Category Archives: nature

Sugar Pine & Clouds

Sugar pine on Kratka Ridge, in the San Gabriel Mountains, near Los Angeles

After a nostalgic hike to the bottom of Switzer Falls, drove to Islip Saddle to check out the snow conditions. Clouds ahead of Sunday’s storm prompted a short run along Kratka Ridge to photograph some of the stunted sugar pines. Here’s the unaltered version of the title image.

Being There

Tiered Falls Downstream of Switzer Falls, in the San Gabriel Mountains

Tiered Falls Downstream of Switzer Falls

I have a passion for the outdoors, exploration, and adventure. I’m always looking for a reason to be outside, and this has inevitably led me to activities such as climbing, kayaking, skiing, hang gliding and running. The common thread in these pursuits isn’t necessarily the challenge, or the adrenalin, or attaining a particular goal, but is the pure joy of being in the mountain environment and relishing what it has to offer.

To feel the sun and imagine the clouds. To listen to the wind on the pines, and the song of a stream. To savor the taste of a wild herb, or the sweet smell of a wildflower. To revel in the purity of untouched snow, or the green of a mountain meadow. To run from a thunderstorm, or feel the relief of a good handhold. Climbing to airy summits. Hiking to heart-pounding passes. Descending “impassable” canyons. Experiencing cold bivouacs and star filled nights. Simply to be there.

The photograph of the tiered falls is from today’s hike to the plunge pool at the bottom of Switzer Falls in the San Gabriel Mountains, near Los Angeles. Gary Gunder and I kayaked the double falls when we paddled Arroyo Seco creek from Switzer Picnic Area to the JPL in Pasadena in 1998.

Related link: Kayaking Arroyo Seco from Switzer Falls to Bear Creek

Southern California Warming Up and Drying Out?

Trail leading to Lasky Mesa at Ahmanson Ranch.

There are still a few rogue mud puddles out at Ahmanson ranch, but the Goldfields are blooming, the meadowlarks singing, and it feels like Spring!

Last week it looked like our rain season might not be over. Now I’m beginning to wonder. This week the GFS and ECMWF forecasts have been much drier in Southern California, with most of the activity focused on the Pacific Northwest. No significant rain is forecast here over the next week, and both the 6-10 and 8-14 day forecasts project below average precipitation in Southern California.

If these medium range forecasts are on the mark, March rainfall for Downtown Los Angeles (USC) will fall well below the 3.14 inch norm. Normal April rainfall is 0.83 inches, and May only 0.31 inches. Beyond March it becomes increasingly unlikely that a big rain event will significantly boost our rainfall total.

Since November 1, Downtown Los Angeles has recorded 8.80 inches of precipitation. This is about what would be expected during a La Nina, and within the range indicated in the composite precipitation map included in the post Southern California 2008-2009 Winter Precipitation Outlook, back in October.

In his March 6 post, Ed Berry suggested the possibility of “more energetic progressive troughs” in the western U.S in the week 2-3 timeframe. That wouldn’t necessarily result in rain in Southern California, but might improve our chances. Numerical weather model performance generally suffers during seasonal transitions, so maybe there are still some surprises lurking in the Pacific. We’ll see!

Sandstone Peak from Wendy Drive

Big Dome and Sandstone Peak from Tri-Peaks
Big Dome and Sandstone Peak from Tri-Peaks

Whatever route you use to get there, Sandstone Peak (3111 ft.) is a rewarding summit with sweeping views that range from the Channel Islands to Mt. Baldy and beyond. It is the highest peak in the Santa Monica Mountains, and a popular destination.

The peak is usually done as a steep 3-mile hike (round trip) from the Sandstone Peak Trailhead, or as part of a scenic 6-mile loop from the Mishe Mokwa trailhead. This National Park Service PDF provides additional information and a map of these trails.

A third option is to skip the drive to Yerba Buena Rd., and do the peak as an adventure hike/run from Wendy Drive trailhead in the Conejo Valley. This can be done by ascending one of the routes on the north side of Boney Mountain, then continuing up and over Tri-Peaks to the Mishe Mokwa/Backbone trail junction. From here the Backbone Trail leads to a spur trail that climbs the peak.

View west from Sandstone Peak of the Boney Mountain massif.
View west from Sandstone Peak of the Boney Mountain massif.

We took this last option and climbed Boney Mountain’s more technical western ridge. Done this way, it was about 6.8 miles to Sandstone Peak’s summit, with an elevation gain of about 3100 ft. This includes the short side trip to the high point near the top of the western ridge generally referred to as “Boney Mountain.”

Here’s a view west from Sandstone Peak of the Boney Mountain summit area. Tri-Peaks is the rocky peak on the skyline, right of center, and Big Dome is to the right of Tri-Peaks. The route up the western ridge tops out on the crest between these two peaks. (As seen from Sandstone Peak.)

The basic choices for getting back to the Wendy Drive trailhead are to go back down one of the trails on Boney Mountain’s north side; descend the Chamberlain Trail to the Old Boney Trail, and then loop back over the shoulder of Boney, or descend to Big Sycamore Canyon and then return from there.

Miklos and Krisztina had not run down Boney’s eastern ridge, so they backtracked over Tri-Peaks, and descended the use trail to the Danielson cabin site. I was looking to do some additional mileage, so ran down the Chamberlain, Old Boney, and Blue Canyon trails to the Danielson multi-use area in Big Sycamore Canyon, and then up Sycamore Canyon to the Upper Sycamore Trail, and back to Satwiwa.

Here’s a  Cesium ion view of a GPS trace of my route. The eastern ridge route is also shown.

Related posts: Balance Rock, Boney Mountain Western Ridge & Loop