Today’s Gym, The Holy “Gym” Jim Trail

Hard to believe it’s been 5 years (2018) since I’ve taken this route to the summit of Santiago Peak. What a great morning (early afternoon) it was as I completed peak #4 of the 2024 SoCal Six Pack of Peaks Challenge.

I arrived at the trailhead right around 0620. No other vehicles or hikers around. The road coming in is about a 5 mile (mixed) mostly unimproved dirt road and paved. The drive can be made causiously, by a sedan. But I’d recommend at least a high profile vehicle. 2WD is okay.

I started off right around 0640. The Holy Jim Trail looked great. No obstacles and the multiple creek crossings early on were simple step over crossings. I followed the trail for about 5 miles. This is where the trail intersects with the North Main Divided (NMD) road. From there I head left following the road about 3.2 miles to the summit. I only saw one trail runner (who passed me on the ascent) and one biker coming down as I was ascending.

There was no one at the summit when I arrived. The winds were crazy at 25 to 35 mph. Making the summit feel very cold. I had planned to spend at least 30 minutes up at the summit chillin, but it was too cold and too windy. I quickly ate a few snacks and headed down.

On the way down I decided to take a loop trail (shortcut) from one section of the NMD road to a lower section, before getting back on the Holy Jim Trail. Once back on the Holy Jim Trail, I began to see more hikers and bikers heading up. About a mile before the trailhead, I took a quick detour to visit the Holy Jim Falls. There were several hikers and families there visiting the falls. I took a quick photo and headed back to the trail and the final stretch to the trailhead.

Another great day on trail. 16.5 miles with just over 4300 feet in elevation gain in 6 hours 38 minutes total time.