Mt. Baldy

When Mt. Baldy, also called Mt. San Antonio, isn't being skied on, it's a place where hikers can scrape their head on the clouds. At a little over 10,000 ft, the mountain makes for a great day hike for residents of Southern California. It's just east of LA, and a couple hours north of San Diego. From the top, you can see many of the nearby transverse ranges, peaks, and natural features such as the San Bernardino National Forest and San Jacinto Peak, and well, pretty much all of Southern California on a clear day.

In the age of GPS navigation, directions are somewhat pointless. Suffice it to say, you will need to get to Mt. Baldy Village to get an Adventure Pass and find the trail head. The Adventure Passes are obtained at the Mt. Baldy Visitors Center, around 6781 Mt. Baldy Road. These will allow you to park for the day. Continue on Mt. Baldy Road until you hit Falls Road, and park in one of the nearby dirt lots. Start your hike up Falls Road. You will hit a hairpin turn overlooking San Antonio Falls, and about 300 meters later you should see a very small path cut to the left ascending the mountain. This is Ski Hut trail. It's about 8 miles long and offers some of the best views. Being unmarked, it is easy to miss, so if you are walking more than 15 minutes after the hairpin turn you have probably gone past it.

A green Ski Hut marks the half way point of the trail. A couple miles after the hut, the path to the summit can be a little rocky and unstable, and is at times divergent and ambiguous. If you find yourself with apparently multiple different trails before you, they all lead to the same place, and are only evidence of years of meandering foot traffic.

Upon reaching the summit, the shrubbery thins out, giving way to a rocky, dusty, dome which I assume gives the mountain its popular nickname. The view is good, really good, and in order to truly appreciate it you of course must be there. So go.