I hiked Hines and Topatopa from Sisar Canyon. At 21 mi / 6000 ft, this is a long outing with a healthy amount of elevation gain. It's really not too bad though, since the vast majority of the mileage is on very good road and trail. With the exception of the steep, class 2 ascent up the ridge to the Hines summit and the drop off Topatopa back to the road, the miles go by pretty quick.

This was a perfect early spring day; clear and cool with a consistent breeze; the canyon trail was mostly shaded and the creek was flowing strongly alongside. Past the trail camp, the route climbs steeply up to the more gently graded fire roads. The climb up Hines is by far the most interesting stretch - steep with a brief knife-edge section and some good scrambling at the top. It was so clear that from the top I could see the snow-capped summit of Mt. Baldy 85 mi away.