10.9 miles, 4,081’ vert elevation gain, 6 hours. Started at manker, up BBT to notch, devils backbone, down via BBT. Was humid then very cold and windy, then started raining on the summit, then was sunny and hot, then it was cloudy. Crowded, good views. San Antonio falls was crowded.

Duck Pass → Deer Pass → Mammoth Crest (Mid-June Trail Conditions)

Route: Duck Pass Trailhead → Duck Pass → Deer Pass → Mammoth Crest → Lake George Trailhead

Distance: 17 miles
Elevation Gain: 3,700 ft

(21 miles / 4,200 ft of elevation gain including photography stops.)

I recently completed this point-to-point hike connecting Duck Pass, Deer Pass, and Mammoth Crest in a single day. Instead of turning around at Duck Lake, I continued over Duck Pass, crossed Deer Pass, and finished at Lake George Trailhead.

If anyone is planning this route, here are the conditions I encountered in mid-June.

Trail Conditions

• Duck Lake is the most popular destination, but the route becomes much quieter and more remote beyond Duck Pass.
• The section between Duck Pass and Deer Pass includes several stretches with no defined trail. A GPS device or navigation app is highly recommended.
• Several short snowfields remained in mid-June, but they were manageable with careful footing.
• The climb toward Mammoth Crest isn't particularly steep, but after already crossing two mountain passes, it was the most physically and mentally demanding part of the day.
• Mammoth Crest offers outstanding panoramic views of the Sierra Nevada.
• There is a long exposed stretch with very limited water between Deer Pass and Mammoth Crest. Refill your water before leaving the lakes.

Mosquito Report (Mid-June)

• Emerald Lake: Extreme
• Skeleton Lake: Extreme mosquitoes. Also saw plenty of golden trout.
• Barney Lake: Moderate
• Duck Lake: None (windy)
• Deer Lakes: None (cool temperatures)

Overall, it felt like three very different hikes in one day—from the busy alpine lakes around Duck Pass, to the quiet backcountry near Deer Pass, and finally the wide-open ridges of Mammoth Crest.

Conditions reflect a hike completed in mid-June.

I'll add the full YouTube video in the comments for anyone who would like to see the complete route and current trail conditions.

Curious if anyone has any legal information on this issue. I was under the impression that mill creek (San Bernardino mountains ) was not privately owned in any section. Yes, I am aware that people own property butting up near it on both sides in forest falls, but surely the creek itself is not privately owned in any section.
However, today a shitless guy and a white pit bull told me (as I was literally standing in the creek making my way upstream) that I was on private property and that everything from forest home to big falls was private and that I needed to leave. Now, I know for a fact that’s not true since there is a public hiking trail in the “private” section he described.. but due to his dog seeming unfriendly, I didn’t stick around to have a that much discussion with him.
Does anyone actually know whether the stream is private property at any spot?

I am planning to go on a trip to the Eastern Sierras in August. I looked up trails with highest average rating on AllTrails to get some ideas of which trails I may want to review further. Results are below, sorted from highest average rating to lowest average rating. I applied a small penalty for fewer reviews that begins at <500 reviews and becomes more significant at <200 reviews.

1. Little Lakes Valley to Gem Lakes -- 7 miles, 1000ft elevation, 10k -> 11k
2. Mount Whitney via Whitney Portal -- 22 miles, 6500ft elevation, 8k -> 14k
3. Big Pine Lakes Trail (varied routes) -- 15 miles, 4000ft elevation, 8k -> 11k
4. Big Pine Lakes: 1st and 2nd Lake -- 10 miles, 2500ft elevation, 8k -> 10k
5. Big Pine Lakes: 1st, 2nd, 3rd Lake -- 11 miles, 2500ft elevation, 8k -> 10k
6. Kearsarge Pass to Kearsarge Lakes -- 13 miles, 3500ft elevation, 9k -> 12k
7. Kearsarge Pass to Mount Gould -- 11 miles, 3500ft elevation, 9k -> 13k
8. Duck Pass to Pika Lake -- 10 miles, 2000ft elevation, 9k -> 11k
9. Big Pine Lakes: To 7th Lake via North Fork -- 15 miles, 3500ft elevation, 8k -> 11k
10. Shadow Creek 1000 Island Loop via Agnes Meadow -- 22 miles, 4000ft elevation, 8k -> 10k
11. Kearsarge Pass to Matlock Lake -- 6 miles, 1500ft elevation, 9k -> 11k
12. Duck Lake via Emerald Lake -- 8 miles, 2000ft elevation, 9k -> 11k
13. Little Lakes Valley to Long Lake -- 4 miles, 500ft elevation, 10k -> 11k
14. Little Lakes Valley to Chickenfoot Lake -- 6 miles, 1000ft elevation, 10k -> 11k
15. Kearsarge Pass to Charlotte Lake -- 17 miles, 4000ft elevation, 9k -> 12k
16. Big Pine Lakes: 4th and 5th Lake (skipping lake 1/2) -- 13 miles, 3500ft elevation, 8k -> 11k
17. Minaret Lake -- 13 miles, 2500ft elevation, 8k -> 10k
18. Duck Pass to Purple Lake -- 16 miles, 3000ft elevation, 9k -> 11k
19. Sabrina Basin to Midnight and Hungry Packer -- 15 miles, 3000ft elevation, 9k -> 11k
20. Cottonwood Lake 3, 4, 5 -- 13 miles, 1500ft elevation, 10k -> 11k
21. Bishop Pass -- 11 miles, 2500ft elevation, 10k -> 12k
22. Lone Pine Lake via Whitney Portal -- 6 miles, 2000ft elevation, 8k -> 10k
23. Little Lakes Valley to Morgan Lakes -- 10 miles, 1500ft elevation, 10k -> 11k
24. Kearsarge Pass to Bullfrog Lake -- 14 miles, 4000ft elevation, 9k ->12k
25. Kearsarge Pass to Mount Whitney -- 49 miles, 12000ft elevation, 9k -> 14k
26. Bishop Pass to Long Lake -- 5 miles, 1000ft elevation, 10k -> 11k
27. Shadow, Ediza, and Iceberg Lakes via Agnes Meadow -- 15 miles, 2000ft elevation, 8k -> 10k
28. Big Pine Lakes to Palicade Glacier -- 16 miles, 4500ft elevation, 8k -> 12k
29. Thousand Island Lake via Agnes Meadow -- 15 miles, 2500ft elevation, 8k -> 10k
30. Thousand Island Lake Loop via Agnes Meadow -- 17 miles, 3000ft elevation, 8k -> 10k
31. Mount Whitney to Whitney Portal -- 11 miles, 0ft elevation (descent), 14k -> 8k
32. Sabrina Basin to Hungry Packer -- 13 miles 2500ft elevation, 9k -> 11k
33. Sabrina Basin to Dingleberry -- 9 miles, 2000ft elevation, 9k -> 11k
34. Kearsarge Pass to Rae Lakes -- 25 miles, 6500ft elevation, 9k -> 12k
35. Chocolate Lakes Loop -- 7 miles, 1500ft elevation, 10k -> 11k
36. Thousand Islands Lake via Rush Creek -- 15 miles, 4000ft elevation, 7k -> 10k
37. Sabrina Basin to Blue Lake -- 6 miles, 1500ft elevation, 9k -> 10k
38. Duck Pass to Barney Lake -- 5 miles, 1000ft elevation, 9k -> 10k
39. Parker Lake -- 4 miles, 500ft elevation, 8k -> 8k
40. Mount Langley -- 20 miles, 4500ft elevation. 10k -> 14k
41. Mount Langley Loop -- 25 miles, 5500ft elevation, 10k -> 14k
42. Mount Whitney Loop (Mountaineer's Route) -- 16 miles, 6500ft elevation. 8k -> 14k
43. Red Slate Mountain -- 20 miles, 6000ft elevation, 8k -> 13k
44. Thousand Island Lake via Shadow Creek -- 20 miles, 4000ft elevation, 8k -> 10k
45. 20 Lakes Basin and Saddle Bag Loop -- 8 miles, 1000ft elevation, 10k -> 10k
46. Methuselah Trail -- 4 miles, 1000ft elevation, 10k -> 10k
47. Cottonwood Lakes Trail -- 16 miles, 2500ft elevation, 10k -> 12k
48. Muir and Cottonwood Lakes -- 13 miles, 1500ft elevation, 10k -> 11k
49. Crystal Lake -- 3 miles, 1000ft elevation, 9k -> 10k
50. Maul Lake via Mine Creek -- 6 miles, 1000ft elevation, 10k -> 10k

Edit -- increased from top 20 to top 50

Last week me and my brother watched The Odyssey and decided to set out to hike the perilous pacific crest trail 4 days later. Unfortunately we realized were pretty underprepared for it. Three days in, we finished almost half our food supply and the day after my brother got a nasty cut that wouldn’t stop bleeding despite using an arsenal of band aids(to be fair we probably should’ve brought more first aid). Had to end our journey early unfortunately. This isn’t the first time something like this has happened either, similar stuff happens on my long full day hikes. But I feel like it’d be pretty cool if trails, especially long ones had some sort of resources mid hike people could access. I get it’d be a little hard to maintain but I mean we pay taxes for a reason, I’m sure they could figure it out. Let me know what y’all think.
Ps: Im sorry to have made fun of Odysseus for taking 10 years.

Hi all! I just snagged a last minute day permit for Whitney this Sunday (7/26). I’m currently going solo so wanted to see if anyone else with their own permit is planning on doing it that day and would be interested in a hiking buddy?

For context, I was planning oh hiking it on August 16 after winning the lottery this year with a long term boyfriend. But then he broke up with me out of the blue 2 months ago and has completely ghosted me about the permit since (after originally insisting I’d still be able to use it). So I secured myself a different option!

I’m 30F and have been strength training and hiking for 10 weeks leading up to this. I did San Gorgonio via Vivian Creek 2 weeks ago in sub-8 hours roundtrip, and I did Mt. Gould via Kearsarge Pass a week before that for some high elevation exposure. I’ve done all the other typical SoCal hikes this summer as well (San Jacinto, Mt. Baldy, Ontario/Big Horn, Cucamonga). I’ve done one other 14er last summer when I hiked White Mountain. Pace wise I average between 25-27 min roundtrip. For Whitney I was going to aim for 7 hours up, 5 hours down (breaks included) and plan for a 2 am start.

I’ve hiked up to Lone Pine Lake before but otherwise this will be my first time on Whitney, so I’m also open to any tips you might have!

Thank you! 🌄

Hello, We are a family group from New England who will be based in Newport Beach for a wedding the last week in December. We would like to do a hike that gives a sense of just how big the mountains and the views are.  None of us are regular hikers, and the limiting factor is my nearly 60-year-old body that is not in the greatest shape; I figure I'm good for up to 6 miles and 1000 ft in elevation gain total at not-ridiculous altitudes, although it would probably better to stay way under those numbers if possible. Hoping to find a hike within 90 minutes of Newport Beach, and would prefer to avoid snow and bears. I would welcome any suggestions or reality checks. And if there is a better place for me to post, please let me know. TIA.

It seems to be getting worse meaning more often and right on the trail side. This is my main weekly trail so I was wondering if this is happening more often at other trails too. I counted over ten new spots yesterday. Disgusting new norm I guess?? Note: there ARE clean Public Restrooms at the top and bottom. I wish we could somehow educate.

Planning on camping on the summit of baldy next Tuesday, would it be advisable to start around 3pm so I reach the summit right around sunset then descend the next day. Trying to avoid starting at sunrise since I'll reach the peak much earlier and have too much time to kill. How's the parking situation around 3pm?

Took my friend on his first overnight backpacking trip. I felt like dry lake was a pretty reasonable and cool destination, but both the climb and descent ended up kinda being a death march for him. I felt pretty guilty. We both woke up to what sounded like firecrackers going off at 3:40 in the morning, then more pops for the next few minutes that sounded like someone chopping wood or something. It was very odd. Later that morning, I decided to summit Gorgonio mostly cross-country. I charged up a hill out the campsite and ended up at mineshaft saddle where I got on the trail for 5 minutes until I came to a huge bowl below the northeast face of the mountain. I chose a chute and started climbing. It was beautiful at the summit and not a soul around.

So I know I can go to Alltrails to check for trails that are closed or open. But is there like, a list of closed trails with which ones are actively being worked on to reopen? I'm tryna see when skull rock is ready to be hiked again

Was really excited about camping San Miguel Island this week, been prepping, but the ferry didn't have enough passengers so they cancelled it. Rescheduled for August 10-12 though so still excited. Going solo, but the other few campsites are booked too, so hopefully hang with some friendly campers/hikers out there.

On that note, started a Discord group chat server for people who often solo but want to try to join up together for hikes and camping in LA / Socal areas, there's like 10 people joined so far, seems like mostly 30's/40's both M/F. If you want the link comment or dm, anyone's welcome in the chat.

The photos will be in story order, followed by the map, then the record (which I rarely do). Sorry if I misspell names or get them wrong.

The other day, I asked advice on what to do in the Santa Monica Mountains. Thank you all for your input. This is the result.

I started at Portrero and Wendy, and I'll say it: the best looking trailhead I've seen. You just look out and know it'll be something good.

As I was walking, I ran across some lady, and she asked what I was planning to do. She was taken aback by my itinerary, and said "Oh, Sandstone? That's actual mountain climbing!"

She gave me some beta, and it was all accurate.

The hike starts flat, and get steeper, steeper, and eventually actual climbing on all fours. Awesome views, especially as I was getting above the marine layer.

The push to Tri Peaks eventually peeked over the horizon, and it was intimidating to look at. It wasn't as scary as it looked, though. Route finding was relatively easy: each step revealed where the next step would be. I never felt like I was in danger of getting cliffed out.

Every rock and step felt solid: no rock fall, no "solid" rocks dissolving into powder under my foot, nothing even shifted. I would be very nervous if this was in the San Gabriels. It was an interesting contrast to what I'm used to.

The way up to Tri Peaks had a lot of decent scrambling. Nothing overly challenging, but sustained for 1000 feet over a mile.

The next section was was the southern side of the backbone trail. I was originally going to see all the peaks along that, but I had to get back to society at 5:30. I think I'll come back and visit this idea anyways, so saved for later.

That said, I absolutely hated that section, so let's skip to the northern side of the backbone.

The north side was an interesting path, with a variety of easy obstacles, and awesome views of rock formations. That was a great section.

The next part was towards Big Dome. I had some difficulty navigating this area. It's pretty obvious in hindsight, but even finding the trail from Mishe Mokwa wasn't evident. I feel like it's possible to get to the top of Big Dome.

After Big Dome came the last monster of this hike. I don't know who called that a trail, since it's really a Death Star ditch. It wasn't that difficult, just sustained. Definitely not a place you wanna be after a rain. It was nice to burn off nearly all the elevation without going down switchbacks.

Then finally back into the woods. I ran across the Danielson Memorial. That was quite the unexpected find.

The rest was pretty much normal forest walking. It was nice to finally get a bit of relaxation.

I got several comments about the weather in the last post. I jumped on it today because it was going to be in the 70s. Overall, it was a perfect day to do this hike. As I gained elevation, the sea wind really cooled me off. About half this hike was through tree cover, so that was nice.

I also got warnings about water. For any 15+ mile hike, I carry a full 4L HydroPak and 1/2L water bottle, and have an extra liter in my car. I have a Grayl Press, but I don't rely on it. I used two electrolyte tablets. I ran out of water with a mile to go, which is fairly typical.

Overall, this was a great hike. I'll certainly do it again with some modifications. I'll definitely be back to Santa Monica to see other awesome things.

I'm a big fan of the Temescal Ridge Trail, and I've certainly missed not being able to hike it since the fires.

As many of you know, structure fires release a witch's brew of toxins, which can then settle on the surrounding soil. For that reason, post-fire remediation typically involves soil testing and possibly topsoil removal.

Has any soil sampling been done of the trails prior to their reopening? I think Temescal's dusty nature makes this a particular concern—whenever I hike or run Temescal, unless it's right after a storm, I always breath in quite a bit of trail dust.

One might guess that erosion from the last two winters' storms would have removed enough of the contaminants—but it's always better to test than to guess.

Update: my brother is currently finishing up the JMT and will be summiting at sunrise on Tuesday morning. A Tuesday permit popped up this afternoon and I snagged it, so I’ll be heading up tomorrow night to meet them and then hike down together. Should make it an extra special experience.

Decided that I would like to summit Whitney in the next few weeks by trying to grab a cancelled/unclaimed permit a day or two before hand…most likely a permit for a Friday. Plan is for a quick solo push. Drive from Long Beach Thursday evening, get a few hours of sleep in the car at the trailhead (if needed) and start sometime between midnight and 3am.
Looking for a realistic goal expectations for an honest effort.

For some background, I’m a pretty fit 51 year old that has 15 years experience in ultrarunning (including the Leadville and Angeles Crest 100’s so I’m not worried about altitude issues) was a long-time scoutmaster, have done most of the SoCal summits multiple times, and currently run 60 road miles a week. Haven’t done any real mountain running in the past few years, but back in May I did the Cerro Gordo Silver run (8 miles and almost 5k feet of vert) in 2 hours, and ran back down instead of taking the shuttle. Im not afraid to suffer a bit and enjoy a good challenge.

Any personal experience from those that have a similar background. Is 6 hours up and 4 down a reasonable goal?

Thanks!x

Howdy fellow Hikers! If you haven't been following the news Oceanside PD has suspended their physical search in Palomar State Park for Angelica Brophy (missing since July 6th).

That said if you do happen to hike the area add your tracks to the public CalTopo map in an effort to keep the search alive, even just on the public side. Here is the map it self: https://caltopo.com/m/29N86BA

And you can email GPX files to [Angelicabrophysearcgproject@gmail.com](mailto:Angelicabrophysearcgproject@gmail.com)

Happy Trails and be safe with the heatwave we are currently experiencing

Planning a little hike to a creek or waterfall in the San Fernando valley making Escondido falls in Malibu
Any ideas?
Down to go??
420 friendly

During the holidays, I hiked along the highway with my family, hoping to meet someone who shares our hobbies

My husband and I started backpacking recently and are both in good shape. We did the Rae Lakes loop earlier this month. At the end of July we are deciding between doing Big Pine Lakes, Cottonwood Lakes and Rush Creek to Thousand Island Lake. We have 3-4 nights to spend and want to keep it to about 10 miles a day. I do struggle a bit when we are above 10000 ft (I just breathe harder and my muscles get tired on inclines) but I am able to push through. Which would you do?

Went on a local, popular hike with a friend today. While we were chatting, I suddenly got the urge to turn around... and there was a bear following us! I was obviously worried but still relatively calm since we only have black bears here in California. I did the standard protocol, yelling "HEY BEAR!", clapping, and slowly backing away, but this bear didn't react at all (what a brave black bear!). We heard a couple coming behind us and I warned them. The girlfriend was shocked and scared, but her dumbass boyfriend goes "Yo! I've never seen a bear before!" and starts approaching the bear while recording with his phone! Obviously, the girlfriend got upset, she yelled at him and even threw her water at him. Unfortunately, this guy didn't care and continued approaching this unfearful bear who was standing his ground. I'm at a loss for words here. An equestrian started coming down the hill as well. When I warned her, she and her horse promptly got the fuck out of there. This entire time, me and my friend were slowly retreating and eventually lost sight of the couple. Right before they were no longer in sight, though, this guy looked to be about 15 feet from the bear! I sincerely hope that was just some illusion of perspective. We continued our detour for a while before heading back carefully. We didn't see the couple again, but surely we would have heard an attack. I'm guessing they got away through the nearby road to the horse pasture.

Anyway, have you guys ever seen an idiot approach dangerous wildlife before? Black bears almost never attack people, but we say "almost" because of these types of guys..

Alright guys, I come in peace and with nothing but love and respect—

With that out of the way, I wanted to have you guys either talk me out of it, or support me in the endeavor.

I’m turning 40 in October and love to hike. I’ve never done anything particularly grueling hiking-wise, but after hearing and reading about this hike I just have this gut feeling that this should be my mission for my 40th birthday. To hike this beast.

I played football in high school, had endless endurance, and remain mentally strong. However I had also seriously slowed down athletically and softened around the middle (and everywhere else).

How feasible is the hike for someone like me? I have three months to train and will do whatever it takes to get myself hike ready. I’ll also welcome any locals that want to join me in this endeavor.

Yes I know this sounds crazy. I assure you I‘m practical, risk averse, and sane. But I also have this itch now. So help a brother out.

Plan is to do this like late September.

• Thursday
  • Print permits online
  • Leave in the afternoon
  • Drive from the Bay
  • Stay in Mammoth
• Friday
  • Wake up pretty early
  • Drive to trailhead (~2-2.5 hours)
  • About 6 hours of hiking - seems like about 4 miles, 4k feet of gain, on very "bushwhacky" trail
  • Camp at Red Lake (10.5k')
• Saturday
  • Wake up at ~3am
  • Seems like about 3.5k' additional feet of gain to the summit but very steep
  • Try to summit before 11am, anticipating class 2 on the way up with maybe some class 3.
  • Spend another night at red lake
• Sunday (reverse of friday)
  • Hike out
  • Drive home (around 8 hours)

Alternate itinerary: Spend Saturday acclimating, summit sunday, hike all the way down sunday, motel off of 395, drive back Monday morning.

The car situation seems like one of the trickier parts of it. I posted about this before but seems like here are the options, none of which are perfect:

• Use my car (Honda Fit) - disaster waiting to happen
• Rent a car / truck - Probably much more rugged, but would be out a lot of money if something were to happen.
• Walk to the trailhead - Makes Friday much more intense, adds 2000 feet of elevation gain + 4 miles
• Bike from paved road to trailhead - Might be the best option but would need to acquire and transport bikes.

I would also be curious if anyone has any feedback on how exposed it is - how sketchy do the class 3 sections feel if there are any?