E-C-B-O and the forgotten coffee

Got an early start around 5:45 am and began up IceHouse Canyon. Summited Cucamonga Peak around 8:45 with only a small handful of hikers. I hadn’t been above 7,000 ft in quite a while so I took a short break at the peak to enjoy the white blanket of clouds that covered all of LA and the IE, and catch my breath before heading off to my next stop for the day. After about 15/20 minutes I headed down the much less traveled use trail on the far side of the peak heading towards Etiwanda, and upon arriving at the junction with the main trail ran into a small group of hikers who had overshot the junction to the peak and were looking at the faint trail inquisitively. I let them know that were in luck and explained how to follow the use trail and the general direction to follow to reach there goal for the day. Within 20 minutes I found myself heading up the ridiculously steep spur that would spit me out onto Etiwanda Peak. 2 down, 2, possibly 3, to go. After making my way through the hoards of people that were now on their way up Cucamonga, I found myself at the saddle at the start of the switchbacks looking up at the faint use trail that led up to the 3rd and 4th stops for the day. It was as ridiculously steep as the spur to Etiwanda, if not worse, and about 10 times as long. I sat in the shade of the lone tree of the saddle and ate some bars. After a few minutes a couple of ladies came down the switchbacks and walked over towards where I was sitting and started looking at the slog towards Bighorn. I asked if they were heading that way too, which they confirmed. I started to feel better knowing I wasn’t the only one stupid enough to be taking that route that day. We shared our maps and some notes and all started up the slope around the same time and trudged up the hill one step at a time. I walked onto the summit a few minutes behind them onto the dry and barren Bighorn Peak. It was hot as f*ck, and that climb had kicked my ass. After about 20/30 minutes I headed off towards the other celebrity of the Cucamonga Wilderness, Ontario Peak. My new informal hiking buddy’s and me continued playing leap frog along the ridge through the last of the crowds heading back down. After the last final push up to the peak, I found myself on Ontario Peak with only 2 other hikers with the buddies walking up about ten minutes later. I was fried from the exposure so I laid out my foam mat, cracked a foamer(beer), and relaxed in the shade of a bush. Slowly the other hikers started trickling off the mountain and I found myself with Ontario Peak all to myself. I love the feeling of having otherwise crowded peaks all to my lonesome. I had planned on continuing on to Sugarloaf and exiting via Falling Rock Canyon, but decided against it, as my brain was mush from the punishment I took on the long exposed ridge lines and the 5,000 ft plus of elevation gain. I did not trust myself with any sort of route finding so I decided to head straight back to the saddle and back down Ice House Canyon. Got back to my van at about 6:30 pm with aching knees, sore feet, a light head, and a happy heart. I had found a new(tome) amazing place to hike in the Cucamonga Wilderness and the surrounding San Gabriel Mountains. After staring at it all day, I couldn’t wait to get back here next weekend for Mt. Baldy.