SierraDescents | Page 10
July 9, 2021
Langley via the East-Southeast Ridge
Mount Langley is California's southernmost fourteener and most definitely not California's most climbed mountain. Why doesn't Langley attract more attention? Maybe it's that (more)
June 24, 2021
Baldy via the North Backbone
I had no idea a fine hiking trail exists on the ridge connecting Pine Mountain, Dawson Peak, and Mount Baldy. Better yet: in summer, you can drive Blue Ridge Road to the (more)
June 23, 2021
San Gabriel Canyon
We hiked up the east fork of San Gabriel Canyon today, en route to that most enigmatic of SoCal landmarks, the Bridge to Nowhere. It was hot. Cloud cover helped, but it was (more)
June 16, 2021
Hiking Throop Peak to Baden-Powell
Of course I was dimly aware you could hike the San Gabriel Crest from Windy Gap as an alternate way to get to Baden-Powell's summit, but the route never particularly interested (more)
June 9, 2021
Ski Hut-Devil’s Backbone Loop
Connecting the Ski Hut Trail and the Devil's Backbone Ridge is one of my favorite SoCal hikes—in either direction. This time my son and I ascended from Manker Flat and (more)
June 3, 2021
Mammoth Memorial Day Weekend
It's no secret 2020-2021 wasn't exactly California's finest winter, but that didn't stop Mammoth from offering excellent top-to-bottom skiing this past Memorial Day/closing (more)
May 25, 2021
Ontario Peak
8694' Ontario Peak is easily among the most spectacular of the San Gabriels' front-range peaks. The summit offers a crazy juxtaposition of city and mountain views, making this (more)
May 22, 2021
Parker Mesa Loop
What I call the Parker Mesa Loop begins at the end of Los Leones Drive in Pacific Palisades, elevation 195', directly ascends a steep ridge via a use trail to Parker Mesa (more)
May 10, 2021
Mount Islip
My son and I went up the 2 yesterday to Islip Saddle mostly because my family had hiked Mount Islip on Mother's Day in 2020, and I wanted to revisit the area and the memories of (more)
April 18, 2021
Closing Day
Snow Valley spun its lifts for the last time for the 2020-2021 season today, making them (by a week) the longest-running SoCal resort this winter. Has that ever happened (more)
