Start point
Mt Islip Saddle, mile 386.1
End point
Sulfur Springs Trail Camp, mile 406.6
Miles hiked
About 16
Wilderness area
San Gabriel Mountains National Monument
Angeles National Forest
People I met
Titanium
Mad Cow
True Grit
The day on trail
Some days you can hike without anything but birds, wind, and crunchy gravel under your feet. Some days you need a hit of dopamine and a dose of distraction.
Today was the latter.
We woke up, and Sinead, trying on the trail name Sunrise, was off early. Piñacolada, Devin, and I took our time. We all cowboy camped, except for Devin, and we’re kind of really digging it. It’s so nice to have so much less to pack up, and it’s really liberating to sleep with nothing between you and the world except your sleeping bag or quilt.
The prior day was really hard on us all and we were going a bit slow. Plus, we met True Grit, Mad Cow, and Titanium while getting out on of camp. Talking with new hikers, especially SOBOs who you can get info from, is always a great distraction. Though we all had to go. The three girls had to hike, and us three boys had a big road walk to do. Luckily the views right off the bat were spectacular.
I took some time taking these photos, and needed some alone time, so I was all too happy to let Devin and Piñacolada forge on ahead.
The entire Highway 2 was shut down to traffic, as I think I mentioned in the earlier post. And today was just a continuation of why. Snow banks started pretty quickly. I couldn’t believe how tall they were and I’ve no idea how they were plowed out.
It was a long road walk, I think about eight miles. I put on some Nefesh Mountain, an amazing Jewish bluegrass group, and fell into a vibe and groove. I’ve missed being around other Jews, so listening to soulful, well made Jewish music with a bluegrass flavor just got me going. I danced a little, I cried more than a little, and I just used it to get an emotional reset.
There was a really cool tunnel. It’s always fun to drive through these, but to have the road to yourself where you can talk and since and play in them is so unique.
When were you last able to walk inside one of these and take your time? What would you shout or say? Would you sing? Would you laugh?It all echoes around and brings back the joy of childhood, when you could play without being judged for it.
That’s one of the biggest magical feats of the trail: bringing back play.
It was such a long road walk though. Before I reconnected with everyone, I got an answer to how things might have gotten plowed.
I also saw this tree hanging on precariously to cracks in the rocks.
And some tracks in the snow which I couldn’t identify.
I’ve said it multiple times, but there’s something amazing and also creepy about having a whole highway to yourself.
Soon enough I caught up to Devin and Piñacolada having lunch at a picnic table at a campsite. I joined them and we had a nice conversation about food and hiking. I really like these guys. Devin asks a lot of really insightful questions while I just ramble on. I wish I could be more inquisitive like he is. And Piñacolada is just pure homie. He and I are bonding really tightly.
As we walked, we saw some gigantic pine cones in the road. And there was a snow plow beelining it’s way to the cones with violent intentions. We saw this unfolding and loudly started cheering for the plow. When it connected with the cones and decimated them we jumped and shouted with delight.
The plow pulled up beside us and said the magic words: “Y’all want some snacks?”
Snow. Plow. Trail. Magic.
The guy, Juan, gave us a sleeve of basically Mexican digestive biscuits, a few pieces of fresh fruit, and some chocolates and gummies. The guy became a legend to us as we were all gobsmacked and excited for this unique trail magic.
He told us of a controlled burn behind us on trail and gave us some nuances of where LA County took care of the highway and where Wrightwood’s district took over. I think Wrightwood has it worse, but for a shorter stretch. But it doesn’t matter what I think — I’m no road engineer.
Invigorated, we continued on.
Finally, we got to the intersection where the trail was able to resume from the road. We love trail and don’t like road walks. Road walks are really hard on the feet.
Right at the beginning of the trail there was a blowdown and the remnants of a car that wrecked on the road immediately above the trail.
Not fond of road walks. But we also aren’t fond of blowdowns.
There was also a lot of these cables strewn around. It looked like coax and there were some ATT crews out there, but I truly don’t know enough to determine what it was. Either way, I avoid downed mystery cables.
Piñacolada and I soon outpaced Devin, who would catch up later. And we came across poodle dog bush.
It’s cute but will wreck you. I’m sure I’ll write more about it when it gets more prevalent down the road. Just don’t let the cutesy name get you; it’s a beast of a plant that can hospitalize you if you touch it.
Poodle dog isn’t exciting. What is, though, is hitting 400 miles!
There’s some dispute about actual mileage, so you’ll see a few different markers of each milestone (literally mile stones, in this case). You can see there are two different ones in these pictures.
We continued on past some campsites, stations, and markers.
Can we take a moment to talk about the “snag hazard” sign? Wouldn’t that make a great punk band name?
Getting further along we ran into Sheriff taking a break and filtering water. He was a little worse for the wear, and we just continued on.
Eventually we ran into some snow mobile sitting in a patch of sand.
And one of my favorite features was this rock that looked like a sitting dog.
A couple more miles and we were at camp. It was beautiful and I wish I’d gotten more photos of it.
Sera had beaten us there and set up her tent under a tree. I scouted around and found a proper camp area with fire rings, picnic tables, and pit toilets. There was a beautiful creek running by for water.
We went across the creek to the campsites and set up. It was a nice time for conversation and we all caught up about the day’s shenanigans. El Dorado, Florida Man, Cake, Janna, and Dart rolled in shortly after and stayed at the area Sera originally set up at.
It was a really lovely day as so many of these are. The sun was warm and not hot. There was a breeze but it wasn’t windy. There was water but not so much your feet got drenched. The worst part was the road walk, when there was some black ice in the shade from some snowmelt. All in all, a fantastic day.
Rediscovering play as an adult is the single most underrated thing about adulthood. I don’t think many of us even realize it. Or prioritize it, in any sense of the word. Joy comes to us so easily when we’re children. It makes me sad to realize how much harder it is to come by after we’ve reached a certain age. Domestication by capitalism. I hate it! That’s my soapbox. Anyway… inquisitiveness is a practice. Most people are too busy talking. That’s why, funnily enough, I wouldn’t shout or sing inside that tunnel: I’d just listen. People don’t realize how hard it is to hear nuance when you have SSHL. In a tunnel, I want to hear my own heartbeat mirrored back at me. I want to hear the susurration of the wind. I want to hear how it changes ordinary sounds, makes them extraordinary or out-of-place. I might whisper to myself. But the quiet things… that’s what I’d wanna hear. Thank you for being inquisitive! 😉
P.S. Your photos are part of what I love about your blog. That cover photo… AMAZEBALLS.
I agree about the photos being a huge part of the allure of reading your blog. They bring color and texture and snap, crackle, pop to your words. I love the shot of you next to the huge walls of plowed snow. I knew exactly what kind of snowplows made them because when Beth and I drove away from Jackson Hole, WY during a snowstorm in 2020, we passed a few of those monster plows.
Another tunnel!! Whoop whoop! I like finding rock formations that look like other things.