Hiked/Climed Cucamonga Peak on Sunday with one other person (who drove separately and kept our distance on the trail, both working from home, social distancing, etc.)

Arrived early to few cars in the lot. We didn't see anyone until we were passed by 2 people close to Icehouse Saddle. They did not continue past the saddle. Snow/ice on the trail began before the saddle.

We transitioned to crampons/ice axe/helmet at the saddle. One other person arrived, transitioned, and headed toward Ontario Peak.

We started the traverse around Bighorn which had  a previous bootpack laid down, but it does not currently follow the dirt/summer trail (it stays higher, above some of the small cliff/rock bands). On the return, we tried to start to establish the regular trail, with only a few “creative” path choices as the trail is still covered by feet of snow in some places. Weather was clear, with winds only being a factor near the saddles.

At Cucamonga Saddle, the bootpack goes straight up the ridge – no inkling of the regular trail has been established, and it looks like it will be that way for some time. On this first section, the bootpack was steep enough that I switched to self-belay grip and it was more of a climb, but once up to the junction with what would be the main trail again, the grade mellowed and I switched back to self-arrest grip (and stayed that way the rest of the hike).  Clouds and a system rolled in just before we made the peak, which robbed us of the views that we'd seen earlier in the day.  We saw only one other person (descending the ridge as we ascended) the entire time past Icehouse Saddle.  Given our timing, I assume that we were 2 of 3 people to make the summit that day.

Clouds/fog limited visibility to 50-100 ft for the descent down the ridge. We followed our bootpack down but made a couple switchbacks instead of descending the ‘climbing' section, before starting to re-establish the main trail on the traverse.

Coming down from Icehouse Canyon, we gradually saw more people. Some hiking (many not prepared for the snowy trail to come, but I hope they turned around at that point), some hanging out by the creek. We kept our distance, and completed our hike.

Spent about 8.5 hours on trail. Crampons/Ice Axe/Helmet NECESSARY, as well as knowledge and experience with how to use them.