Hiking to Mt. Baldy Summit

If you enjoy hiking and the outdoors, take a day and head north-east outside of Orange County to the edge of the San Gabriel mountains.  Here lies Mt. Baldy, the third highest peak in Southern California. The hike is nice, but a bit grueling for a non-hiker.  When I climbed it I was really out of shape, and it was a challenge.  It's not the distance that's tough, but the climb in elevation; it's a steep uphill most of the way.

During the winter Mt. Baldy changes from a hike, to a ski, being the closest ski resort to both LA and Orange County.

Views from the top of Mt. Baldy are nice, especially off the back end.  Theres a bronze placard marking the summit, and a small rock wall put up to block the wind, as the peak is very exposed.  We did the hike in July and there was still snow at the top, not completely covered, but as you can see in the photo there were large patches.  I think it took us about 6 hours to get up and down.

From simpsoncity.com...
At 10,064 feet, Old Mt. Baldy (officially Mount San Antonio) stands as the grandest summit of the San Gabriel Mountains. No other peak in the range rivals its huge mass and lofty splendor. Mount Baldy is one of the most photographed natural features in Southern California, with its snow-capped summit appearing on postcards and brochures and on an array of other printed pieces.

From San Antonio's mammoth, round summit, enormous scree slopes plunge thousands of feet while massive rock formations stand jagged and fissured. Deep canyons furrow Baldy's massive flanks and lush green plants grow in the shady recesses. Waterfalls roar and streams dance and splash. Wildflowers can grace the landscape while lofty pines and cedars tower above. Some are gnarled and deformed by nature's high-attitude fury. Manzanita blankets the upper slopes, appearing from the distances as patches of deep green carpet. The air is crisp and clean, the sun warm, the sky a deep blue. In places the topography is violent and stark. The amazing alpine landscape vividly displays a striking array of colors and texture, symmetry and chaos, gigantic features and delicate nuances, silence and howling winds. The scenery is spectacular.

As you experience this remarkable mountain, you can grasp why Mount Baldy is an immensely popular destination — on any fair-weather weekend, hundreds of eager hikers assault the summit. And the vast majority of those have visited the mountain multiple times.

Old Baldy (10,064) stands as the third highest massif in Southern California, behind San Gorgonio Mountain (11,499) and Mount San Jacinto (10,804). From its moonscape summit, you are rewarded with spectacular clear-weather views over much of the Southland.