Another awesome hike in the books! Conquering Mt. Baldy was something my wife and I have had on the horizon for a while, and I am glad to say we blew past that hurdle. We started the hike a bit after 6 am, which seems to be the sweet spot for still finding parking at the lots. The first part of the hike was a nice ease into things, great views, not to strenuous, and awesome in the morning. We reached the lodge in around 2 hours and prepped ourselves for the upcoming devils back bone. But first we had to make it up the ski slope haha. It was steep but the views made it all worth it. The backbone was a great experience and the hike kept getting better. The final push was tough but there were a lot of other friendly hikers along the way to help with encouragement and just to help pass the time and keep your mind from thinking too much about the grade! We reached the top in around four hours and enjoyed lunch taking in the spectacular views. We opted to return on the backbone trail, and were happy we did. The views changed heading in the different direction, and we may or may not have stopped at the lodge on the way down for an adult refreshment before finishing out the hike.

All in all, the weather was great, the climb was challenging but not to the point where it wasn’t enjoyable. The views and the trail were top notch. A great hike and looking forward to the next one!