Since the first time I ever hiked Mt. San Jacinto, it has been my favorite hike in So Cal BY A LONG SHOT. Mostly because IMHO it is (again by a long shot) the most scenic hike in SoCal. It is the only one that truly reminds me of the High Sierra’s. I think part of this is because of the local geography that isolates these high altitude mountains which are lush and green with plenty of running water, all while being entirely surrounded by completely barren desert. To the south-west is the Anza Borego Desert, and to the north-east Palm Springs and Palm Desert. Isolated as it is, there aren’t even bears in this local mountain range (or so I’ve heard it said).

In a nutshell, San J is literally a huge, high altitude “mountain range oasis” which is secluded in ways other mountains are not. I love the lush green forests on the backside (opposite the tram) and the small village/community of Idyllwild which actually has some decent restaurants for gathering after your awesome day outdoors. The other reason I like San J is fewer people (no offense folks but I never started hiking because I liked amusement park crowds). I will say however it’s a joy to meet and experience friendly, courteous, socially responsible folks on the trail who know how to respect the mountains, and those who they are sharing the outdoors with. In contrast to the crowds at Baldy and Cucamonga Peak, I think SJ is a far enough drive, and remote enough that it discourages a good percentage of folks that opt for closer options.

So how do you improve on something remote, isolated, scenic, amazingly beautiful, and challenging with lodgings, and good food close by??! Just ADD SNOW!!!!! There is NOTHING more beautiful or challenging as climbing this peak (and others) after a good snow! I personally wanted to get out and do this hike sooner, but wasn’t able to until a week after the last big storm. SOOOO glad I did this because it was already melting, and it’s clear that there won’t be any more snow coming… so this hike was perfectly timed to catch the last of the snow before it melted. I don’t think I’ve seen anything on a hike as amazing as San J covered in snow!

The icing on the cake was that we went on a weekday and only saw a handful of other people… most of whom were hiking the PCT and so “were the real deal”! So nice to chat with these true adventurer types and hear stories about their journey thus far. Their respect for the outdoors and their ability to share the outdoors responsibly with others is so refreshing in this age of crowded “pop culture” hiking. Everyone we met was friendly, courteous, understood what “leave no trace” means, as well as trail etiquette. Of ALL of my Peak hikes logged so far this year… this was the most secluded, isolated, quiet, beautiful, magical blue day of a snow hike! Totally ZEN hiking…