California Winter Trip Recommendations

JT can get down in the teens. Any snow is usually pretty light. Along I-10. The South entrance will be at a lower elevation and warmer. Whitewater following the water. Mission Creek. Box canyons near Mecca. Red Cloud Road or Wiley’s Well area. Chuckwalla Bills out of DHS. Goes to yucca Valley. Hidden mine near the cabin. I-40 to the north. Marble Mountains. Calico area. Rodman Canyon. Surprise tank petroglyphs. Bessimer(?) Mine Road off of Giant Rock Road off of Old Woman Springs. Out of Yucca Valley or Apple Valley. Small canyon full of petroglyphs. Ancient circles made in desert pavement. The name escapes me.

You might also try Death Valley.  It, too, can get cold, but there are a few overnight routes that work well.  You’ll have to carry all your water, but for an overnight that’s not too bad.  We’ve done Cottonwood Canyoon/Marble Canyon and Indian Pass, and dayhiked a few other routes.  Make sure you know the weather.  We had freezing temps in Cottonwood Canyon.  Aim for lower elevation hikes, like Indian Pass or Owlshead Mountains.

Here’s a link to the NPS site: https://www.nps.gov/deva/planyourvisit/backpacking.htm

The Whitewater preserve area (I-10) as said, and maybe a PCT section towards I-15’s Cajon Pass if you can arrange a ride (do not leave an unattended shuttle car at the latter) and if the snow hasn’t fallen yet (Big Bear has a ski resort .. probably get an update on their website if skiing has started there’s been natural snow).

There’s eastern San Diego county though along that PCT area, a free permit may be needed (Cleveland National Forest).  Go before PCT season for more availability and fewer rattlers.

North of you?

In the general San Francisco coastal area and if ok with a “canned” hike w/prepaid campsites .. vs. more secure parking, there’s the Point Reyes National Seashore.  Beautiful but very humid (tip: last camp should be Sky camp to dry everything out)

If more adventurous there’s the incomplete Bay Ridge trail though incomplete parts may require “urban” hiking.  There’s some trip reports on that general area on his site.

I-10 .. Point Reyes

Also watch the wind.  I’ve been in over 100 mph winds arihnd the former on the San Jacinto side (twice the SMD Deshultes did well with minimal wind blocking available and once a Prolite Li behind a big tree) .. and just saw on a weather channel Pojnt Reyes is getting 67 mph winds right now.  All due to storms.

The Desert Trail runs from the Mexican border at Jacumba up through the Anza-Borrego, around the Salton Sea, through Joshua Tree then through several wildernesses and the Mojave National Preserve and on into Death Valley. Elevations range from 8000 feet to below sea level. I’ve written a couple of TRs, see here and here, Or my trail journals here.

Guidebooks are available from Steve Tabor at desert609@aol.com. Or see Buck Nelson’s page here.

The DT is remote and will test your desert hiking skills. But if you are up to the challenge you should give it some consideration.

Pinnacles National Park 80 miles south of San Jose.  Condors, Tule Elk, Pronghorns, talus caves.  No long trails, but plenty of loops and out & backs for a long weekend trip.  Could be brisk during a cold snap, but much of the winter would be great hiking temps.  Not a place to go in the summer.

https://home.nps.gov/pinn/planyourvisit/upload/2019-map-update-DRAFT-2.pdf

I grew up visiting the Pinnacles every spring.  Wonderful place, and now a National Park. It is VERY crowded on spring weekends these days because of the wildflower blooms.  Other times, not so much.

But I don’t think of it as a backpacking destination.  All the hikes are easily done in a day.  Overnight camping (backpacking) is illegal outside of the campgrounds. But Big Sur and Henry Coe State Park are not that far away, and both offer lots of backpacking opportunities.

Love this recommendation. I’ve never been here but it’s been on my list for a while. Do you live around the area? Any recommendations on where to camp?

Creamery Meadow trail. Short trail. North of BS Village. It follows the BS River out to the ocean. I don’t know if you can still camp.

Henry Coe State Park

https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=561

https://coepark.net/

The second link is for the Pine Ridge Association, which is a nonprofit dedicated to the park. they sell the best map of the park.

Where do you go in Los Padres?  It’s a big place, maybe there is a part you have not hit yet.  I’m thinking about going there myself this winter, looking at Ventana Wilderness, Sespe Wilderness, San Rafael Wilderness, and Dick Smith Wilderness but have not gotten very far in planning.  I was also looking at Henry Coe State Park.