A First Hike on Santiago Peak

To complete my SoCal Six Pack for 2021, I wanted to complete a new hike.  The closest to my house near San Diego was Santiago Peak.  So I found a couple of hiking partners who agreed to go with me, and we set off to climb this high point in Orange County for the first time.  The trail has been closed for a few years due to the damage caused by the Holy Jim fire.  Th US Forest Service was recetly changed to say the trtail was now open, so we headed there.  After the junction with the trail to the falls, the trail was overgrown and unmaintained, so it needs some work.  Once we got to the Main Divide Road, the last three miles to the top was smooth sailing.  It was slightly cloudy and a little windy, but a nice day for a hike.  We could see marine layer over the ocean, and way off in the distance we could see Catalina Island sticking up through the fog.  We started at 7:30AM and returned at 3:30 PM, so we made pretty good time.