"Got to the parking lots by Manker just before 6am, and it was already fairly busy. The trail had bits of hard snow/ice but it wasn't a risk today. It got really windy at the top, but overall it was really pleasant weather. It was about a 5-5.5 hour round trip. I took the bowl trail." — oskar156 • Mar 28, 2026

"Climbed on June 1st. Started at 9 AM, headed up the main road, and then the falls, which we went down to. Then climbed up more on the Ski Hut Trail and then turned right after the Register on the Register Ridge Trail. It was steep and loose, but had some nice views as I climbed up. There were some rocky sections, but overall pretty easy and nice. Towards the top, the pines are less present and the trail gets steeper, more rocky, and less views. Then we climb up to Mt Harwood Peak, which has nice views and a station on the top, nd some snow on the side. Then we climbed down Harwood to the saddle, which had more views and then we climbed up the switchbacks to the Baldy summit, past the small glacier with no snow, and then we reached the Baldy Summit, the sign was up there, and there was a lot of people as this area just opened on Memorial Day weekend. Then after enjoying the views we went over the West Baldy, which has an easy climb and it had a large snow patch up there. Then the West Baldy summit was reached and there was only a cairn up there marking the summit, and some views. Then I climbed up back to Baldy and then went down the Ski Hut Trail, which provided more nice pines and..." — lc444 • Aug 6, 2025

"A midweek hike of a Southern California classic. I made a point to visit Harwood as well. I ignored Gold Ridge Mine Overlook, since it is just a bump off the trail. Light foot traffic on a Wednesday made it a peaceful hike." — MikeTeeples • Jun 25, 2025

"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. Spen..." — colin • Sep 14, 2023

"Originally attempted to summit via Devil's Backbone but was turned around at Baldy Notch. Second attempt via Register Ridge loop with a descent on Mount Baldy trail. Missed the trailhead up to Register Ridge and went to summit via the Mount Baldy trail. Mistakenly thought the elevation profile was easier on Register Ridge trail. Realized Cory Hoo couldn't get down with the equipment he had. We had to call emergency services. Helicopter couldn't hoist due to wind. Ground team retrieved us and we went down Register Ridge with better gear." — Domtron • Feb 19, 2023

"Skinned up the West Ridge, skied down the Main Bowl. Warm day. An incredibly awesome Baldy groomer stopped us on the way down the Baldy road asking if we wanted a ride back down to the gate in the bed of his pickup truck. The answer was of course YES! Thank you! " — danishclimber • Feb 4, 2023

"Great day skiing Mount Baldy chute - snow was hard crust until 10am, softer after that. Hiked 2/3 of the way up to the ski hut, then skinned to half way up the bowl, frontpointed to the top of the chute. The very summit was a little icy, but the descent was very pleasant. Skied down to 1/3 of the way past the hut and hiked back down from there. Back in LA for lunch with the family. Couldn’t think of a better day." — danishclimber • Jan 28, 2023

"The last of the three saints, Mt Baldy was the easiest peak to climb. But after yesterdays sufferfest on San Jacinto the climb to Baldy felt hard. I could tell that my body needs a rest, but having the crew around I was able to just cruise through the whole loop. What a 3 day journey!" — nandorszotak • Sep 25, 2022

"This hike was very nice. I started at 5 AM at the Manker Flats TH. Then I hiked up the trail called the Ski Hut Trail. Then ascended the Register Ridge Trail. Then we ascend up the switchbacks to the junction with the Devil's Backbone Trail. Then we summited Mt Harwood, then descended the Mt Harwood Trail. Then turned right to Mt San Antonio. EAte on the summit then continued to West Baldy, then went back up to Baldy then climbed to Dawson Peak. Then went down Ski Hut Trail down to the creek, which we washed up in. We also visited the Ski Hut then went down. The TH at this time was so hot (90-95 F)" — lc444 • Jul 20, 2022

"Took the Devil's Backbone Trail to Harwood and Baldy, then the short hike over to West Baldy before heading back down the same way. Saw lots of bighorn sheep up there around the peaks, really cool. Great day for hiking." — jodola • Jun 28, 2022