| Report Type | Full |
| Peak(s) |
Mt. San Jacinto - 10834 |
| Date Posted | 10/29/2008 |
| Date Climbed | 10/27/2008 |
| Author | AzScott |
| Cactus to Clouds - Mt. San Jacinto, CA |
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Cactus to Clouds - Mt. San Jacinto summit from the Palm Springs Art Museum. Distance: 20 miles Elevation Gain: 10,800' Others: Tanya, Tim Davis (davis2001r6), Tony Childers (outside1) At some point last March, after recovering from a tense, ice-covered, two-day climb of San Jacinto that started at the Museum, I told myself I was going to wait awhile before doing this one again. Yet here we were, seven months later, standing in the Art Museum Parking Lot at 3:20 A.M., ready to go. It's that addicting of a mountain.  Tony, Tanya, and Tim at the Museum - 3:20 A.M. The temperature was perfect as we left Palm Springs and headed up the first stretch, mid 60s with a slight wind in the low desert, at an elevation of naerly 500'. Tanya had forgotten her headlamp back in Phoenix, so we found one for $9 at a local store the evening before. It worked perfectly, and we made our way through LED light up through the early stretch to the picnic tables, 800' above the trailhead. There is no introduction or warm-up to this Skyline Trail: it gets steep literally from the first step out of the parking lot. After the picnic tables, the angle relents somewhat and the trail traverses the massive slope directly above the city of Palm Springs. The city lights spread out far into the distance below us and offered a beautiful view as we made our way higher and higher. We all chatted and were surprsingly full of energy through this early stretch, dodging the occasional cactus or scorpion. Switching leads early on, we quickly found that Tanya was setting the best pace for the group, and we hummed right up to the foot of the "Shady Slope" which moves you onto the north side of the first immense face instead of the east. The trail steepens here again, but is well-marked. We hauled up this strecth as well and took our first break at about 3500'. The time was only 4:45. We'd hoped to make it out of these lower east-facing desert slopes before sunrise to avoid the blistering heat and it was becoming clear that we would achieve that. Watching the city lights get further and further away, we crested the first main climb and saw the beaming light of the tram station far above for the first time at about 5:00 A.M. It appeared deceptively close. It was still 5 miles away and 3500' above.  Tony and Tim at first light The next stretch, what I've dubbed "The Rollers" takes you through higher desert terrain with some gradual ups and occasional downs, every now and then offering spectacular views into the side canyons below. It really allowed us to ease up a bit and catch our breath. It was now light enough to take off the headlamps - we'd gone 6 miles and up 4500' in the dark, so we were happy with our progress.  Morning light. Mt. San Gorgonio in the distance At Flat Rock, which is at about 6,000', the trail steepens in earnest again and stays pretty brutal all the way to Long Valley. The heinous manzanita slope is the first obstacle, and the sun was hitting us from the east now, and we heated up in a hurry.  Manzanita Slope and the desert far below - at ~6500' The first sign of pine trees near 7,000' was welcome, but the trail got even steeper, forcing us to slow down a bit. A few trees lay across the trail and offered some obstacles and we saw pinecones the size of a full-sized football! It took a lot of energy-laden food and a few breathers, but we found ourselves at the foot of Coffman's Crag and pushing up the final part to the tram when we saw our first fellow hikers of the day. With Tanya in front, we pulled into the Long Valley Ranger Station at 9:19 - 5 hrs and 59 minutes after leaving the Museum. She had the gall to say that she felt "slow" for the second half! We lazed in front of the Ranger Station for a good 45 minutes, eating loads of food, refilling our depleted water supplies, and relaxing before pondering our next move. Though we had already travelled 10 miles up, and gained nearly 8,000', we knew we still had a ways to go, which was sobering. While sitting there, a ranger introduced himself to us, saying "I know you guys came up from the bottom. Nobody chills this hard this close to the tram unless they've come up from below. How was your hike?" That made us laugh, and Tim filled out our permits, and started slogging up the rest towards San Jacinto's summit. The next 2.5 miles to Long Valley were incredibly easy, but we were starting to feel the effects of the hike now. The conversation started dying down, but we clipped past hikers who had taken the tram to Long Valley, of which there were many. It is a popular area and a busy trail. But the gentler terrain and forest were a welcome change from the desert below: it felt like a completely different hike than the Skyline. Cresting at Wellman's Divide, now 2.3 miles from the top at 9,800', the end was in sight.  Upper Slopes. Incredible views in all directions All of us were having a hard time getting moving again, but weren't about to quit now. Tanya bolted ahead again, with Tony and I right behind, and Tim just behind us. The trail meandered gently across the final summit of San Jacinto, but we all were happy to finally see the summit hut. It was awesome taking those final steps to the top. 16 miles and 10,500' later, we were on top! I knew it was a special moment for Tim, as he'd been wanting this one for awhile.  On top! Me, Tanya, Tim, Tony Talking to the ranger earlier, we learned that the small sign on top was on its final day . Apparently, when a ranger retires at Mt. San Jacinto State Park, they take the sign off the summit and give it to the exiting ranger, while replacing the summit sign with a new one. We took our pictures with the to-be-replaced sign, then Tim and I cracked a Tall Boy of Coors Light which we'd packed up from Palm Springs - a little taste of the Rockies on the West Coast! Oh yeah, that hit the spot! Some major altitude changes had created some severe pressure differences in the beer can, which made for some good explosions, but Tim and I handled the task just fine.  10,000' of air - I-10 heads to LA below past the windmills There were still 5.5 miles to cover to get back to the tram station, so we started moving before we cramped up. The miles were easy, but all four of us were exhausted by the time we reached Long Valley again. The worst part of the trip: the 150-foot climb up the sidewalk to the tram house! We bought our one-way tickets down, and Tanya convinced a couple nice older ladies to drive us back to our car at the museum. The airy tram ride lasted only a few minutes, and we were back in the desert quickly.  Desert scene of the Skyline Trail What a day. It's pretty difficult to find a more challenging hike in the Lower 48 - all told, around 20 miles and cumulative elevation gain was 10,800'. So that's why it's considered an Ultra-Prominent Peak. As we left Palm Springs for Phoenix and home, we couldn't help but look in the rearview mirror at San Jacinto's massive bulk. What a spectacular and beautiful mountain. I'll be back - but I think I'll do it Tim-style next time: hike the Skyline, stop at the Tram house, and go right for the bar! |
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