Since I did Baldy mid day and had a great time I figured it would be fine if I got a little bit of a late start today since it's pretty much in the same area. And it was. I really wasn't sure if it would be hot or cold. In some of the reviews people said they encountered snow. I didn't see any snow at all but there was a really nice breeze once I got closer to the top. Overall the weather was great!
Tuesday is becoming my hiking day and I love it because the crowds are minimal. There were only a few cars in the parking lot at 10:30 am but I did encounter close to 40 people total on the trail.
Right at the beginning there was a group of 8 people gathered around something taking pictures. Rattlesnake!! When I was getting close to the sadle there is a long slope with not much room and loose rocks. I saw some people coming so I moved off the trail to make way for them. But they just stood there…so I started coming up. They yelled “STOP!” Rattlesnake!!! (It was a BIG one too). All the way near the top sitting in the middle of the path. Rattlesnake!!!! I'm beginning to wonder if Cucamonga means “rattlesnake” in the native tongue.
I reached the summit at 2pm. I would have made it earlier but that post that has “PEAK” scratched into it through me off. I mean its being held up by some rocks on the ground. Really doesn't look too “official”. And I really didn't see a trail heading up that way. Just rock. I did see a trail going left and up though so I followed that for about half a mile until I looked at my All Trails Map and saw I was going off course. I'm learning!!!
Upon reaching the summit I realized something kinda sad…The con of hiking solo is that there is no one to take your picture. I really wanted that picture of me standing on that really cool rock. I guess I will have to come back on a busier day because I still have 0 friends that want to come on these crazy hikes with me. But maybe I can meet some new ones on this site!!
I made it back to my car by 5 pm. Another beautiful hike!!
These next 3 hikes are going to be a VERY big challenge for me. Starting with the permits. I don't have a printer or a fax so I need to figure that out. San Jacinto, San Bernadino, and San Gorgonio. If you read this Jeff…do you have a recommendation of which one I should do next?