2010-04-02: Tahquitz Peak Hike/Backpack Trip Report

[OLLIE]

Out of a potential of twelve people we ended up with a total of four people on this trip. We all met at Skytrax's house at 6:00 am, loaded up the BugEater and set out for Idyllwild. We reached Idyllwild Ranger Station around 8:30 am and got our permit. The temperature was just above 40 degrees. Perfect weather for our day’s activity. The trailhead is about 15 minutes from the ranger station. Idyllwild is like a maze. If it weren’t for a GPS I’d get lost in that town.

We got to the trailhead, checked our gear, put on our packs, secured the BugEater for the day, and headed up the trail (South Ridge Trail). The South Ridge trail is a little over 3.5 miles to the lookout tower (our destination) on Tahquitz. The trailhead elevation on the GPS was 6615 feet. The lookout tower was at a little over 8800 feet. The other approach to Tahquitz is called Deveil’s Slide via Saddle Junction. When calling the ranger station in prep for our hike we were told that ice axes and crampons were going to be required to do the Devil’s Slide approach and that the South Ridge Trail had some snow but was better off than Devil’s Slide. Since none of us had crampons we opted for South Ridge.

Not even a half mile into our trek we encountered snow drifting over the trail. When we stepped on the snow it had a hard crust over it. We would later realize that crampons would have been wise on this approach as well. The further we went the more treacherous the trail got. The snow was hard packed enough that we had a hard time getting a foot hold and sometimes slipped because we couldn’t kick a deep enough step into the snow. A sudden slip had the potential of shooting down the mountain. A few of us actually took a slide or two and were fortunate enough to get ourselves stopped. We lost one lens cap and my SPOT Satellite Messenger due to slips and falls.

The first two and a half to three miles of the trip took us up a gradual 1000 feet in elevation. Then the last 1000 feet was done in a steep ascent of some nasty switchbacks. The snow cover was so bad that we lost the trail several times and weren’t sure if we were going the correct direction even with plots on our GPS’s. When we got to the point where our GPS’s told us we were only 500 feet from the lookout tower (500 feet in trail distance, not elevation) we had completely lost the trail. We nearly turned back but managed to dig and crawl our way to the top.

We came up over the top ledge (about 100 feet from the lookout) and about crapped because it was a shear drop that would have only taken the snow breaking away for us to go plummeting down a cliff. We were so run down and not used to the higher altitude that we could only take about ten steps then we had to stop to catch our breathe. We finally made it to the Tahquitz lookout tower.

We took off our packs and sat down on the catwalk on the lookout tower to admire the view for about 30 minutes while we snacked and got our energy back before facing the trek back (which frankly, I was worried about). Although gravity would be on our side, that was going to be the biggest problem too. While we were setting there I decided to pull my HT out and see what kind of range I could get with it. With just 5 watts from my handheld I was able to hit the Otay Repeater 90 miles away. I had a brief conversation with Photojeeper (KG6HRA). I was very impressed with the range.

After a brief rest, Skytrax asked me what the time was. We were both astonished when we saw that it was 2:00 pm. At the half way point, based on our average speed, our GPS said we should have been at the tower at around 10:45 am. The mess at the top had severely slowed us down. We decided to pack up early and high-tail it down before we lost the light. After several semi-controlled slides we managed to get down the worst of the trail up top. The rest went fairly smoothly. It took us nearly 5 hours to get to the top and just over two to get down.

All-in-all this was a better preparation trip for our Langley trip than we had hoped for. We learned a lot and the trail tested us more than we had imagined it would. Our next peak to tackle will probably be San Antonio (Baldy). We have more conditioning to do. Below is the link to the pictures I took. There will be more uploaded in a few days. Aside from the slightly difficult trail, the views were amazing. I will definitely be doing this hike again.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/fj-ollie/s ... 643344543/

[OLLIE]

Here's a link to a YouTube video that TopDogSix made from our trip...

http://www.youtube.com/user/topdogsix?feature=mhw5o

[BorregoWrangler]

Now that's an adventure. Sorry I missed it, but I'm not sure I would've made it!

[OU812]

Wow. What a great warm up for you guys. I have some instep crampons like these that are always in my pack. Admittedly I have never used them in snow. But I did use them to cross a fast flowing river on some very slick logs. They pack up very small and are easy to put on.

[photojeeper]

We were so run down and not used to the higher altitude that we could only take about ten steps then we had to stop to catch our breathe.

You should try hiking at 10,000 feet. I was hiking around the Bristlecone pines near Bishop with my camera backpack and I was making 100 yards before I had to stop to get air.

I had a brief conversation with Photojeeper (KG6HRA).

I was surprised to hear Ollie, his communication was very clear.

JJ

[Chazz Layne]

Beautiful! I'm looking forward to getting back out on the trail now that most of my wrenching is done. Vehicles can be great fun, but they're just no substitute for boots on the ground.

[OLLIE]

Our next planned "prep" trips will be over 10K. I need to start conditioning even harder. No matter how hard we condition altitude will still be a factor come the Langley trip. On this trip we went from sea level to 8800 feet in a day without acclimating. During our Langley trip we will be spending a day acclimating at an increase of 2000 feet a day. I was rather happy with my conditiion as far as breathe control and muscle fatigue. I thought I'd be worse. What bothered me was the way I felt the next two days after the trip. I need to do more back-to-back hikes of greater distances without full muscle recovery to build up for the Langley and Gorgonio trip (SummerFest).

I agree with Chazz... Wheelin' has its place but I'm starting to come into my own with a nice combination of wheelin', backpacking, and trekking. I'm sure that once I go to the Sierras I'll be hooked.

[OU812]

I was rather happy with my conditiion as fart as breathe control and muscle fatigue.

lol

[DaveK]

I was rather happy with my conditiion as fart as breathe control and muscle fatigue. I thought I'd be worse. What bothered me was the way I felt the next two days after the trip. I need to do more back-to-back hikes of greater distances without full muscle recovery to build up for the Langley and Gorgonio trip (SummerFest).

You might have been happy but what about the others?

[OLLIE]

I was rather happy with my conditiion as fart as breathe control and muscle fatigue.

lol

Nice catch... I editted it. Thanks.