Distance

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Elevation

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Kicking off the season of desert peakbagging a bit early with probably the toughest SoCal climb I've done, 13 hours car to car. With over 5000' of gain, a long approach, significant navigation difficulties and pure cross country/ desert scrub bushwack past Whitewater Creek, it made for a really long day. Left a register on top. Since the peak is so remote, I saw tons of animals including two jackrabbits, one rattlesnake, 13 desert bighorn sheep and even a bear!

Route name

Southeast Ridge

Obstacles

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Key gear

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jimduvall

Congrats on taking 7054!! Do you have a GPS map of the route? I figured it would be a two day hike, going up whitewater and then in toward the sink on the Millard Canyon Trail. I'd love to know the route you took. Anyway, well done!

Christopher

Thanks, definitely one of the toughest I've done in SoCal! I approached the peak from Mission Creek Preserve since it looked like I'd be able to follow old roads all the way to Wathier's Landing, which was the case. I didn't know how tedious it would be hiking upstream from Whitewater. From there I hopped on the ridge that juts out farthest to the east and takes you up from the southeast to the summit. A good amount of brush but manageable. The worst of it was the pitch above "The Sink" to the summit. I debated taking Millard Canyon back but the ridgeline getting from the summit to the trail look really overgrown, even worse then what I had been dealing with, plus there was a loose looking overgrown bump to get by. I'd say it would be doable but far from easy.