Mount San Jacinto via Marion Mountain – 1 of 6

May 27, 2021

Decided to arrive a day early and do an overnight at the Marion Campground (it has a set of first-come-first-served spots). We met up at the San Jacinto ranger station on the way in to fill out a couple of permits for the two hikes (the station was closed but they had the permits outside the entrance).

Bonus Hike – Day 0: Suicide Rock

• Trailhead: Deer Springs off CA-243
• Distance: ~7.1 miles w/ 1860′ ft of elevation gain

Perfect pre-game-day hike. Great views of Tahquitz Peak and of Idyllwild down below from the ominously named Suicide Rock.

Mount San Jacinto – the main event

We headed over to the Marion campground early in the afternoon – there were plenty of spots to chose from. Great location.

Early start from the Marion Mountain TH the next day – it's a very short drive from the campground.

Marion Mountain Trail → PCT → Deer Springs Trail → Peak Trail

My favorite route to date having also done the shorter route from the tram – not nearly as busy.  I enjoyed the section through Little Round Valley and plan on coming back to do an overnight backpacking trip there.  We were lucky to have the summit to ourselves for an extended lunch break.  The early bird…

Why the vindication?

I hadn't done San Jacinto via Marion Mountain since college (with a group of friends.)  I don't think we realized at the time how lucky we were to have made it to the summit and back down mostly unscathed. 10 essentials what? Most of us didn't know where we were going, assuming we'd just follow-the-leader.  Except that the fast, experienced few took off right away into a separate group.  No map. No backup. One friend started speaking in gibberish and experiencing disorientation and extreme fatigue.  This screams symptoms of AMS, but we kept going anyway not knowing any better or having a way to communicate with the lead group.  She was okay in the end.  Bonus: I blew out both my knees on the way down. Oh the excruciating pain with every step! I somehow managed to slowly hobble down the mountain with some help. It was almost dark when we made it back to the PL.  “Illumination” and “First Aid Supplies” would have been nice to have, and potentially “Emergency Shelter” too? ?.  This trip was the stuff of legends! ??‍♀️

It definitely makes for a good story!  My hiking buddy for this trip was in that original group hike – it was fun to reminisce.  Oh yeah and I never ever hike without trekking poles anymore and I'm in better hiking shape than I was in my 20s. ?