A 6.3 mile ascent over an additional ridge to an often-overlooked peak in the front range of the San Gabriels. This route passes by several other prominent peaks in the area, and finally makes a ridge-line ascent of Markham that includes some moderate class 2 scrambling to the peak.
Archive for the 'Angeles National Forest' Category
It’s a holiday weekend, which means thousands of people who rarely or never set foot within National Forest lands are about to descend upon picnic areas like nature-loving locusts.
The ANF Rangers issued a statement today announcing some special road closures and restrictions:
- Glendora Mountain Road and Glendora Ridge Road are closed to vehicle traffic through Monday, July 7th. Bikes and hiking boots are allowed on the thoroughfare, however.
- Gates at Chantry Flats and Chaney Trail will be open only from 5AM to 6PM through Sunday.
- Turnouts along the Angeles Crest Highway above La Canada Flintridge will be closed on July 4th only.
In addition, ALL fireworks are prohibited on National Forest land — including lame ones like sparklers or those little black snake things. So don’t even think about having your own private pyrotechnic party in the woods this weekend.
Be sure to check the Angeles National Forest’s web site for further information on fire and road restrictions. And if you’re trying to find a camp site up there this weekend … good luck.
Stay safe, have fun … and don’t forget what this holiday is all about.
A 6+ mile, moderate loop on and off-trail in the middle High San Gabriels. While low on sweeping vistas, this hike features large stands of incense cedar, boulder formations typical of the area, ski slopes, and a great sense of remoteness.
A short but steep hike to a prominent ridge in the San Gabriel High Country. You’ll pass through a defunct picnic area, an abandoned ski resort, and top it off with outstanding views of the middle of the front range and San Gabriel Wilderness. While it might not be a Destination Hike, it’s well worth the detour if you’re in the area.
A very short, relatively unimpressive mountain deep in the central high San Gabriels. Best when hiked in combination with other peaks in the area.
A short 4 mile loop through the San Gabriel High Country. This route turns a very easily-bagged single peak hike into a moderately strenuous two-peak journey, with expansive views of the interior San Gabriels and Antelope Valley.
Mount Baldy Road remains closed today as the Big Horn Fire continues to blaze in the Angeles National Forest.
So far, the fire has burned 430 acres, and was only 25% contained as of this morning. And of course, the next few days are supposed to be hot and windy.
Keep your fingers crossed for the firefighters working hard to contain the latest entry in California’s new pre Fire Season Fire Season.
Under the weekend heatwave, I was enjoying my first post-surgery hike just off the Pacific Coast Highway. Further east, however, a wedding at Sturtevant Camp was interrupted when a wildfire started tearing up the mountains just north of Sierra Madre.
The fire began just off Santa Anita Canyon Road and spread northwest toward Mount Harvard, burning over 400 acres (as of Monday morning) and causing Sierra Madre officials to evacuate a large chunk of their city.
Nothing has been posted to the Angeles National Forest web site yet (that site is sloooow to change), but I think it’s safe to assume the Santa Anita Canyon should be off your list of hiking destinations for at least a week or two.
Via the LA Times.
Image by gtiboogieman
A strenuous ascent up the south face of Mount Lukens - the highest point of elevation within Los Angeles City Limits. This particular route travels a secluded and steep, but rarely traveled and slightly overgrown canyon to the summit. A good leg-burner, but the bushwhacking and ticks may not be worth the trouble. There is, however, a shortcut trail that leads to a fire road, which is one of the nicest stretches of single-track trail I’ve seen in the San Gabriels.
This morning, I made an attempt at Mount Lukens via Haines Canyon.
The trip started out all right, but due to some bad directions and bad weather, I ended up missing an important junction, landing myself on a fire road instead of the intended trail.
I hiked up the fire road anyway, despite its frustrating winding direction, and managed to make it into the cloud cover over Tujunga. There, with visibility reduced to about 100 feet and the temperature reduced about 15 degrees, the clouds opened up and poured rain on me, soaking me to the bone.
I kept going for a while, but without the visual of the summit to motivate me (and the fact that I was losing feeling in my fingers), I turned around and headed back down.
I logged about 9 miles and some healthy elevation gain, which is what I was looking for, but the experience was fun and completely worth it once I stumbled upon this — on the trail proper:
Gives “off-roading” a whole new meaning.
I don’t know if I’m going to give this the full write-up treatment yet, as I had to keep my camera stowed for most of the trip, but I did still sneak in a few good pictures.
… oh, and it turns out the spot where I decided to run back to my car and get the feeling back to my hands was just about a mile from the summit.
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