S Calif: San Gorgonio Wilderness Backpacking

[Hikin’ Jim]

I've spent a lot of time in the San Gorgonio Wilderness in Southern California. I've put together a basic guide to Backpacking in the San Gorgonio Wilderness. In it I plot on a map the (correct) locations for each of the trail camps, discuss map errors, and sketch in trails not shown on the USGS topo maps (some of which are very worthwhile). My list of trails is more complete than that of Tom Harrison Maps (no disrespect intended to Mr. Harrison or his fine maps which keep getting better and better).

I hope it may be helpful,

HJ
Adventures In Stoving

[James Cahill]

Yes yes. Thank you much

It's a very pretty area and this will help me explore it more

[Nick Gatel]

So next year, when you are hiking your favorite San G trail, and you find it even more crowded than before, you will know why.

Same thing happened to Desert Skyline. 20 years ago nobody hiked it and now dozens or even hundreds can be found on it some weekends.

Not meant to criticize your blog, you did a nice job of documentation.

[Hikin’ Jim]

Yeah, Nick,

That was in the back of my mind. But those trails are all marked on various maps (well, except around Fish Creek), described in various guide books, and detailed on the SGWA website. There's nothing really new there although I think I've made a fairly comprehensive set of maps detailing where the trail camps really are. That might actually not be widely known. My blog post might cause a few people to divert from the overused portions of the wilderness and start using some of the lesser traveled sections of the wilderness. Actually, greater dispersion of the use might not be such a bad thing. That said, I may delete some of the short cuts which are not widely known.

There's so much more I could have included but did not. I did put some thought into what I will say and what I will not.

HJ
Adventures In Stoving

[James Cahill]

I agree with Nick (even though in this case I probably fall under the "influx" of new hikers category) but if I already have plans to visit this area, then the article on Jim's blog acts as additional details and tid-bits that will hopefully make my experience easier and more enjoyable.

Granted though, my generation didn't really have the opportunity to visit some of these wonderful places around the country before they became so popular and overrun, so I don't really know what I'm missing.

[Nick Gatel]

Jim,

I have posted a couple trip reports I regret. That's how I learned. I have posted a couple that no one in their right mind wants to do. And I did one and got several PM's that they got lost on the route and wanted to know if I had GPS Tracker do-hickeys. I wouldn't know the difference between a GPS track and a bear track.

[Hikin’ Jim]

There's some really fun stuff out there in the SGW, and it's for the most part in pretty good shape. The SGWA and the FS have done a pretty fair job of keeping things together.

In the "good old days," you could camp where you pleased, but I think the restrictions of today aren't overly onerous. Off trail, they still allow one to camp where the mood strikes you. Fires are forbidden, but in a heavily visited area, I'm not so sure that's a bad thing.

HJ
Adventures In Stoving

[Nick Gatel]

If you want some fun hikes, start in walking from Whitewater or Palm Springs.

[Hikin’ Jim]

> I have posted a couple trip reports I regret.

Yeah, I'd really like to avoid that. Everything I've posted so far is pretty much already available on the web — except the correct locations of the camps. You're already required to use those camps anyway, so no harm there. I guess I have consolidated things and made things more accessible, but none of those hikes is so ultra attractive that they're going to get swarmed. People are drawn to the "biggest and the baddest". Just look at Whitney, Skyline, San Gorgonio, Everest, etc.

I kid you not: I talked to two women coming down the S Fork trail. I asked where they had been. They replied, "the summit" — as if that were the only object of interest in the entire wilderness. I didn't tell them that I had just done four summits over 10,000' that trip.

> I did one and got several PM's that they got lost on the route and wanted to know if I had GPS Tracker do-hickeys.

I do worry about that. I encounter people that if I plot a position accurately on a map cannot go out and find that position on the ground — even if it's a fairly recognizable thing like a spring. They need "digits" which they plug into their GPS and more or less blindly follow into the back country. Really? God help them if their GPS dies out there.

HJ
Adventures In Stoving

[Stephen Barber]

Nice job, Jim! I read it yesterday. Given the fire on San Jacinto, I've been thinking I needed to do more on San Gorgonio next summer. I'm sure I'm not the only one! Hopefully your guide will help spread the extra use around a bit more. Always fun to see your little girl chugging along on the trail too!

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[Hikin’ Jim]

> Nice job, Jim! I read it yesterday. Given the fire on San Jacinto, I've been thinking I needed to do more on San Gorgonio next summer. I'm sure I'm not the only one! Hopefully your guide will help spread the extra use around a bit more.

I love San Jacinto, but the San Gorgonio is it's equal — and actually the San Gorgonio Wilderness has more off trail "back country" area* than the San Jacinto Wilderness. The San Gorgonio Wilderness is blessed with a lot of good water sources too. It's worth a visit — or two or three or … :)

> Always fun to see your little girl chugging along on the trail too!

Well, speaking of little girls and the San Gorgonio Wilderness, from this last weekend: :)

HJ
Adventures In Stoving

*I've seen different figures for the size of the San Gorgonio Wilderness. The SGWA website says 58,969 acres, but that's just the (roughly) half that is under the control of the Forest Service. There is another portion nearly equal in size to the east that is under BLM control. By contrast, the federal San Jacinto Wilderness is 19,470 acres and San Jacinto State Park lists its size as 14,000 acres, for a total of about 33,500 acres, about 1/3 the size of the total San Gorgonio Wilderness area.

[Hikin’ Jim]

> If you want some fun hikes, start in walking from Whitewater or Palm Springs.

I definitely want to do more stuff around Whitewater. Hopefully I'll get the time this winter. Things should settle down after we move next month.

I'd also like to explore more in the BLM section of the San Gorgonio Wilderness, which is some wild country. Not much in the way of trails over there.

HJ
Adventures in Stoving

[Hikin’ Jim]

> I had done plenty of paperback and online research. Of the more useful documentation was from Hikin Jim's blog and photo albums.

Example: a map says there's an intermittent water source. Jim's documentation had a photo of the spring, and the landmarks (trees, rocks, hillside) to find it.

Ultimately because of his write up, I had a higher confidence in my water planning.

Roger,

Thanks for saying that. I try really hard to give people a sense of the trail and to provide concrete details. I basically see myself (ideally) as augmenting the topo maps.

HJ
Adventures In Stoving

[Hikin’ Jim]

I've completed my map upgrades for my Six Backpacking Loops in the San Gorgonio Wilderness. I've got much clearer maps, and I've added a lot of water source information. I've given each water source from one to five stars, depending on how reliable it is.

If you have a moment, have a look and let me know what you think of the overhaul.

HJ
Adventures in Stoving

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