Camped overnight at Manker Flats. Broke camp at 0800 and hit the trailhead at 0830.

Plan was to take Devil's Backbone on the way up, including the detour to bag Mt Harwood, with an option to bag West Baldy as well. Given my penchant for missing turns, I purchased a smartwatch before this trip (Garmin Epix Pro) so I could navigate without needing to pull my phone out.

Conditions were great -- plenty of shade at the start with pleasant temps and a cool breeze. Had the mountain pretty much to myself on the ascent; only came across one small group who were on their way down.

Devil's Backbone granted great views of the desert to the north and hazy views of San Gorgonio to the east. Made it to Harwood around 1100. As I rejoined the main Backbone trail to make the final push to Baldy, my right calf threatened to cramp up and I realized my left hamstring wasn't far behind. I paused to load up on calories and electrolytes then proceeded in a relatively delicate fashion.

Summited right at 1200 and all at once, doing this on a Thursday paid off -- I had the summit to myself. Two other hikers summited right after me via Baldy Bowl and we exchanged photos before they descended. Spent about half an hour on the summit fueling up and debating on the West Baldy option -- ultimately, my legs were cooked, so I decided to skip it to limit my chances of having to limp down 4000ft on a bum calf.

Descent was relatively uneventful -- I was glad to let my quads take over for my hamstrings and calves. I grabbed an extra liter of blissfully cold water from the stream by the ski hut, but my filter was flowing particularly slowly so I didn't end up drinking most of it.

Made it back to the TH just before 1500 and drove home to LA.

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4/50 HPS Star Emblem Peaks
6/280 HPS Peaks