Hiked with a bigger group this weekend! It was our friend Vani's first big hike, first-ever mountain summit and she hit not one but TWO! Our other friend Kassie was in the mountains for the first time since developing some pretty killer tendinitis about two years ago.

I hike Icehouse often, but have never headed down this spur so I was very excited to see something new!

The way up was great — very hot, but good company and ample breaks in the shade made it a good time. We passed by Kelly Camp where my usual hiking partner Laura and I are planning to spend an overnight at the end of the month. Very excited for that! We already have a perfect spot in mind to pitch our tent.

Enjoyed our traditional Summit Swamis and Salamis at the top of Ontario Peak and hit Bighorn on the way back. The trail up to Bighorn is a little tough to follow, a lot of use trails as people have sort of just scrambled up to the top. Reaching the top isn't difficult to navigate as you know exactly where you're going — up. We had a smidge of trouble making our way back to the junction above Kelly Camp. Started hitting a lot of dead ends and found ourselves having to backtrack, but once we got ourselves situated on the ridgeline that leads up to the summit we were just fine.

Kassie's tendinitis slowed us down substantially on the way back, so we spent much longer on the trail than we'd anticipated, but sure slept good that night!! Looking forward to San Jacinto next weekend!