San Gorgonio, July 1995


About the mountain

San Gorgonio, 11,499ft, also known as Greyback, is the highest peak in Southern California. It is located in southern part of San Bernardino mountains, within the San Gorgonio Wilderness area. The best view in Southern California. To the south you can see the Joshua Tree National Park, Salton Snea, San Jacinto Mountains and Palm Springs. To the north, you can see Big Bear Lake, Mojave Desert, Cucamonga and Mount Baldy. In good weather, you can see the ocean and Catalina.

Participants

The hike

We started around 7pm from Forest Falls. Strange enough, soon after we crossed Mill Creek, it started to rain. Rain in July in Southern California? We stopped for a while to enjoy rain and that early-morning mountain air and the view of one of the adjacent peaks . A few minutes later we passed a waterfall . A brief break at Halfway Camp, then another at High Creek. From High Creek, after endless switchbacks we climbed a ridge from which we could see the peak. Another half a mile, and we are almost there . Finally, around 1pm we reached the peak. Oh, the sweet taste if success. After lunch we started heading back. Who could resist a snowball fight . We returned to the trailhead at 6pm.