STRAWBERRY PEAK VIA MOUNTAINEER'S ROUTE

 On Wednesday I hiked to Strawberry Peak via mountaineer's route. The last time I hiked this route was in 2016. The trail was in good shape. I have a friend who is currently doing maintenance work so it was looking very nice. 

The last time I was there, I remembered the Poodle Dog bush was overwhelming along the ridge. Also, the ridge was mostly clear and easy to walk through. However, this time there was a large section along the ridge that was overgrown with thorny bushes. Not hard to navigate but a bit challenging to avoid and getting impaled by the yuccas. Ouch!

We took our first break at Josephine Saddle. Then we headed up the mountaineer's route. As I mentioned earlier the terrain was not quite the same as before.  However, no more Poodle Dog except for a very tiny bush yay!!!!!

Ascending the class 3 rock scrambling was just as fun as I remembered. It was a clear day and the views were amazing! I took my time to soak in the views. I did manage to find one lonely purple flower hidden in between the rocks. 

At the summit, we ate lunch and took the obligatory summit photos. Someone brought Strawberries to share. I signed the register and noticed an old Eispiraten sticker which was cool. 

We descended the trail going back to Red Box.. The route was clear and not as slippery as I remembered it. 

All in all, it was a perfect day. 

Stats: 8 miles, 2300' gain

WILD VIEW PEAK & PINE MOUNTAIN RIDGE

 Last week I met some of my hiking buddies at Inspiration Point by the Blue Ridge Truck Trail. We then caravanned to the trailhead by Lupiine Campground. The gate was open and we descended the 8.5 miles on FR3N39. 

For the most part the road wasn't too bad with a few rough spots. A high clearance truck/SUV is a must. Along the road there were quite a few downed trees that looked like they were recently cut to make it passable. There was also a small stream of water that was flowing across the road. 

To add, just before the trailhead is a really bad section that we had to carefully and skillfully maneuver across making sure not to get stuck. Luckily all three cars made it.
When we arrived at the trailhead there wasn't another car in sight. 

This was actually my second time bagging both peaks. I had bagged then separtately in 2014 & 2016 with Sean. We started from a different route because the road was closed at that time. 

6 years late.r, this time around hiking to both peaks in one day was a bit exhausting. 

Wild View peak was easy to get to but still overgrown. I also forgot about the false bump before the real summit. However, the summit views were still breathtaking.

After bagging Wild View we took the ridge route over to Pine which was new to me. The views were spectacular and the clouds were amazing.. The ridge route was so beautiful and worth the effort to climb up to PIne Mtn Ridge. 

We took our lunch break and rested as we admired the 360-degree views of the surrounding mountains. 

To add, I was very excited to find my old entries at both peaks and put the Eispirate.com stickers at both summits.

Overall, a great day hiking in a remote area. However, i highly recommend a high clearance automobile and be prepared for anything. Getting stuck on that road without a way to reach for help could be disasterous. 

Stats:
8.5 miles with 1800' gain.

GOLD CANYON TO YERBA BUENA HIGH POINT

Last week Sean and I hiked to the newly restored Gold Canyon trail in Big Tujunga. Sean, Kristin and a few other volunteers had been working on. this for quite some time. The trail had been closed since the 2009 Station Fire. It was a big mess so the crew made a new trail that goes around the old one with lots of swtichbacks for an easier climb up to the road. The new trail is about 2 miles long. We had to hike through the Gold Canyon wash first before reaching the main trail. Its about a mile. There are huge cairins that mark the path just before you ascend the Gold Canyon trail to the left.

Anywyays, I was very impressed. As we hiked thorugh the wash there were lots of colorful conglomerate rocks and beautiful patches of Spanish broom. Once we reached the main trail we were treated with quite an array of beautiful wildflowers. Sean had built a couple of nice rock walls along the switchbacks. 

Our main objective for the day was not only to show me the newly restored trail but to see if we could hike to the Yerba Buena high point which we successfully summited.

We were the only ones on the trail. Since they fiinished the restoration a few weeks ago, some parts of the trail are starting to sprout with new growth. Nevertheless, the trail is still quite nice and the wildflowers are very impressive. 

Once we reached the top of the road we headed for the Yerba Buena high point summit. There was no benchmark or register. We also could see a water tank in the distance, so we decided to make that our lunch spot. We sat there for about an hour to soak in the views. 

All in all, it was a nice day. A bit overcast and chilly but all the wildflowers and beautiful views made it worth it. 

A word of catution. The main trail is blocked by one of the residents so we started down the road a short distance from the hike at mile marker 1.38. We had to descend a used path that is a bit trashy before reaching the creek. Kristin placed pink tree markers that led us to through the creek to the Gold Canyon wash from there it is just straight forward for about one mile before you see the huge cairins on the left where the new trail begins. 

                    

                   

                    

Stats: 9 miles, 2000' ft of gain.