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 Reporter |
Summary: This hike is a significant and spectacular all day adventure. The hike starts deep in the San Gorgonio Wilderness at the 8200 foot level, and travels 9 miles to the 11,499 foot San Gorgonio Peak. The trail starts out along the banks of Fish Creek, passing a lovely meadow, and wonderful pine forests. As you gradually gain elevation, the trees begin to thin out and the landscape becomes progressively more rugged. As you near the tree line, you begin see the fascinating Limber Pine, with its twisted and bent form. The barren peak provides you with stunning views hundreds of miles in every direction. It was quite something to look across the desert and Palm Springs to see Mount San Jacinto directly across from us. One of the more unusual aspects of this hike is the wreckage of a DC3 cargo plane that crashed in the 1950s. The fuselage and wings literally straddled the trail. Make sure to take lots of water, as this hike could take up to 12 hours including breaks and lunch. Trailhead: From the east bound 10 in Redlands, exit on Orange Street and follow the signs for highway 38, which heads east into the San Gorgonio Wilderness. About 5 miles along highway 38, stop at the Mill Creek Ranger Station and pick up a permit for this hike (you may want to call ahead for permit reservations). Continue along highway 38 for another 25 or 30 miles to the turn off for Fish Creek and bear right. After a short paved section of road, follow the dirt forest service road IN05 for 10 miles to the Fish Creek trail head. (Lat:34.12477 Lon:-116.7694) Trail Guides for San Gorgonio Peak via Fish Creek: San Bernardino Mountain Trails by John W. Robinson (Wilderness Press) Best Seasons: Summer, Fall User Groups: Hikers Ranger Contact: Mill Creek Ranger Station - (909) 794-1123 Localhikes Reporter: This hike was submitted by Jim Zuber, who has posted 104 other hikes on this site Trail Reviews Page 2 of 3 Submit your own review 
Reviewed by Tim on 9/24/2006 I found this trail to be incredibly long (20.5 miles round trip according to my GPS unit!) and a little bit annoying, definatley NOT the most direct route to the peak. Depending on where your coming from it is a long drive in to the trail head as well (make sure your vehicle has good ground clearance for the dirt road!) However, the scenery is beautiful, it's not very steep, and it can be a nice relaxing walk through the woods. If I ever did this trail again I'd split it up into two days and camp at the Fish Creek Saddle, so I could take my time and not worry about running out of daylight. 
Reviewed by A. Riedel on 7/9/2006 Incredibly long hike, not too steep, but still brutal enough to kick your butt all over the place. We had a pretty good clip for most of the way, and it still took 11 hours with breaks and a long stop on the summit. You wont find Disneylanders on this one. It is another bear of a way to reach San G. 
Reviewed by Dave Ray on 6/26/2006 To get to the trailhead I would recommend having a truck or utility vehicle (although there was Ford prism in the parking area!?!?) as the fire road, at times, is very rough and reasonably steep. I started at 8:30am and got back to my car at 7:30pm. One of the best aspects of this hike is that although it is quite long - the terrain is not difficult and the trail is not too steep. The views are unmatched by any I have seen in SoCal! You get a great view of Dry Lake, Big Bear Lake and a stunning view of San Jacinto and the Indio Valley. For more experienced hikers, I recommend to take a map and compass and do some off trail exploring, it is well worth it - especially the view of San Gorgonio from Lake Peak!
Reviewed by Xiaoliang on 9/19/2005 The trail is great. The view is spectacular. I've been to the summit via vivian creek. Fish creek is less steep and less strenuous. We started at 9am and reached the top at 3:30pm with a lunch in the middle. The summit was very windy. There were still some snow. We returned to the trail head at 8:30pm. Some details: 1. The 10-mile dirt forest service road is impossible for conventional passenger cars. An SUV or pickup is needed. There are many rocks and bumps and dips on the road. It may take up to an hour to finish the 10 miles (at least for a driver that never drove on a forest service road ). 2. Altitude symptom may be a threat when asceding beyond 9000ft. According to a volunteer ranger, a small bottle of oxygen may help.
Reviewed by Darrell on 8/15/2005 We started this hike at 7:45 with great weather all day. When the trail wraps around to the south side of San Gorgonio, we hiked down to the tarn and peaked Dragon's Head. We were the first group to sign the register since September of '04. By the time we got up to the trail again, altitude sickness started getting the better of me and another in our party. We split off to hike back down while the rest of the group went up San Gorgonio and down the "chute of death" They met us on the trail on the north side about a quarter mile or so after the plane wreck. Our hiking time was a shade over 8 hours for 18 miles on the route we took (great pace) with about 2 hours total of resting and waiting for others. Great hike...will do again!
Reviewed by jimmyburkitt on 9/25/2004 good hih i went up it twice last month im geting ready to do it again in a week or so
Reviewed by Jim Yanko on 8/26/2004 I believe the crashed plane on the trail is actually a C46 or C47 which crashed while enroute from Arizona to California. The history of it is in the book "A WILDERNESS PRESERVED; SAN GORGONIO" available from www.sgwa.org In any case, I really like the hike from Fish Creek to the Fish Creek Saddle, and have camped there a few times, and certainly passed through several on the way to the summit. This summit is one of my dear friends as it is the first major summit ascent I made as a kid, and I continue to come back to it as often as I can.
Reviewed by hiko on 8/1/2004 One the best and chalenging hikes of So Cal. Beautiful alpine trees and big horn sheep. Must start hiking by 9:30 am otherwise have to walk back in dark. I made it in 4hrs to the peak and another 4hrs(???) to get back the my car. Look for the trail signs high up on trees. You might take a wrong turn. Notice: Traveling in the backcountry can be hazardous. You are responsible for informing yourself about these hazards and taking necessary precautions. Information on this web site comes from volunteer reporters and may contain errors or omissions. A current guidebook and proper equipment are essential for safe enjoyment of the hikes posted on this site. Keys: California Hiking, California Trails, California Hikes, San Bernardino County Hiking, San Bernardino County Trails, San Bernardino County Hikes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||