Another hiking trip in the snow, except this time a little better prepared. I learned from my mistakes on the Mt. Baldy snow hike, and am now fully stocked on…
I just like taking pictures of the Mountain Lion signs. One day, I'm actually going to see one.
The trailhead is at 5620' and there is hardly any snow here, which made parking easy. Looks like this trail will be perfect for running in the spring. Beautiful…
At around 6500', I start to hit larger snow patches. It looks like people were on the trail a couple days ago, so I have some tracks to follow. I'm making good…
Now I know why it's called the Deer Springs trail. Evidently early morning along San Jacinto Creek is the place to see deer. I saw at least 10 in less than a…
The whole family poses for a shot.
The first signpost. 7 miles to go. I'm now at 6900'.
A look out towards Suicide Rock at 7528'.
I'm now somewhere around 7500', and it appears that whoever was on the trail previously didn't go any further than this. I have no more tracks to follow, just…
In places, the trail becomes a little creek for melting snow, and the rut is more than knee deep.
Amazing snow scenery is everywhere you look.
5.5 miles to go. 8040'. I've still been making good time up to this point. My confidence is growing that I will be able to summit today.
The snow is getting heavy, and the altitude is high enough now that there is a lot of ice. I've already been using my new Lekki carbon trekking poles, which are…
There's a stretch of a couple miles where it feels and sounds like I'm walking on glass. Little snow clods have frozen into ice chunks. They shine like glass…
I make the next major trail junction at 8640'. My pace has started to slow in the heavier snow, but at this point I'm still confident about summiting. That…
My pace has now slowed to a crawl. I spend a lot of time correcting my course, and my hopes of summitting are starting to fade. But, according to the GPS, there…
I'm within site of the summit now, but it's extremely slow going. There is no visible trail whatsoever, and I'm navigating strictly by GPS and compass. I'm not…
I'm within site of the summit now, but it's extremely slow going. There is no visible trail whatsoever, and I'm navigating strictly by GPS and compass. I'm not…
The trees are covered with chunks of icy snow that are melting fast. Big chunks slide off and come crashing down. First couple times, it scares the crap out of…
I make it to the shelter just below the summit! The summit is definitely within reach now, but it's after 2:00pm. It actually crosses my mind that I may end-up…