3-Day Trip in Idyllwild, CA: Day 1 - Tahquitz Peak via Devils Slide Trail

After 5 months of no travel, I was really excited to go to Idyllwild. Only an hour and a half from my place, Idyllwild is a small town in the San Jacinto mountains. I have seen several trails that I wanted to explore there, but was never determined enough to drive the distance when I have similar options nearby (or so I thought...). It exceeded my expectations.

On a July 4th weekend, I anticipated crowds and noise, but was met with smaller crowds and peace. My rental apartment was wonderfully secluded and private, only a mile and a half away from the town, and close to hiking trails. I even had a mini porch where one day I sat on a rocking chair watching the birds. Some would say it is a boring activity, but to me it allows to be fully present.

On the first day, I left home and drove straight to the trailhead to hike Tahquitz Peak via Devils Slide Trail. I knew beforehand that I needed two things: a permit to hike and my National park pass (aka America the Beautiful). I proactively filled out the form and faxed it over to the state park office, and within a week received my permit. You can also pick up a permit at one of the two ranger stations, fill them out, drop one copy in the permit box and take one on a hike with you. While my permit was not checked, there are signs that a citation might be given if one hikes without a permit. The permit can be picked up 24/7 at the ranger's station.

I arrived at the trailhead at 7.20 AM and the parking lot was already 70% full. This is apparently the most popular trailhead in Idyllwild. The hike is pretty tough, but the scenery is worth it.

Some wildflowers were still blooming near the streams

The weather was mild enough to not wear a hat on the way up, and my mask was safely stored in my pocket when there were no people around. The last mile or so is pretty steep, but the reward is totally worth it!

This is a view from the fire tower, which was closed at the moment

After spending 15-20 minutes at the top and making a short video to give some better insight on what the views were like, I headed back down.

Many more people were just on their way up around 11 AM. Bad decision - the heat was building, and the elevation gain was unforgiving.

I drove to the local coffee shop The Town Baker to pick up some coffee and food, and was not really impressed. The guy at the checkout was very friendly and kind. My cappuccino, on the other hand, just was subpar. I also ordered a BLT on a sourdough bread and was not impressed with it either. It tasted like several separate ingredients vs. a sandwich. It was dry and lacked flavor. Next time, I would try another coffee shop right next to it.

After checking in my Airbnb, I decided to go on another hike right across from my rental place. While I did not do the full Idyllwild Park Trail route, I was hot and tired and had to use the bug net. After an hour hiking, it was time to relax.

I returned to my apartment, took a shower and ordered a takeout of Philly roll from Idy Sushi Rolls. Not a bad establishment, although it was rather pricey for 8 pieces for Idyllwild. I guess a tourist town, even in the middle of the pandemic! I also picked up some eggs and tofu noodles for tomorrow so that I don't have to waste money on restaurants. I might as well use the kitchen in the rental apartment!

I spent the evening reading listening to the birds outside.

Upper Santa Ysabel Creek Trail aka Kanaka Loop Trail near Julian, CA

I remember hiking in this area a few times, but this particular trail was not familiar to me. Supposedly, a short 7 mile round trip hike with just over 1,000 ft elevation gain sounded great to me on a warm day like that. I got to the parking lot around 8 AM, and many of the group members were already there. We chatted while social distancing, waited for a few other people and were on our way by 8.30 AM. The day was starting surprisingly cool, but the sun was shining brightly.

The trail is mostly exposed with tall grass on both sides. Open fields with cattle like on the pictures above are incredible to walk. The perception of distance becomes somewhat distorted, and a mile seems endless.

I enjoyed how few people were there on the trail in the morning. Peace and solitude can easily be found here. On the way back, I was tempted to stop at Julian, but seeing the crowds during the pandemic, it seemed irresponsible to go into the shops or restaurants. Maybe next time... 

Inspiration Point Loop Trail near Altadena, CA

An hour and a half drive to hike? Gosh, sounds so far, and just a year and a half ago when living in Fresno, I drove two and a half hours one way for a day hike or a meetup. Perception changes so rapidly. What seemed reasonable before is now a stretch... Not a good thing to get back into the comfort zone, but such a natural thing to do.

Today, I was going to push the boundaries once again and go for a further located more strenuous hike in Pasadena, CA. Inspiration Point has always been on my radar, but with the selection of local hikes, it was never a priority. Now few groups organize hikes, so when this one was posted, I was in!

The night before the hike, I saw that it might rain, but I figured that the drizzle would not stop me from going. Indeed, I woke up at 4.30 AM to cloudy skies and light misty drizzle. I was hoping that it would clear out soon. The drive to Pasadena was easy, and I arrived at the trailhead right on time. Only 4 people showed up for the hike. Such a usual trend for a Meetup group... That made the group easy to navigate and social distance; the leader was very caring and thoughtful.

We started gaining elevation rapidly, and in the first two miles gained almost 1,000 ft. After the first mile, it started to rain. Not just drizzle, but rain... As we approached the third mile and the start of the loop, the group considered our options, and we decided to proceed. There were no views due to fog, but exercise alone was quite enjoyable. Or not...

As we continued to get soaked, it felt rather nice not to have to sweat going uphill. The last mile to the top was the most strenuous, and as I reached the Inspiration point, I was starving! Luckily, the date and cashew snacks I made were perfect to regain the strength for the way back.

I was so glad I brought that pink vest with me because without as much exertion as on the way up, the way down was very chilly. It continued to rain until we descended to lower elevation to finish the last 2 miles. This is when I finally was able to take a few pictures of what I was supposed to be seeing.

Of course, I wish I had seen something like that...

Photo credit: AllTrails - DJ Goodman

But this gives me another reason to go back. Also, I have not hiked all the way to the Mount Lowe, but I am really hoping to go back this year and hike it all when the conditions are good.

Hellhole Canyon - Paradise Mountain Loop

It has been about 3 years since I hiked in Hellhole Canyon. I lived in Fresno back then and was visiting San Diego over the holidays. For some reason, I thought I remembered the hike, but I guess things change, and Paradise Mountain Loop appeared to be only somewhat familiar.

Firstly, I was hiking in late May when the temperatures were already in the high 70s. It was cool in the morning with a good cloud coverage, but as the day progressed, it warmed up quite a bit. The trail starts out with a decent for the first mile, then flat for a mile or so and the remaining 2 miles straight up.

With the pandemic just starting to wind down, this was probably the second or third weekend the park was open. Several months of no human activity resulted in somewhat overgrown trails, especially if you choose to start the loop clockwise. I was glad to have been wearing pants, that's for sure! There were only a few people starting out with me, the trail did not appear to attract a large crowd. Most people selected the traditional counter-clockwise direction so for most of the hike I was by myself. The wildflowers were still blooming everywhere, even in late spring.

As the climb began around a two-mile mark, the views unfolded. You could see for miles in all directions. The trail's "peak" is Paradise Mountain, but many people stop at the one right before that if you choose the traditional direction. This allowed me to have the peak to myself, so I sat down and had my Kind bar. Most of the time during the hike I was listening to podcasts, but at the peak I simply wanted to observe and listen. The distant sound of traffic, birds chirping, wind gently blowing, an occasional lizard passing by (they were pretty large there!) - total peace. I could see this being a good meditation point.

I continued the hike, reached the second peak where a group of people were having their snacks, passed by and started my decent. The trail became wider and more passable. I guess some people just hike this train in-and-out instead of completing the loop. Again, I saw only a few more people, officially declaring this trail the hidden gem of COVID-19 pandemic!

Daley Ranch is Open Again!

The second weekend after Daley Ranch opened their trails, I was there just half an hour past the opening at 6 AM. While my eagerness played part in getting up so early, I knew that parking lots were opened at only 50% capacity. Even on a regular weekend, at times it would be difficult to find parking. It was even more important to me to get over a sleepless night and get up at 5 AM.

I've been hiking Monserate Mountain trail for several weeks now, and was getting to know very intimately every rock and turn. It was time to change gears and scenery.

The weather was mild and foggy on this Saturday morning. The sun did not have a chance yet to burn off the moisture, but I knew that the forecast was supposed to be good. I arrived at the usual parking lot only to find it barricaded. The signs directed me to go further towards Dixon Lake. After the right turn, I quickly found one of the parking lots to the left of the road and parked. It was a first win of the day!

Usually, the lake is open to camping for a fee, but today they were using those parking lots to limit people entering the Ranch. I took a side trail to get to my usual route, and ended up by the lake.

I realized that limiting people is actually not such a bad thing as I enjoyed the trail to myself. Initially, I was planning to listen to podcasts I have queued on my phone, but I felt like immersing myself in the sounds of nature - birds signing, lizards and mice running in the grass making noise of a large coyote (or so my mind was telling me), water burbling in the streams...

I was really disappointed that during this wildflower season in California, because of COVID-19 lockdowns I would not be able to enjoy the full beauty of spring hiking. I was happy to see that flowers did not stop growing. In fact, in the absence of humans, they bloomed even more! The blue and purple ones were my absolute favorites, hence, several close up pictures below.

The fog continued to cover the sky and trees, but it also made hundreds of spider webs visible just like this one.

The sun finally emerged after a few hours of hiking and started to illuminate and heat up everything else around.

Usually, as you go deeper and deeper in the park, fewer people emerge since who wants to hike 10 miles, right? I find that isolation peaceful and serene, and maybe scary at times. Today I felt that way even close to the trail head. The highly trafficked areas were almost empty. I could hear my footsteps and the water in my bottle moving with each step. Strange and yet so wonderful.

After 10.7 miles and 4 and a half hours of hiking, I felt a bit tired and refreshed. Nature healing, they say...

Daley Ranch - Boulder Loop Trail, Sage Trail, Burnt Mountain Loop and Stanley Peak

There are so many beautiful hikes in Southern California, I have only 2 local trails that I have hiked more than once, and only because they both are within 10 minutes from where I currently live. Some parks have so many trails that you don't even remember which ones you hiked.

Apparently, this happened with Daley Ranch. It is my fourth time hiking there on different trails, and I figured it out only after I saw the sign for Stanley Peak. The first time I visited Daley Ranch was in mid-December where my friend and I hiked 13.5 miles from northern side of the park reaching Stanley Peak. The weather was pretty dreary that day... The second time I was there after a volunteer shift at the local animal shelter. I remember it was a sunny day and I could not just go back home, so I did a shorter afternoon hike along Boulder Loop Trail. I loved it so much that I had to come back, this time planning to do an easy hike around Jack Creek meadow, but that was not meant to be as I quickly discovered, "I've been there!"

The hike I ended up completing was primarily along Sage Trail with a few detours.

I went up to Stanley Peak again, this time observing beautiful views on this perfect day.

And the flowers are finally blooming!

I love this park! You can get some isolation in spots and also hike with other people. And there are coyotes howling right in the middle of the day! Amazing!

And finally, on a different day, I completed Burnt Mountain Loop. Well, almost completed, as I skipped the last loop cutting about 0.8 miles from the total distance. This was probably one of the most isolated hikes in Daley Ranch, so it's certainly worth it if you need solitude.

Hot Springs Mountain Trail is Los Coyotes Indian Reservation

Hot Springs Mountain Trail is not a very well-known or heavily-trafficked hiking path possibly because of its further location from San Diego or maybe it is due to the $10 entrance fee per person. Regardless, my hiking partners mentioned they saw a mountain lion just a quarter a mile from the trail head, so I was really excited to have a glimpse of a possibility to see this beautiful animal in the wild (spoiler alert: I did not).

In the beginning of March, the weather was certainly less conducive of hiking this trail or maybe it was just our luck. We started out wearing layers of warm clothes as we gained elevation through dense fog. There were no views, nothing to see but the hill ahead of us. The bonus is that we finally warmed up. It was really windy, and the fog was blowing back and forth. It reminded me of "The Mist", an older movie from the 2000's about a small town that was engulfed in fog with monsters.

As we continued with elevation gain, the sun was successful in burning through some of the fog, and I finally saw somewhat of a peak ahead of us.

There was hope...

Landscape changed quite a bit as we continued the hike, and all of a sudden I was in the middle of pine forest, something that I missed since I left Fresno hiking in Yosemite.

I found myself surrounded by pine cones, literally...

The peak consisted of an old fire tower that was not sturdy enough to climb onto and a large rock formation with ladders and ropes to climb. I did attempt the ladder, but my fear of heights got the best of me, and I promptly decided by adventure is over by simply giving it a shot!

On the way back, the fog was almost fully gone, and I realized that this truly is a magnificent place.