Did another backcountry camping trip with this peak! Dan and I organized it and decided to go up from South Fork and camp at Dry Lake View. We had a few people in our group that were a little bit less experienced hiking and camping so it seemed like the best way up. Turns out it is an awesome intro to backpacking! From this trailhead, it's 20 miles total, about 7.5 up to Dry Lake View, all pretty gentle and not too steep. The next day is about 2.5 miles up to the peak and then all the way back down.

We had a crew of eight people and it was a lot of fun! The hike to Dry Lake is quite beautiful. The whole first third of the hike was full of autumn colors and vegetation. As soon as you pass the last bit of water, this stream by a fork in the trail, you start gaining some altitude and the vibe changes quite suddenly. Everything is very eerie and all the trees are charred and burned from the summer's forest fires.

At this point, our crew split into three groups. A few of our friends who we hike with all the time took the lead. Then came Dan (my guy who has gone on almost all of these hikes with me) who was carrying about 2 gallons of extra water (just because we had such a big group… just in case) so I stayed with him and his ridiculously heavy pack in the middle. Then our friends who were doing quite amazing since this was their first big hike (Gorgonio is probably pretty ambitious) were not too far behind.

On the last bit of the hike, just before reaching camp and then the tree line, you suddenly come across some snow! First snow of the season. You start seeing these really beautiful views of the summits of Gorgonio and Jepson covered in snow – This really clear summit view is unique to Gorgonio so far with my experience doing the six pack (maybe Baldy?) but this was really special.

We got to camp in time to set up our tent and start dinner before a ridiculously beautiful sunset. Right as the sun was going down a bighorn sheep ran through the woods right in front of us. It was the first time I had seen this animal and he was so close!

Really cold night… It for sure got to about 20 degrees. I've learned that I pretty much never sleep well at altitude so… oh well. To be expected. Our group was prepared.

Next day, it was a quick hike to the summit! Once you traverse to the other side of the mountain, it gets much warmer and far less snow. Everyone for sure felt super light since they just brought empty packs/day packs up. Ate candy and beers and we had the summit all to our selves that morning! From Gorgonio, you can see San Jacinto, Cucamonga, and Baldy which was super cool.

Then we packed up and headed down the mountain! I loved taking a big group up. It was a bit stressful initially to plan and make sure everyone had enough gear – especially since Gorgonio had a fresh coat of snow and it was going to be quite cold. It turned out great and was super fun!