Mount Diablo (#2)

Started at 8:15 am, weather was quite cool and foggy. I hiked with a friend, who is planning to hike Mount Whitney with me in August. The path up to Eagle Peak was quite nice with a wide trail and pretty views. After that point, we didn’t enjoy the trail as much. It became much more narrow with brush close to the trail.

The constant elevation gain ended up being a bit too much for my friend, who turned around at Prospector’s Gap. I continued to the summit, which was quite crowded with visitors, and I didn’t love that. But I enjoyed the little museum and spent time admiring the views of the Sierra – nice and clear today.

Then headed back down and enjoyed some more views after Juniper Campground. The rest of the way down seemed to take forever and I finally made it back at sunset.

If you tend to keep a slower pace or hiking with friends who are early in their training journey, you’ll want to start as early as possible, minimize time spent at the summit, and/or wait another month or two for more daylight.