Big Santa Anita Canyon

I went hiking with CA again last Friday, and it ended up being another long hike (of course). Instead of going to Malibu, we went to the San Gabriel Mountains and went on the Big Santa Anita Loop. It was only supposed to be 9.4 miles, but CA convinced me to take a slightly more roundabout way back to the car and it ended up being nearly 10 miles. This was probably the most well-organized hike I've been on because I brought enough water, had 2 luna bars with me, CA had a book complete with map and trail guide, and he brought his watch that had a compass in it and told us our elevation. Looks like we learned from our previous mistakes haha.

We drove out here by passing through Pasadena and drove up a mountain to end up at Chantry Flat where we could park our car and begin our hike. The drive up had awesome views of LA, and I want to come back when the sky is clearer so that the views of the city wouldn't be completely obscured by the smog.

We started hiking on the Gabrielino Trail, which had several different paths of varying lengths, so you could go for as far as you'd like or as short as you'd like. The hike started out by going downhill really steeply. I hate going downhill at the beginning of a hike because it just reminds me how much it's going to suck at the end when I'm tired and struggling up this mountain. We started out at a relatively high elevation, and I took some pictures of the surrounding mountains and valleys. I don't want to post those pictures up here because I don't feel like they do the scenery any justice. Seeing such a huge work of nature in person reminds me of how small and even inconsequential I am in the larger scheme of things, and the enormity of it just doesn't come through in a picture.

CA and I continued on this trail taking the Spruce Grove path, and it was awesome because it mostly followed along a creek called Winter Creek. Even though it was pretty hot out, most of the hike was covered by large, towering birch trees, so being in the shade for the majority of the hike was nice. It was so awesome hiking along this creek. I've never done that before since none of the Malibu hikes I've been on follow one, but there was some water flowing and at certain parts of it, we even saw trout swimming!! There were also several small cabins along this trail, and many man-made dams. The trail along Winter Creek primarily went uphill, so I struggled for a bit of this hike.

We kept on going, and soon, the trail became rather rocky as we ascended further. I think it was at this point where we reached the 50-foot-high Sturtevant Falls. There wasn't much water in it as there hasn't been much rain this year, but it was still pretty nonetheless. I really want to come back on this hike after more rain has fallen so I can see how this waterfall looks in all of its glory. I've never been good at managing my way through rocks because I never seem to make smart decisions on where to place my hands and feet, so reaching Sturtevant Falls was a bit tricky for me haha. I made CA lead the way so I could see how I should maneuver myself around the rocks while staying on the trail. I don't know if it's clear in the picture above, but that's my attempt at an aerial view of the creek leading up to Sturtevant Falls. The camera is looking down into a gap between the rocks as the water fell down to the creek, and the drop is probably about 10 feet or so.

CA and I finally reached the end of the Spruce Grove path, but we continued on for another mile or two to reach Mt. Zion. Mt. Zion was my first summit!! It supposedly is 3575 feet, and since we probably started at around 1500 feet, we ended up gaining 2000 feet in elevation. It was a good feeling knowing I hiked that far up to the summit, but it was a little disappointing. The summit wasn't what I expected since there were just shrubbery everywhere, but it did have a nice view of the city (complete with smog and all).

It was at this point where we began our descent. After a couple miles or so, the trail forked, and we had the option of taking the lower trail (2 miles long) or the upper trail (3 miles). Any tired person with common sense probably would've taken the lower trail, but CA and I were worried that we'd have to hike that steep hill at the end (which would've SUCKED). He wanted to take the upper trail, claiming that his book said we could take that route and avoid that steep uphill ascent at the end. Of course I listened to him, and within a quarter of a mile of that trail, it began going uphill more...and more.....and more. Needless to say, I wasn't too happy with this, but it eventually leveled out and we got back to CA's car.

Nearly 10 miles and 2000 feet later, I felt like my legs were going to fall off. But I guess it was worth it.

I really like the San Gabriel Mountains. I wonder which trail I shall try out next?