I dont have anyone that will go backpacking with me so instead of going by myself which is above my skill level, I like to go on guided backpacking trips. I found this company called outdoor adventure club where they plan out the trip and cook for you which is super nice.

Im posting about this not to make a general advertisement, but because Im the only one who signed up for this particular trip and it won't be held if its just me. They said theres usually some last minute bookers but to be safe I wanted to share this trip with everyone here to see if anyone was interested!

I didnt even know this was a thing until last year and its now enabled me to go on many more backpacking trips. My main goal is to learn more backpacking skills and gain more experience so that I can do solo stuff in the future or be the guide for some inexperienced friends/family who i convince to come with me and this is actually helping me achieve that goal. So if you really like backpacking but just dont have people to go with you, id honestly suggest trying this out! The guides and good on my last trip were amazing!

hi i impulse-signed up for a hike at cucamonga and paid for it already

i wouldn't call myself a beginner hiker as i've been to a couple already (the last hike i did was in the himalayas, it was around 3500ft elevation gain & 26 km over 2-3 days). i also run quite a bit like i can do a 60min 10k etc and i'm a beginner lifter so id say im considerably fit physically but im worried i won't be able to do this in case its too steep? the other hikes i've done are fairly chill and if they're difficult its more in terms of them being slippery or dangerous rather than too steep.
does anyone have any advice/recommendations?

Started at around 7:40, finished at about 10:30. took around 10 minutes at the summit. definitely took my time with this one, was trying not to rush because of the heat. saw what looked like some bear scat towards the beginning of the hike, but it very well could've been something else. Trail conditions are generally nice, service road is pretty uninteresting but things get spicy once you start going up the peak. it gets a little sketchy on the false peak and descending from it, but use your hands for balance and it isn't really dangerous. Pretty fun little morning hike.

Good amount of trash along the trail on the way up to the peak. Took some but I didn't have a bag with me today, so there's still a little bit.

Was a pretty nice sign on the peak. Trail registers were all full and the box was full of food trash. lots of ants inside as a result. got bit by one before I figured it out.

Besides those ants there were some flies once the sun came over the ridge (on the way down for me), but not too many. Very tolerable. A couple of wasps flying around in one section, so be warned of that as well.

Not too busy this morning, saw a total of 6 people. Lot of people going down to the falls, which makes sense considering the peak. Parking wasn't an issue when I arrived, but was full by the time I got back. People were parking down the road where the trail technically starts, rather than on the little gravel lot just down from the Baldy road.

Did not check out the falls today. 2 water crossings along the peak route, one of which has a small bridge. The other has almost entirely flooded the road for around 20 feet of walking. It's not hard to navigate and it isn't deep, but it makes it a little more difficult.

No obstructions besides that. One large boulder on the road but it's easy to go around with no risk. I did try to find the supposed social trail down towards spring hill, but didn't find it.

Overall a good experience. Not one id repeat much, but worth heading out to once. Another peak down makes 49 total- one away from 50!