Easily the most popular San Gorgonio hike route, the Vivian Creek Trail is an iconic adventure up to the highest point in SoCal, at 11,503 feet. Its proximity to scenic trails and nearby mountain lakes and streams make the campground a great . Although some treefall hazards from Red Tahquitz to Antsell Rock (PCT Miles 172.5-175) were cleared in June 2021 prior to the rockslide removal work, the situation has badly deteriorated since. Winter conditions exist in the San Gorgonio Wilderness. Although I made a concerted effort to put in a track as faithful to the trail routes as conditions permitted, wild winds and spindrift powder on all the exposed slopes rendered that fairly pointless. Use this trailhead address: South Fork Trail 1E04, 40800-40894 Jenks Lake Rd W, Angelus Oaks, CA 92305. Other than that the trailhead is a 30 minute drive over a sometimes rough road from the highway, I found little reason this should be the least popular route. 10 inches on 9th November), Wellman Divide (9700 ft): 0-1 inch (was 4 inches on 9th November), Annies Junction/approx. All trails above about 7500 ft remain lightly snow-covered. The top ten snowfall totals by winter for Idyllwild are as follows: While many hundreds of hours of time and labor are volunteered annually, the San Jacinto Trail Report uses small private donations to help cover modest operating costs. If full, drive down to bottom entrance area where there is an overflow parking lot. Above that elevation, icy snow cover is about 60% to Saddle Junction. Matthew L. Jones, 15, of San Bernardino tumbled about 400 feet to his death from a steep, burned slope near Devore on Jan. 11. Forest Service campgrounds at Boulder Basin, Marion Mountain, and Fern Basin are closed for the season. SGWA is testing a new interactive trail map! Spikes are strongly recommended as the snow is now hard, compacted and very icy in places. Alternatively snowshoes could have been used, depending on personal preference and time of day. An official website of the Wellman Divide (9700 ft): 45 inches (30 inches snow in latest storms) but heavily drifted here, Annies Junction/PCT Mile 180.8 (9070 ft): 45-48 inches (about 30-32 inches snow in latest storms), Long Valley (8600 ft): 24 inches (16 inches in latest storms), Saddle Junction/PCT Mile 179 (8070 ft): 21 inches (13 inches snow in latest storms), Devils Slide trailhead at Humber Park (6550 ft): 5-6 inches (all from latest storms, four inches of snow on top of ice). The Wellman Trail track was disappearing under spindrift as I re-broke it on Monday 23rd. San Jacinto Peak (10810 ft): 12-14 inches (storm total 10 inches), Little Round Valley (9800 ft): 10-12 inches (storm total 7 inches), Wellman Divide (9700 ft): 7 inches (storm total 6 inches), Round Valley (9100 ft): 6 inches (storm total 5 inches) [thanks to Kyle Eubanks for this measurement], Annies Junction/approx. Above Little Round Valley there are multiple tracks through the snow ascending toward San Jacinto Peak, none of which entirely accurately follow the established trail. Spikes are especially valuable for descending even when they are no necessarily needed for ascending. Even experienced hikers should understand that winter ice hiking requires Alpine mountaineering equipment and skills, authorities said. San Gorgonio Mountain - Wikipedia There is an excellent snowshoe track to follow on the Wellman Trail and the Peak Trail up to San Jacinto Peak. See more of the Johns Meadow Trail clearing on volunteer John Flippins website, High Lake Photography. Spikes are strongly recommended. They are not however required, depending upon your comfort level hiking on shallow variable snow, potentially mixed with slushy and icy patches. Please check this page for periodic updates the most recent is at the top throughout the multiple day storm sequence. Two significant further atmospheric river storm systems are forecast, on Tuesday 10th, and then again on Saturday 14th-Sunday 15th. 641 Avenida Vaquero, San Clemente, CA 92673 | Redfin There is a well-traveled track on light icy snow from Long Valley/Tram to Wellman Divide. The Wellman Trail from Annies Junction to Wellman Divide has about 20% icy snow cover. The lower half of the trail should be largely clear of snow by the weekend. The second system, possible in a broad time window between 2nd and 4th December, may produce significant snow in the high country (forecasts have ranged widely from 0-30 inches above 10,000 ft!) The trailhead is reached by turning east off Highway 38 to Forest Falls, then continuing until the road ends at the top and east end of Big Falls Picnic Area. Hikers will encounter new treefall hazards due to the enormous weight of ice from freezing rain associated with the early November storm, followed by recent Santa Ana winds, and since the passage of Tropical Storm Kay in September. Eventually with compaction of the trails caused by increasing hiker traffic and freeze/thaw cycles snowshoes may steadily become less useful, however they will certainly remain valuable for off-trail travel in the high country well into February at least. However, snowshoes will become increasingly useful as snow depths increase over the coming days; they may initially be useful as low as 4000 ft, steadily rising to 5000-6000 ft next week. Fire lookouts at Black Mountain and Tahquitz Peak were closed for the season ahead of schedule in anticipation of the snow storm in early November. Many people are lost leaving the San Gorgonio Summit because they miss the trail going back to Vivian. San Bernardino National Forest - Vivian Creek Trail 1E08 Teen hikers lost on Pacific Crest Trail during winter storm rescued If there are Road Closed signs further down as was often the case last winter especially at weekends and holiday periods then those nine spaces are also unavailable for legal parking. Note that tracks discussed can be obscured quickly by drifting of snow from strong winds, sometimes in days or even hours. The table also shows that with another few inches, this could be the biggest snow season since the 1940s! Check out pictures on SGWA member John Flippins website, High Lake Photography. San Jacinto Peak (10810 ft): 45-48 inches (includes about 24 inches snow in latest storms), heavily drifted to 60 inches in places, especially on the East Ridge. PCT Mile 181.8 (9070 ft): 4-5 inches (5.5 inches on 12th December), Marion Mountain Trail at junction with PCT (8700 ft): 4-6 inches (6 inches on 12th December), Long Valley (8600 ft): 3-4 inches (5-6 inches on 12th December), Strawberry Junction (8100 ft): 3 inches (4 inches on 12th December), Saddle Junction/approx. The rainfall totals at mid elevations were unremarkable, especially compared to those of the storm in early November (discussed here). Current forecasts suggest that there may be significant snowfall on Sunday 29th-Monday 30th January at all elevations, but some warming and steady snow melt likely on either side of that date. UPDATE Wednesday 28th December: the overnight rain storm produced 0.73 inch in Idyllwild (measured at 5550 ft) while Long Valley (8600 ft) led San Jacinto mountain locations in rainfall with 1.01 inch. PCT Mile 179.9 (8070 ft): <1 inch (was 3 inches on 9th), Devils Slide Trail at Humber Park (6550 ft): 0 inch (was 2.5 inches on 9th), Idyllwild (at 5550 ft): 0 inch (was <1 inch on 9th), [UPDATED 24th November: we took a brisk hike up and down Marion Mountain and upper Deer Springs trails to San Jacinto Peak early this morning. Very cautious navigation is advised throughout the area. I recorded a short video at San Jacinto Peak early on the morning of Monday 12th December (available here) which gives a feel for conditions as the storm was nearing its end. Taking the Pacific Coast Highway is one of the best road trips from Los Angeles and the best choice when taking a road trip to mountainous Big Sur. He said Kumm had hiked to 6,500 feet a week earlier with his girlfriend. ft. home is a 2 bed, 3.0 bath property. Conditions immediately following last weeks snow storm, the second significant Pacific system of winter 2022/23, that impacted the San Jacinto mountains on 11th-12th December were summarized in the previous Report (available here). Forest Service campgrounds at Boulder Basin, Marion Mountain, and Fern Basin are closed for the season. On the south east side of the 15. Details of snow depths measured at various locations on the trail system are given at the foot of this posting. I recorded a short(ish) video report from San Jacinto Peak late morning on Monday 30th (available here on YouTube) that gives a feel for the conditions in the high country at that time. South Ridge Trail has been broken from the top of South Ridge Road to Tahquitz Peak with a simple posthole track. Spitler Peak Trail is now functionally clear of snow. San G. North Face Chute Climb - Social Hiker Please report trail conditions. "On Mount San Jacinto, the conditions just aren't good for avalanches with the slopes and amount . Put on snowshoes and went up to the base of San Gorgonio . Details of snow depths measured at various locations on the trail system are given at the foot of this posting. A fourth and final minor system is expected on 28th February-1st March. While fresh snow may be optimum for snowshoeing for the next couple of weeks, snow at all elevations will become increasingly firm and icy following multiple freeze-thaw cycles, and compaction by increasing hiker traffic in places, and I cannot overemphasize the importance of having both appropriate equipment and the right skill set for the terrain. The first number is the current average total snow depth at that location, followed in parentheses by the depth of fresh snow added by the latest storm on Tuesday 10th. Map Information. The strange rollercoaster ride that has been winter 2022/23 so far will continue for the foreseeable future. The first number is the current average total snow depth at that location, followed in parentheses by the approximate depth of fresh snow added by the latest storm sequence on 14th-17th January. On Thursday 15th I ascended San Jacinto Peak via the east side (Devils Slide, Wellman, and Peak trails) and descended the west side via Deer Springs Trail, while on Monday 19th we hiked to the Peak up and down the east side trails. The high country added only another couple of inches of snow overnight. Todays rainfall total has passed an inch in Idyllwild, and various locations in Pine Cove (5800-6500 ft) were reporting 1.1 to 1.3 inches two hours ago. momyer-open-map. Measured snow depths as of late morning/early afternoon today are: San Jacinto Peak (10,810 ft) 38 inches, at least 14 new in this storm; Wellman Divide (9700 ft) 30 inches, with 15 new in this storm; Annies Junction at 9070 ft the highest point of the PCT in Southern California 30 inches, with 14 new in this storm; Saddle Junction (8100ft) 15 inches, about 7-8 new in this storm; Devils Slide Trailhead at Humber Park (6520 ft) 2 inches, all from this storm. They tend to be especially useful for descending. Zelle, Venmo, and PayPal are all options. San Gorgonio Wilderness Association; Google Search for 'San Gorgonio Wilderness' Lots of useful links. The cloud largely dissipated on my descent, affording some spectacular vistas. Every year seems to have its challenges and 2022 has been no exception. Great snowshoeing in the Winter. Black Mountain Road also closed on 7th November to vehicle traffic at the gate 1.7 miles up from Highway 243. Note however that snow depth is rarely indicative of the ease (or otherwise) of hiking a given trail. SNOW DEPTHS measured on 19th December (east side) or 15th December (west side) 2022 are as follows. A significant warming trend is expected for later this week and next weekend at all elevations, with significant melting likely, before cooling slightly Monday 6th February but remaining slightly above seasonal. Note that there are about a dozen stream crossings and sections of the trail with water flowing in them, at times for tens of feet.