baldy and it's fun. Some of my friends took the ski resorts gondola up a portion of the mountain. I think cyclists are taking it over the roads on the mountain next week.

Anyone is the area should give it a shot. The trails are well established and you can take your older children with you. You might want to wait until summer when the snow is gone, it's in a ski resort area. Mt bikers take their bikes to the summit too and ride down, that's pretty hardcore.

Bring a little wine and a few snacks and enjoy the summit.

Thanks for posting pics, great pics!

Junglas · May 23, 2011

bearthedog said:
It was a good trip although my friend gets altitude sickness bad.

One thing we know is that the weather in CA is fickle, especially in the mountains here. We had cold weather gear like fleece, beanies, and rain gear.

-RB

Oh yeah it took me a while to get acclimated to the altitude.

Bear, did you get to play w/ the blade at all? It's so steep up there I didn't see any play areas at all. I went over the summer and there were a ton of people there.

PropThePolecat · May 23, 2011

It looked like a great hike. Mountain weather can be real unpredictable. What was the difference in temperature at sealevel/top of the mountain?

Thanks for posting.

thrillbilly · May 23, 2011

very nice, if i get up that way I might try that. How long is the trail? and how many long did it take u round-trip?

those are some awesome pics, neat stuff!

fugawee · May 23, 2011

Great pictures!
Thanks for sharing your trip with us

bearthedog · May 23, 2011

Junglas said:
Oh yeah it took me a while to get acclimated to the altitude.

Bear, did you get to play w/ the blade at all? It's so steep up there I didn't see any play areas at all. I went over the summer and there were a ton of people there.

I take a break every hour for at least 10 minutes no matter how good I feel. That is when I grab a dead stick to whittle. I did a lot of blade playing last week in Peru and just a few days ago breaking in my newer RC/ESEE-3.

PropThePolecat said:
It looked like a great hike. Mountain weather can be real unpredictable. What was the difference in temperature at sealevel/top of the mountain?

Thanks for posting.

The top of the mountain was actually warmer and had almost no wind. When we hiked down it got about 20 degrees colder. Usually, it is the other way around.

The most unpredictable weather has always been Alaska in my book and the way up to Mt Whitney. This mountain was just keeping with tradition I guess.

thrillbilly said:
very nice, if i get up that way I might try that. How long is the trail? and how many long did it take u round-trip?

those are some awesome pics, neat stuff!

About 12 miles and 6 hours to complete it.

tknife · May 23, 2011

Wow that's still a lot of snow up there! Great pics and that's a tough hike :thumbup:

jds1 · May 23, 2011

Photos so nice, I had to look twice.

Jeff

JCavSD · May 23, 2011

Great pics, hope to do that one before long.

tek77 · May 24, 2011

Tough hike indeed. When the snow is gone, I'd recommend trying the Devil's Backbone route.
Can't wait to get up there again.
From Peru's jungle to Baldy...that's something bear.....:thumbup:

fujita yuji · May 24, 2011

Thank you for sharing amazing pictures of beautiful place, bearthedog.
Love wild flowers and other plants living tough environment like this.

thrillbilly · May 25, 2011

Thanks for the reply Bear. I don't know if I'll get up thataway or not..but I wanna do that hike if I do!

kgd · May 25, 2011

Looks you couldn't stop yourself convexing that v-edge on the forum knife

Great shots, love some of those folded over trees. Big rocks like that are pretty to look at but can be a mess to navigate and hard on the ankles.

bearthedog · May 25, 2011

fujita yuji said:
Thank you for sharing amazing pictures of beautiful place, bearthedog.
Love wild flowers and other plants living tough environment like this.

I always enjoy a good contrast. Seeing colorful things that are alive in places they have no worldly business being is a visual surprise to me!

tek77 said:
Tough hike indeed. When the snow is gone, I'd recommend trying the Devil's Backbone route.
Can't wait to get up there again.
From Peru's jungle to Baldy...that's something bear.....:thumbup:

Last time I got off the plane from Peru and was picked up from the airport by my buddy and we went straight to climb Mt Whitney (14,??? ft). I love it!

kgd said:
Looks you couldn't stop yourself convexing that v-edge on the forum knife Great shots, love some of those folded over trees. Big rocks like that are pretty to look at but can be a mess to navigate and hard on the ankles.

Rocks and impact suck. Which forum knife are you talking about? The RAT Pack? Still got the V grind, just missing some coating.

-RB

Jabaski · May 25, 2011

Hmm, from your title I imagined Philmont Scout ranch, and Mount Baldy (12,352 ft).
It is a beautiful mountain nonetheless, and I would have enjoyed accompanying you on your hike.
What was the starting altitude? How many miles would you say you went the whole route?
I live out in Louisiana, and its flatter than a parking lot out here. I sure do envy all those trails around you.

Junglas · May 25, 2011

Some more pics of Mt. Baldy - http://www.sgmtrailbuilders.org/hiking/baldy/22.html

raylaconico · May 25, 2011

Cool pics Reuben. I summited Whitney, Baldy, and San Jacinto all in the year 2000. For baldy we went up the Ski Hut Trail and down the Devil's Backbone. I don't get to do much hiking anymore. I'm totally out of shape.