Tag Archives: cleveland national forest

SAN MATEO PEAK

29 Tuesday Mar 2016

Posted by in Moderate Hikes, Peaks, Strenuous Hikes

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San Mateo Peak is located in the San Mateo Canyon Wilderness of the Cleveland National Forest, in the Santa Ana Mountains. At 3,591 ft it is the highest point in the SMC Wilderness.

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Views from the peak to the east are amazing. Lake Elsinore is pictured here.
Also  visible are the San Gabriel, San Bernardino and San Jacinto Mountains.

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The trailhead for this peak is located off of the S. Main Divide Rd at the MORGAN TRAILHEAD

Take the trail down and make a left at the first junction, about a 1/4 mile in.  Follow this trail and keep right at the second junction until you reach a cairn and sign that reads San Mateo Peak. Make a right here.

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From here the trail climbs steeply for a good 1/2 miles. It eventually levels off again but still has some steep points.

It’s about 2.3 miles to the summit from the trailhead. Trail starts off easy for the first mile then steeply climbs of the east face of the mountain.

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Thank you to Maria and Angie for joining me on this trek.

▪Difficulty – Easy/Moderate/Strenuous
▪5 Miles round trip/  out and back
▪Bring a hat and sunscreen
▪Forest adventure pass for parking

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HAGADOR CANYON

12 Tuesday Jan 2016

Posted by in Easy Hikes, Outdoors

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Beautiful  Hagador Canyon in the Santa Ana Mountains.  This beautiful canyon really caught me by surprise. I had never hiked in the Eastern part of the range so I didn’t really know what to expect.  Well…. IT WAS AWESOME!

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The hike it’s self is is just under 4 miles roundtrip but with neighboring Tin Mine Canyon just around the way you could easily do both hikes in one day.

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Hagador Canyon

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The steepness of the eastern slopes of the range makes for awesome views.

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The canyon is well shaded and the beautiful singletrack trail gives the narrow canyon a even more cozy feel.

click for Google Maps link to trailhead

From the parking area continue down the concrete path until the the mountains become visible. Go over the guardrails on the left and follow the unnamed trail until you reach the Hagador Canyon Trail. Look for this sign and make a left.

Link to where Hagador Canyon Trail Starts

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Click for more photos

● 4 miles round trip – Out and back
● Less than 500 ft of gain
● Difficulty – Easy
● Shaded trail
● Family friendly
● Dog friendly
● FREE PARKING
● Poison Oak

DOPPLER RADAR – SANTA ANA MOUNTAINS

28 Tuesday Apr 2015

Posted by in Distance hikes, Strenuous Hikes

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The hike to the KSOX Weather Radar in the Santa Ana Mountains is best done on a cool day. Its around 8.5 miles to the Radar. The non shaded trail winds though Black Star Canyon and then up to the top of the canyon to the Main Divide Road.

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Doppler from Beeks Place

The doppler viewed from  Beeks Place which is at the 8 mile mark on this trek.

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There are two single track short cuts that will save you time and miles on this 16 mile hike. Look for them when your on your way up the trail and take then on the way down. Its a great change from the fire road.

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Up on one of the unnamed  singletrack trails heading down Black Star Canyon.

CLICK FOR DIRECTIONS  TO TRAILHEAD

● Trail difficulty – Strenuous
● 18 mile hike
● Trail type – Out and back
● Zero shade – bring sun protection

BLACK STAR CANYON INDIAN VILLAGE

26 Sunday Apr 2015

Posted by in Distance hikes, Outdoors, Strenuous Hikes

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Black Star Canyon Indian village is located a little more than 5 miles from the trailhead on Black Star Canyon Rd. The trail starts off moderate for the first 2 miles as you make your way up the canyon. The last 3+ miles up to the Indian site are the strenuous  part. The trail climbs up the canyon walls as it takes you into the Cleveland  National Forest. The site is easy to miss since it’s not marked. Just look for the grove of Oak Trees a little after the 5 mile mark. It is on the right hand side.

The canyon is full of history! Including the story about the Indian massacre.  You can read about is on the Wikipedia page.

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Click for Directions to trailhead

● Trail difficulty – strenuous
● 10.5 miles roundtrip
● Trail type – out and back
●  mostly exposed – bring sun protection
● Bring minimum  2 liters of water
● California  historic  site 217

LOS PINOS PEAK VIA TRABUCO CANYON

19 Friday Dec 2014

Posted by in Distance hikes, Outdoors, Peaks, Strenuous Hikes

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This is a 13 mile hike that starts in beautiful Trabuco Canyon. The trailhead for this hike is located at the end of Trabuco Creek Rd. This is a bumpy ride on an  unmaintained dirt road. So a 4×4 or a high clearance vehicle is recommended.

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The first 2 miles on the West Horsethief Trail are mostly shaded and follow the creek.

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View of Trabuco Canyon

After the first 2 miles you start to climb up the walls of Trabuco Canyon and the views begin to open up. This steep section is the toughest part of the hike. After 2 miles you reach the Main Divide Rd.

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The Main Divide  Rd. offers some great views into Riverside County. Lake Elsinore is pictured above also visible from the road are San Jacinto and the San Bernardino Mountains. 

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Los Pinos Ridge Trail

After 3 miles on the Rd you reach the Los Pinos Trail. This ridge line is one of my favorites in the range. The views from the ridge are amazing!

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View from Los Pinos Peak

Once on the peak, enjoy the marvelous views an retrace your steps.  Go back to the main divide/los pinos junction and make a left to take the Trabuco Canyon trail. 

This shady downhill trail is my favorite!  It’s a bit rocky but the views are so worth it!

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Trabuco Canyon Trail

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This Trai will take you back to West Horsethief trail. Then return the way you came. This lollipop loop is one of the best in So Cal!

Trail route:
West Horsethief to Main Divide, Main Divide to Los Pinos Trail, Los Pinos  back down to Main Divide/Trabuco Canyon/ Los Pinos trail Junction,  Take Trabuco Canyon trail back to West Horsethief and back to parking lot.

● 13 mile Lollipop Loop
● 4th highest peak in the range.
● Beautiful views
● Dog friendly trail
● approx 2,500 ft of gain
● High clearance vehicle recommended

CLICK BELOW FOR GOOGLE MAPS LINK TO PARKING AREA
West Horsethief/Trabuco Canyon Trailhead

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BLACK STAR CANYON TO SILVERADO CANYON

01 Thursday Mar 2012

Posted by in Distance hikes, Outdoors, Peaks, Strenuous Hikes, Waterfalls

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This 20 mile hike begins at the Black Star Canyon Trailhead and ends at the Maple Springs Trailhead. We used the car shuttle system to complete this hike, meeting at the Maple Springs Trailhead, leaving a car there and carpooling to the beginning of the hike.

This is a great hike with lots of points of interest: A coal mine, school bus, historic Indian site, Beeks place, doppler radar, Pleasants Peak and amazing views are things that you will experience along the way.

The hike begins at the parking lot just past the large steel gates.This is Black Star Canyon Rd. The first 2 miles are on a wide level fire road. Along the way you will see a closed off coal mine on the right and shortly after an old abandoned tractor and an old school bus in the creek are visible on the left.

New Bridge on Black Star Cyn Rd

School bus in the creek

A little past the the 2 mile mark you will see a house to your right, this is Black Star Bills house. If you see him say hi and keep on walking. When you reach the large concrete cylinders make a left and continue up the road. Making a right and dropping into the creek will take you to Black Star Waterfall

The next 3 miles are a gradual climb consisting of a few switchbacks and several hundred feet of elevation gain. (aprox 800ft) for the most part this section of the trail is exposed with very little shade and hardly and trees but around the 5 mile mark you will notice a bunch of Oak Trees on the right. This is the site of the Historic Indian village. This is a wonderful place for a break and an even better place to do some exploring. There’s a large amount of grinding rocks here which indicates that there was a large group of Indians that called this place home. There is a great lookout point located in the southwest section of the site.

Entering the Historic Indian Site

Grinding Rocks

Historic Indian Site

After a quick break and a small snack we continued on to the next of many points of interest on this hike. Next up, Beeks place, which is at the 8 mile mark. Beeks place sits on the Main Divide Rd and offers amazing views of Orange County, The San Gabriel Mountains and IE.

Entering the Cleveland National Forest

Beeks Place

We continued right, passing Beeks place and headed to our next destination, The Doppler Radar which is just over 1 mile from Beeks place.

Break time at the Doppler

On our way to Pleasants Peak we stopped at Little Pleasants Peak to check out the views

view from Little Pleasants Peak

Our next stop was Pleasants Peak (4,007 ft) This peak is much like the Santiago Peak but on a smaller scale of course. 360 views are not possible because of the many communication towers that call this place home but a quick scramble up the ridge provide awesome views!

Pleasants Peak

My beautiful wife an I before leaving Pleasants Peak

Leaving Pleasants Peak

From here we still had 8 miles to go! We thought it would be all down hill from here but we were mistaken. The rest of this trek on the Main Divide consisted of rolling hills once we reached the 17 mile mark we reached the junction with Main Divide and Silverado Truck Trail. We took the Silverado Trail (straight ahead)  for the remaining 3 miles to the car. Making a left will take you to Bedford Peak.

On our way down the Silverado Trail we had amazing views of Santiago Peak as the clouds rolled in.

Santiago Peak from Silverado Trail

Happy Trails,
Alex G

RECAP:

  1. ****STAY ON WIDE FIRE ROAD THE FIRST 17 MILES****
  2. First 8 miles are on Black Star Canyon Rd
  3. Make a right at Main Divide towards Beeks Place and continue for 9 miles
  4. At 17 mile mark go straight past the brown rails and take Silverado Trail for 3 miles to Maple Springs.
  5. Once on Silverado Canyon Rd make a right towards the Maple Springs parking lot
  • 20 MILES
  • 3,400 FT ELEV. GAIN
  • HISTORIC INDIAN SITE
  • DOPPLER RADAR
  • PLEASANTS PEAK(4,007FT)
  • 8 -10 HOURS TO COMPLETE
  • >>>>NO SHADE<<<<<
  • CAR SHUTTLE

CLICK HERE FOR MAP OF HIKE

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SANTIAGO PEAK

01 Wednesday Feb 2012

Posted by in Distance hikes, Peaks, Strenuous Hikes

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Anyone who hikes in Orange County knows of or has heard of Santiago Peak. It is the hikes of all hikes in OC. 16 miles! The prize for OC hikers.

Since the Santa Ana Winds had ruined my first attempt. I had to reschedule  and find a new hiking partner to reach the 5,689 ft peak.

Trying to convince friends to climb OC’s biggest mountain proved to be harder than the hike itself.

After my cousin agreed to make the trip with me ( Thanks Gary). I planned our route and we met up the next morning to conquer the Santa Ana’s highest point.

The parking lot and trail head for this hike is the same as the one to Holy Jim Waterfall. A forest adventure pass is required. After parking and checking our gear we headed left onto the post trail that leads to the Holy Jim Trail.

From the parking lot you will head about a mile and a half into the canyon until you reach the junction.

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Make a left here and proceed onto the Holy Jim Trail towards the Main Divide Rd. Making a right will take you to the waterfall.

Once on the trail you gradually begin to ascend the mountain for the next 4 miles until reaching the Main Divide Rd.  The trail itself is a single track trail that is well shaded and in pretty good condition.

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As you gain some elevation the views to the south are amazing. Getting a glimpse of the ocean and the canyon below where you started the hike.

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Once you read the Main Divide Rd you can either go left or right, they both lead you to the peak. Upper Holy Jim Trail is to the right, which is steeper, but offers great views of Baldy and Gorgonio. After making a right the trail will be on your left after about an 1/8 of a mile (look for the sign). This is the route I took and the views were worth it.

imageAfter a mile or so on the Upper Holy Jim Trail you connect back up with the Main Divide Rd. Once here you will make a right and continue up towards the peak for the remainder 2 miles.

imageOnce at the hates to the peak you can go left for views of San Jacinto and Palomar Peak our you can go right on continue to the western must part of the summit for views of all of OC, the Pacific, Catalina and Baldy

imageimageHappy Trails,
Alex G

 

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  • Elevation Gain 4,000 ft
  • Distance – 16 miles
  • 5,689 ft above sea level
  • Highest point in OC
  • Creek crossings
  • Adventure pass required

click here for directions

WEST HORSETHIEF – TRABUCO CANYON LOOP

09 Monday Jan 2012

Posted by in Cave, Distance hikes, Strenuous Hikes

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Trabuco trailhead

This is a wonderful 10.5 mile loop that begins at the Trabuco trailhead. To reach the trailhead you you have to travel about 5.5 miles up Trabuco Creek Rd. This parking lot is a mile or so past the Holy Jim parking lot and is a lot smaller. It only fits about 6 vehicles so arrive early.

From the trailhead you will hike through a well shaded single track trail with a couple creek crossings, an old abandoned car and a sealed up mine. You will be on this trail for 1.7 miles until you reach the junction with the west horsethief trail.

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abandoned car from the mining era

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Sealed up mine

Once here you can go either straight or hang a right and the continue on the Trabuco Canyon trail. They both lead you up to the Main Divide Rd. The west horsethief trail is slightly harder since it is nothing but switchbacks and is fully exposed. The Trabuco trail partially exposed for the first mile or so then changes to a well shaded trail.

We took the easier route and took the Trabuco canyon trail. This trail offers great views of Santiago peak.

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Santiago Peak from Trabuco Canyon Trail

The first part of this trail it fully exposed and can be a bit difficult but gets relatively easy once in the shade. About a mile before reaching the Main Divide Rd we came across a Christmas Tree that was decorated with ornaments apparently its a tradition amongst mountain bikers to decorate a tree during the holidays. This made for a great picture spot and a quick rest break.
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Christmas Tree in the CNF

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Pacific Ocean in the distance

Once you reach the main divide rd you will have a great view of Lake Elsinore.
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Lake Elsinore

From here take the first left you will be on this trail for 2.5. On a clear day you will have great views of the 3 biggest peaks in So.Cal

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Mt. Baldy, Mt. San Gorgonio, Mt. San Jacinto

After being on this trail for 2.5 miles you reach the West Horsethief Trail.
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Trail is directly behind this post

This is a 2 mile trail that consists of nothing but switchbacks. It offers great views of Trabuco Canyon. From here it’s a total of 3.7 miles back to the parking lot.

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Happy trails, Alex G. * HIGH CLEARANCE VEHICLE RECOMMENDED * • 10.5 mile loop • Creek crossing • sealed mine • Adventure pass required • 2,300 ft elevation change

BEDFORD PEAK

24 Saturday Sep 2011

Posted by in Peaks, Strenuous Hikes

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Bedford Peak is part of the Santa Ana Mountains, home to Santiago Peak, the highest point in OC. Although Bedford Peak is not a major peak it is still a popular hike amongst locals.

Today we decided to conquer this trail and mark it off our list. Parking for this hike is located at The Maple Springs Trailhead, located in the town of Silverado.

From the parking lot you will continue on foot onto Maple Springs Rd for about .3 miles until you come across a sign that reads “Trail” This is the Silverado Trail (Silverado Motorway) make a left here and proceed past the yellow railing. Its all uphill from there!

The next 3 miles take you up 2,000 ft in elevation. Making for a very strenuous hike, especially on a warm day like today.( 80 degrees was the high) the trail starts of narrow and then widens out as you clear the brush. As you steadily climb in elevation the Santa Ana Mountains begin to reveal themselves and they are a beauty!

About half ways up the switchbacks, you reach coffin rock, here you are treated with wonderful views of OC, great place for photo opportunities!

Once you reach The Main Divide Rd. this is the indication that you are close to the peak. From here, hang a right past the white gate and continue up the trail for .1 miles or so until you reach Bedford Peak. (There is a brown rail about 2 ft high)

When you reach the peak, you can enjoy great views of Mt. San Jacinto, San Gorgonio, Mt. Baldy and OC in the distance.

-IF HIKING IN THE SUMMER, START EARLY! TRAIL IS FULLY EXPOSED! NO SHADE! BRING A HAT AND PLENTY OF WATER-

view of San Jacinto(right) and San Gorgonio (left)

view of San Jacinto(right) and San Gorgonio (left)

view of Mt. Baldy

view of Mt. Baldy

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Taken on a much clearer day 2/14/13

• 6.6 miles round trip
• 2,000 ft elev. gain
• 3,800 ft summit
• Adventure pass required
• Strenuous

Happy Trails,
Alex G