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The Ups and Downs of the Angeles Crest 100 Mile Run

first published June 18, 2025 & last updated June 20, 2025 Gary Valle

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First published on June 30, 2015. Updated June 18, 2025.

August 2nd runners from near and far will gather in a small parking lot in Wrightwood, California, to start the Angeles Crest 100 Mile Endurance Run (AC100). Begun in 1986, the AC100 is one of the original five 100-mile U.S. endurance races. It has endured fires, floods, the Covid-19 pandemic, and changing trail restrictions.

There’s a tradition of running grueling endurance races in the San Gabriel Mountains. The Big Pines Trail Marathon was one of the first organized mountain ultramarathons in the U.S. First run in August 1934, its course used some of the same trails that AC100 runners enjoy today.

The AC100 is not like a road marathon. It is an entirely different kind of running event and an entirely different kind of running experience. The 2025 L.A. Marathon had about 26,000 participants. About 1/100th of that number — around 250 runners — are expected to start the AC100.

Sunrise from Blue Ridge during the 2015 Angeles Crest 100. — Sunrise from Blue Ridge during the 2015 AC100.

The race begins at 5:00 a.m. Runners work their way through the streets of Wrightwood by headlamp to the start of the Acorn Trail, dawn breaking as they work up toward the PCT. Sunrise finds them above 8000 feet, reveling in the spectacular views from Blue Ridge.

Even at this early stage of the race, the field is already becoming dispersed. By the time runners reach Inspiration Point, nine miles into the run, there will be an hour spread between the first and last runner. Unlike a road marathon, much of the time a runner in the AC100 will be alone.

Because of the devastating Eaton Fire, this year’s course will be the same as in 2022 — a challenging run from Wrightwood to Shortcut Saddle (51.3 miles) and back.

Of course it’s the “back” part that increases the difficulty. Going back to Wrightwood means returning to the high country of the San Gabriels and the high point of the course — Mt. Baden-Powell. As a result, more of the course will be at higher elevation. According to Google Earth, the average elevation of recent point-to-point AC100 courses have been around 5100′-5300′. The elevation of this year’s course averages about 6900′. Because of the increased difficulty, cutoff times have been adjusted and the overall time to complete the course has been increased to 36 hours.

This elevation profile for the 2025 AC100 course was created using a GPX file of a runner in the 2022 race. The elevation profile was corrected using 3DEP 1-meter Lidar-based DEMs and a conservative elevation data smoothing setting. The cumulative elevation gain/loss is ESTIMATED to be around 20,600′. This is based on estimates using SportTracks, Strava, and Google. Placemark locations, mileages, and elevation gains and losses are approximate.

The elevation profile can be downloaded from the Course Overview page on the AC100 website.

Click to download from AC100 Course Overview page.

In addition, here is an interactive, high resolution, 3D-terrain map of the 2025 Angeles Crest 100 Mile Race. It is based on the same GPX file as the elevation profile. The view is initially zoomed in on the climb up Mt. Baden-Powell. To change the view, use the control on the upper right side of the screen. Track and placename locations are approximate and subject to errors.

Click to view 2024 AC100 course with high resolution, photographic 3D terrain. — Click to view 2025 AC100 course with high resolution, photographic 3D terrain.

See the AC100 website for official information and details.

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Three Points to Mt. Waterman

first published June 8, 2025 & last updated June 14, 2025 Gary Valle

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Waterman Meadow on the Three Points - Mt. Waterman Trail

There are a variety of trail runs that can be done from Three Points in the San Gabriel Mountains. The Pacific Crest Trail and Silver Moccasin Trail pass through Three Points, and the Three Points – Mt. Waterman Trail starts near Three Points. Additionally, several Forest Service roads in the area can be used to connect trails, extend routes, or explore the surrounding area.

Mt. Hillyer Trail near Mt. Hillyer (thumbnail) — Mt. Hillyer Trail near Mt. Hillyer

The previous weekend. I’d done a loop from Three Points that started on the Silver Moccasin Trail, ascended the Mt. Hillyer Trail, and then descended forest roads to the PCT. The PCT was followed back to Three Points.

It can get hot in the middle elevations of the San Gabriels, but on this run a thick layer of high clouds kept the temperature in the 60s and 70s. There was a steady stream of through-hikers on the PCT, and as usual, they were enthusiastic about being on the trail. Flannel bush was in full bloom, and paintbrush and lupine added patches of energizing color to the trails.

Deer brush along the Three Points - Mt. Waterman Trail (thumbnail) — Deer brush, low on the Three Points – Mt. Waterman Trail.

This weekend, I returned to Three Points to do one of my favorite trails in the San Gabriels — the Three Points – Mt. Waterman Trail (10W04). It is an out-of-the-way trail with a capricious character. On one run, I counted more than 40 trees and limbs across the trail, but on another, none. The trail is defined by use, and depending on the amount of use, some sections may be challenging to follow. All of that is part of the fun.

I usually do the Three Points – Mt. Waterman Trail as part of the Three Points Loop. Today, I opted to do the run as an out and back to the top of Mt. Waterman (8038′).

Large tree removed from the Three Points - Mt. Waterman Trail by the San Gabriel Mountains Trailbuilders (thumbnail) — Large tree removed from the trail by the San Gabriel Mountains Trailbuilders.

It was a good day to do that because the San Gabriel Mountains Trailbuilders had been hard at work, and the Three Points – Mt. Waterman Trail was in the best shape I’ve seen since May 2018. Several large trees had been cleared from the trail. I didn’t have to climb over or go around a single tree. Painful mountain whitethorn and other prickly bushes had also been trimmed. The trail was well-defined and generally easy to follow.

Waterman Meadow was bright green with newly unfurled fronds of bracken fern. Among the Spring wildflowers along the trail were golden yarrow, mountain phlox, southern mountain lupine, beardtongue penstemon, wallflower, and snow plant. Along lower elevations of the trail, deer brush was covered in flowers. There was still a little Poodle-dog bush here and there.

View east from Mt. Waterman (thumbnail) — View toward Mt. Baldy from the top of one of the crags on the top of Mt. Waterman.

Several granite crags are scattered across Mt. Waterman’s summit. Since I wasn’t doing the loop around Waterman, I had time to do a little bouldering. I didn’t recall exactly where the summit benchmark was, but eventually found it on one of the smaller crags.

It’s rare to encounter anyone on the Three Points – Mt. Waterman Trail, but the trail that ascends Mt. Waterman from Buckhorn is very popular. As I ran down from the summit, I began to wonder if I would see anyone when I encountered a small group of hikers coming up from Buckhorn. Those were the last hikers I saw until I was nearly back to Three Points.

Snow plant near the summit of Mt. Waterman (thumbnail) — Snow plant near the summit of Mt. Waterman

The hike to Twin Peaks from Buckhorn used to be another popular option. In 2020, the Bobcat Fire decimated the north face of Twin Peaks. Curious to see the impacts, I did Twin Peaks in 2022. Some stretches of the use trail escaped the fire and most of east summit was not burned. In 2022, there weren’t many fallen trees on the trail, but there are likely more now.

Except in wet years, there are no dependable water sources on the Three Points – Mt. Waterman Trail. There’s a spring partway down the Twin Peaks Trail, but I haven’t visited it enough times to know if it is reliable. It can be hot on this trail, even when there isn’t a heat wave. Although temperatures were relatively moderate today, I drank nearly all the water I had carried.

This high-resolution, interactive, 3D terrain view shows the Three Points Loop (yellow) along with the spur trail to the summit of Mt. Waterman (red). The out and back to the summit of Mt. Waterman is about 15 miles RT with about 3100′ of gain/loss. The Three Points Loop ranges from 20 to 25 miles, depending on the variation.

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The Angeles National Forest (Mt. Disappointment) Trail Race Returns

first published November 2, 2024 & last updated February 21, 2025 Gary Valle

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Runner on the San Gabriel Peak Trail during the 2024 ANFTR 25K, working up toward Mt. Disappointment. Mt. Wilson is the peak with the towers. West Fork is in the canyon on the left. — Runner on the San Gabriel Peak Trail, working up toward Mt. Disappointment. Mt. Wilson is the peak with the towers. West Fork is in the canyon on the left.

Update February 21, 2025. Full resolution photos from the race, courtesy of Chris Goddard. Thank you Chris!

Even in Southern California the weather can be a little fickle. Just two weeks ago, heat had been one of my concerns for the No Name 50K. During that race the temperature reached into the mid-80s. Heat definitely wasn’t an issue for this morning’s race on Mt. Wilson. Several days out one computer model had forecast sleet and a temperature of 32°F! Instead, at the start of the race runners were treated to a spectacular sunrise and a temperature of around 40°F.

After a five year hiatus, the Angeles National Forest (Mt. Disappointment) Trail Race is back. Started in 2005 by R.D. Gary Hilliard, this was the 14th running of the highly regarded event. Today we ran the 25K course, but in 2025 a 25K and 50K will be offered.

Sunrise on Mt. Wilson (thumbnail) — Sunrise from the ALERTCalifornia Mt. Wilson East Camera a few minutes after the start of the race. Click for larger image.

Whatever the distance, a hallmark of any ANFTR/Mt. Disappointment courses is that it starts and ends on top of Mt. Wilson (5739′). While not particularly high, the altitude is just high enough to take the edge off a runner’s performance. Many a runner has underestimated the difficulty of the final five-mile climb from West Fork to the top of Mt. Wilson — especially on a hot day in July or August.

My race went well, and I left enough in the tank to enjoy the climb up the Kenyon Devore Trail!

Thank you Gary and Pam for your dedication, passion, and the hours and hours of work required to put on a quality event! And thanks also to all the volunteers, runners, and others that support the race.

Here’s a high-resolution, interactive, 3D-terrain view of the ANFTR/Mt. Disappointment 25K course.

All the results from 2005 to 2024 are available on UltraSignup.

Next year, Jakob Herrmann will be taking over the reins of the event. The race is on Saturday, September 27, 2025, and registration for the 25K and 50K is already open.

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Bridge Fire Perimeter, Approximate Closure Boundary, and Some Area Trails

first published October 18, 2024 & last updated June 20, 2025 Gary Valle

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2024 Bridge Fire Perimeter and some trails in the area

June 20, 2025. From the Angeles National Forest website: The Bridge Fire Area Closure (Forest Order No. 05-01-25-12) that was in effect from June 5, 2025 through May 22, 2026 has been terminated starting June 20, 2025.

October 18, 2024. Updated approximate Bridge Fire Closure boundary for Forest Order 05-01-24-11.

October 13, 2024. Updated Bridge Fire perimeter. Added the Vista Fire perimeter. Added trails from the National Forest System Trails Feature Layer. Added a “guesstimate” of the Bridge Fire Closure boundary. See below for an explanation.

The information in this post may be incorrect or out of date. For official information see the Bridge Fire incident page on Inciweb, the Angeles National Forest updates on Facebook, and the Angeles National Forest website. The perimeters are from the Wildland Fire Interagency Geospatial Services (WFIGS) Group and National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) website.

Following are several 3D terrain views of the Bridge Fire perimeter from various perspectives:

– Overview of the Bridge Fire perimeter

– View of the Bridge Fire perimeter zoomed in on the Wrightwood area.

– View of the Bridge Fire perimeter zoomed in on the Mt. Baldy area.

– View of the Bridge Fire perimeter zoomed in on the Mt. Baden-Powell area.

The initial view can be changed using the control on the upper right side of the screen, the CTRL key and your mouse, or touch gestures.

As mentioned above, a guesstimate of the Bridge Fire Closure boundary (magenta) for Forest Order 05-01-24-11 (Oct 17, 2024) is now included in the views. The boundary corresponds closely with the PDF map(s) of the closure published on the Angeles National Forest website. There seems to be at least one discrepancy between the Forest Service maps and order description. In the area of East Fork Road, the order description appears to place the closure boundary one section to the west (dashed line). I contacted the Forest Service for clarification, but have received no reply.

Multi-year fire closures have become common on the Angeles. Generally, trails and the land affected by trail are is a minuscule percentage of the area burned. Some jurisdictions reopen parklands and open space areas weeks after a fire with no apparent negative impact on the area’s recovery. Is there science to support multi-year closures of trails in fire areas?

In some cases, closures include trails that are outside of the fire’s perimeter and didn’t burn. These closures may make sense in the short term — when there is a plausible threat from the fire, such as the recent flare-up east of South Mt. Hawkins. But many times, these unburned trails remain part of a long term, multi-year closure. Sometimes it seems the trail just happens to be on the wrong side of a section line, road, or other feature that is convenient to use as a closure border.

Trails that were closed in Forest Order 05-01-24-10, but now appear to be open according to Forest Order 05-01-24-11:

Dawson Saddle Trail
PCT east of Windy Gap to Vincent Gap

Trails outside of the Bridge Fire and Vista Fire perimeters that remain closed according to Forest Order 05-01-24-11:

Devil’s Backbone Trail
Hawkins Ridge Trail
South Hawkins Trail

The following summits are within the updated closure area, but did not burn and are accessible via unburned trails. Peaks marked with ** are just inside of the closure boundary:

Mt. Baldy
Mt. Baden-Powell**
Mt. Burnham**
Mt. Hawkins**
Throop Peak
Sadie Hawkins
South Mt. Hawkins

For those of us passionate about the outdoors, the closure of any trail or peak is a loss. But the long term closure of the most popular trails and peaks in the San Gabriel Mountains without justification would be indefensible. Hopefully, the closure order will be modified when the Forest Service determines the threat from the Bridge Fire is past.

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Facing a Future of Runaway Wildfires in Southern California

published September 21, 2024 Gary Valle

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A group of Jeffrey pines on Mt. Waterman killed by the Bobcat Fire with smoke from the Bridge Fire in the distance.

It was a sobering sight. I had stopped at a point on Mt. Waterman burned by the Station Fire in 2009 and the Bobcat Fire in 2020.

To the east, smoke from the Bridge Fire filled the canyons and clung to the ridges between Mt. Baldy and the East Fork San Gabriel River. A group of skeletal Jeffrey pines, once full and green, stood starkly in the foreground.

Another devastating fire had stormed through the San Gabriel Mountains, destroying homes and ravaging the forest and all that lives within. Not far away, the Line and Airport Fires were also burning, the extent of the three fires totaling over 117,500 acres.

Conventional methods of land and fire management usually do not prevent the rapid spread of a fire when forest or weather conditions are extreme — and extreme conditions are now the norm.

Incremental changes to long-established policies will not be enough to prevent runaway wildfires. Novel approaches must be considered, researched and evaluated. New tools and technology, including AI, need to be more widely applied. The hesitancy to spend money proactively must be overcome.

Today, it is difficult to do a hike or run of more than a few miles in the foothills or mountains of Southern California without passing through an area that has been burned in the past 25 years. In 50, 100, or 200 years what will the outdoor experience be? Will conifers only exist in widely scattered stands? Will the ecology be forever compromised?

Every effort must be made to mitigate the impacts of runaway wildfires and preserve the nature and ecology of our open space areas and wildlands.

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Back to Baden-Powell – August 2024

first published August 18, 2024 & last updated September 2, 2024 Gary Valle

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Above are thumbnails of a few photos from the 16-mile out-and-back trail run to Mt. Baden-Powell from the Islip Saddle Trailhead. Click on an image for a larger photo and more information.

I plucked a currant from the bush and popped it into my mouth. In some years, the red berries are little more than a desiccated bit of pulp. This year’s crop was plump, flavorful, and almost could be described as juicy.

Almost two months had passed since I’d been on the PCT between Islip Saddle and Mt. Baden-Powell. Not a lot changed in the routine of the city in those seven weeks. The street sweeper still came by on Wednesday mornings, the trash was picked up each Friday, and the neighborhood looked pretty much the same as it did at the end of June.

But a lot happens along a mountain trail in seven weeks. The Poodle-dog bush was now wilted and brown. Currants and elderberries had ripened. Rabbitbrush, the messenger of Fall, was blooming, its yellow replacing the pastel purple of Grinnell’s beardtongue. Chinquapin bushes were covered in spiny, green nut burs. Pendulous, resin-coated cones hung from the ends of the long limbs of the sugar pines.

Angeles Crest Highway was still closed between Islip Saddle and Vincent Gap. Gone was the noise of vehicles on the road below, replaced by the sound of the wind in the trees and the occasional outburst of a Clark’s nutcracker.

At the saddle near Mt. Hawkins, I stopped to photograph the stump of the Mt. Hawkins lightning tree. Perhaps weakened by one or more lightning strikes, this Jeffrey pine lost its crown during the Winter of 2019-2020. Now without bark, it’s easy to see that lightning followed the spiral grain of the tree. This tree has a right-hand spiral grain. When viewed from above, it is twisted counterclockwise.

Once again, the visibility from the summit of Mt. Baden-Powell was excellent. San Gorgonio (57 miles) and San Jacinto (72 miles) could be seen far to the east.

It was windy and cool at higher elevation. The National Weather Service’s Wind Chill Temperature formula doesn’t apply to temperatures over 50°F, but with bare arms and legs, it can be surprisingly chilly when there is a strong wind and the temperature is in the 60s. Had I not been pushing the pace, I would have needed to pull the sleeves and shell from my pack.

Here is an interactive, high resolution, 3D terrain view of the out and back from Islip Saddle to Mt. Baden-Powell. An alternative start at the Windy Gap Trailhead in the Crystal Lake Recreation Area is also shown. Starting at this trailhead adds about 800′ of elevation gain. The map can be zoomed, tilted, rotated, and panned using the navigation control on the right. Track and placename locations are approximate and subject to errors. Poor weather and other conditions may make this route unsuitable for this activity.

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