We've been trying to get ourselves into the mindset of hiking 20+ miles a day for when we do the John Muir Trail this August, so whenever possible, we've been going on long hikes. Last weekend we headed to Altadena for a 14 mile round trip excursion. We both had new shoes to test out, and Sam wanted to test out his new Backpack that he made (more on that coming soon).

Here's a picture of the map we were vaguely trying to follow:

We have gone up the Sam Merrill trail to Echo Mountain and the Castle Canyon trail up to Inspiration point dozens of times (It's a 20 minute drive, and the parking is easy even on crowded days). This was our first time going farther than that though. We wanted to summit Mt. Lowe for a total elevation gain of 3,796 ft over roughly 7 miles (14 miles round trip).

As we got to Inspiration point, we couldn't believe how clear of a day it was in Los Angeles. Days like this are rare, and I usually don't even take pictures on this hike. As we climbed a little higher above Inspiration point, the views got even better. Optimal Picture time:

Inspiration point is in the middle of those two peaks 

The trail was almost completely exposed, and we both got burned. I had only put on one layer of sunblock before we left home. Rookie move (especially for my white skin). 

Information board from the summit of Mount Lowe:

Old cables from the trains are still there:

The view from the actual summit looking toward LA wouldn't have been that great taken with my iPhone, so I didn't take any. As clear as it was, the iPhone just wouldn't pick up on the details I would have wanted to capture. 

There are viewing tubes all along the trail all over this mountain pointing to particular land marks. I love standing on one peak and gazing across a valley and other mountains at other peaks we have bagged. In this case, Mt Baldy was clearly visible (and covered in beautiful snow):

Here's a closer view (I zoomed in a little):

We took the Upper Sam Merrill Trail Back to Echo Mountain en route back to the car. The views from this side were new to us as we had always taken Castle Canyon:

It was a successful day of hiking, which I will remember by this:

DOH! 

Angeles Crest Hiking

We live very close to Los Angeles, and this summer has been relentless with its heat. So off we went to search for water. We headed up the 2 to a picnic area in the Angeles Crest called Switzer. Lots of people crowd this place, especially on weekends. Most head down the relatively easy 2 mile trail to the Switzer falls and jump in. Well, luckily we know of a less crowded spot a little off trail, in the opposite direction. So while the crowds pour down the trail and turn left to the falls, we turn right, and through some slightly overgrown bush to this nice little pond:

We hope to come back here often when its blazing hot. After a few miles of hiking in the sun, it sure does feel good to get to a small cliff and jump in. This pond was well over 10 ft deep. 

We even made a friend.