I had pretty much resigned myself to the fact that I would not be able to finish the 2021 SoCal Six Pack. I relocated back to the East Coast before I could do the last hike, and while I was originally planning to join the Climb for Heroes group on Baldy (and, by the way, I am still fundraising for it through November 30!) two big things got in the way. One, I'd been having serious difficulty with elevation this season and wasn't sure if I could handle an altitude over 10,000 feet. Also, I've been a complete slug. My job has had me on a plane every week. And uh, let's just say I haven't been taking great care of myself. I finished the New England Six Pack. That should be enough, right?
But I'd done five out of six of the SoCal Six Pack. There had to be a way I could pull this off. The only lower-elevation peak I hadn't done was Mt. Wilson, which is notoriously inaccessible right now because of wildfire damage, and technically the only trail to the top is a 15-mile round trip with over 4000 feet of elevation gain. This seemed out of the question not just given my weakened fitness levels (sigh) but also because of the time of year and the fact that losing daylight could be a factor. Could I hike 15 miles? Yeah. But it'd be slow, and running out of daylight would be a distinct possibility. I'm newly jittery about solo hiking these days because on a hike up Mt. Aire in Utah last month I came across a mountain lion* and that experience didn't make me particularly eager to be in the wilderness alone for 15 miles with the possibility of it getting dark.
But wait. You can drive your car to the summit of Wilson. No, I wasn't going to do that and claim I did the hike. But one of my other hikes in the SoCal Six Pack (Santiago) had followed a road because of trail closures, too. So — what if I parked somewhere along the way to Wilson and took a combination of road and trail to the summit? It would still be a minimum of 5 miles round trip with well over 1000 feet of elevation gain either way… and something tells me that I would not be very likely to come across a mountain lion along a paved road. This was really my only shot at finishing the Six Pack, and so I was like, what the hell? Why not get creative?
Well, I had to get really creative. First, a lot of the side trails were closed, so I had to stick to the road longer than I'd wanted to. And then I came across the locked gate, because I am dumb and did not check on the fact that the observatory doesn't open until 10AM. And I got there at 9AM. (Temperatures were supposed to approach 90 degrees, so I had prioritized getting an early start.) But while I was waiting around wondering whether I should chill for an hour or if I should just give up and go back to my car, a trail runner showed up on the other side of the gate and opened it for me (how did he get to the other side? I just won't ask questions). And then Wilson's summit was in sight. So while it may not have been the most rugged hike out there, I did it, and that means I did TWO SIX PACKS in 2021. Not bad for having only learned about the challenge midway through the year.
So, THAT was fun! I'm looking forward to trying some different regional Six Packs in 2022. Best of luck to everyone still working on the challenges… and I hope to meet some of you in person soon!
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