About This Blog

Aside

Kyle Kuns, un-named trail below Mt. Lowe, February 2012. Photo by Troy Saliba

Several people have asked me to add an “about” section to this blog.  So, in addition to it’s obvious place in the “about” section, I’ve decided to make it a post.  Since January of 2011, I’ve hiked over 900 miles in Angeles Forest and taken thousands of photos.  Prior to that, I hadn’t hiked much in the forest.  I’d only been on a couple trails averaging less than one hike per year in Angeles Forest since my first trek in the 1980’s.  I would hike more often in places closer to home like Griffith Park or the Verdugo Mountains.  What I discovered last year was a rich and varied place well beyond my expectations.  A place I would have frequented constantly starting decades ago if I only realized what was there.  For over twenty years I’ve had the guide books and maps to tell me about the hiking opportunities in the forest, but it turned out they didn’t inspire me to go.

In 2011, for a variety of reasons, I decided I wanted to hike Mt. Whitney.  I was nowhere near in shape to undertake such an endeavor.  I knew I would need a year just to get in good enough shape to then begin to seriously train for a summer 2012 ascent.  So, I started hiking all over Angeles Forest.  This Mt. Whitney goal inspired me to study my maps and read my guide books to find new places to go and keep things fresh and interesting.  Every hike brought with it some element of surprise in seeing something new and unexpected.  At the same time, every hike brought with it the feeling that I should have done it long ago.

Pacific Crest Trail, east of Windy Gap, November 2011

Weekly, as I completed new hikes and my sense of the diversity and beauty of the forest grew, I began to internalize deeply the meaning of the cliché a picture is worth a thousand words.  Descriptions are helpful if one has enough experience and prior knowledge to imagine what is being described.  In the past however, I didn’t know enough to imagine for myself what I was missing. What took a Mt. Whitney goal and all the reasons surrounding it to inspire me into the forest could have easily been accomplished in the past if I just saw enough photos.  Seeing (instead of trying to imagine) places I could walk through and views I could see in person would have significantly impacted me to see the distance I needed to drive to get to them differently.  These places seem like they should be much further away from the Los Angeles megalopolis.  I know I would have hiked a lot more and I would have been healthier for it.  So, a key component to this blog is to share many of my photos with you.  As I develop this blog further, a more visual approach to sharing information will emerge leading toward an option to navigate the site almost entirely by clicking on pictures.

Close to Mt. Baldy on the Mt. Baldy Trail, September 2011

Trying out new trails most every week has also caused me to internalize the meaning of the cliché the map is not the territory.  Maps are great and I use them constantly.  However, they have important limits.  Space constraints on a sheet of paper, for example, prevent all trails (or trail like features) from being drawn on the map.  To do so would generate a cluttered and hard to read resource that would be difficult to use.  So, there are times on the trail when there’s a fork and it’s not clear how to proceed, or there’s a fork but it isn’t noticeable unless you are on special alert to look for it.  While maps do a great job of giving a general overview of a path through the forest; they can’t show the current level of maintenance, how wide the trail is, the skill level required to traverse it etc.  I believe this information is of fundamental significance to help you determine if a hike is appropriate in your current state of physical fitness and hiking experience, and to give you a way to determine for yourself an idea regarding how long it might take you to complete the trek.  Fortunately, since January 2011, I’ve photographed all the trailheads, trail intersections, and much of the terrain along each sub-segment of the hikes I’ve been on.  Another major component of this site is to share that information and make it possible for you to better know the territory before you embark on a trek.

Gabrieleno Trail near Chantry Flat, April 2011

Presently, this blog is very much in its embryonic stage of development.  It’s been online a very short time which exactly matches my experience blogging.  I already have the photos and other data to add another 70+ hikes and will be adding at least one per week for the foreseeable future.  Additionally, new features will be continually added.  I hope you will find this resource useful and check back often.  Perhaps someday we will meet on the trails!

Kyle

Kyle Kuns, Silver Moccasin Trail, August 2011, photo by Eric Kuns

Frogs I photographed while my brother was taking my picture, August 2011

Exploring Echo Mountain down to Rubio Canyon to ?

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Wednesday was a great hiking day.  I found a ridge trail not on any of my maps or described in any of my literature from Inspiration Point to close to the midway point of the middle Sam Merrill Trail.  The views were excellent and the trail a lot of fun (for me at least) to traverse.  I’ll be posting photos etc soon.

While trekking the above trail I talked to a trail runner (Chris) who asked me if I knew where the trail went leading down from Echo Mountain.  By the time I finished my very enjoyable hike along what I’m calling the Inspiration Peak Trail (at least until someone tells me an official name), I was inspired to explore further and see if I could learn the answer to Chris’s question.

I found the beginning of the trail easily enough.  It can be found by hiking down to the old tennis court area from Echo mountain from here:

Then, head to the picnic table pictured below:

Turn left between the tree and the old stone wall shown below:

The trail will begin looking like the picture below, clearly showing signs of being a trail leading somewhere:

Soon after passing through the above shown area, the trail will show signs that it’s not used nearly as much as other trails in the area.  It becomes fairly steep in some spots and at times requires a little looking around to make out the way forward.  There are no signs indicating where it leads and there are some points where it looks like there’s a choice in direction regarding how to proceed.  For example, when I reached this point

I continued following the path down ultimately leading to a stream roughly where Castle Canyon and Rubio Canyon meet.  However, branching off to the right at this point was another path equally clear leading somewhere else–I have no idea where.  Down near the stream I was rewarded with terrain like this:

I only had time to go about 0.8 miles and about 200′ of gain and loss round trip (data of iPhone GPS level of accuracy).  I don’t know where this trail ends or if it connects to somewhere else.  For like minded explorers, I’ve included a photo gallery with 39 more photos here to provide some clues as to how proceed along the trail.  This trail definitely has a more wilderness like feel to it and I only recommend it to those who are comfortable with a little sleuthing along the way and have experience knowing when to turn back if things become unclear etc.

If anyone knows any more about this trail–it’s name, any map or documentation describing it, or where it leads I would really appreciate a comment.  Thanks, and happy hiking!