Hiking Mt San Gorgonio (11,503 feet)
San Gorgonio mountain is the tallest peak in Southern California with an altitude of 11,503 feet. Its situated 27 miles east of the city of San Bernardino. The hike to San Gorgonio is every hiker rite of passage, and I highly recommend it. There are different trailheads to start this hike, but the most famous one is via Vivian creek trailhead. I hiked this mountain back in 2016 summer. At that time, there was a permit required. Now, in April 2019, I had a chance to hike this mountain again, but this time there was lot of ice on trail thanks to wet winter in California. They also removed the permit system. You can fill the permit application online and send it to the ranger station and keep the copy with you while hiking.
The hike may seem easier when you are lower in altitude, and there is not a lot of snow but when you reach that altitude of over 8,000 feet the views of these peaks are just phenomenal, and that’s because there could be a lot of snow on the icy trails. It’s time to strap on your crampons/microspikes and your hiking speed is going to slow way down.
If you are trying to summit the mountain in the winter, you want to start this hike at dawn to give you more then enough time in case the snowy trails take you hours longer then you planned for. We started our hiking from the Vivian trailhead at around 7’o clock.
I adore hiking at San Gorgonio in the winter months because the wilderness is desolate, silent, peaceful and it feels like I am the only one on the mountain.
The first section gives you a gentle, half-mile warm-up through the wooded Mill Creek Canyon. The next section is a steep mile of switchbacks that climbs 1,000+ vertical feet. It’s forested trail with views over Mill Creek Canyon and to the west toward Mt. Baldy. Listen for the waterfall from Vivian Creek. There is a nice overlook about 10-20 yards off trail that gives you a good view of the falls.
Once you cross the waterfall, the next section is an easy section and was really a highlight of the trail, with the sounds of the babbling creek, impressive pines and lush greenery.
Once you cross the thick forest, climbing past High Creek and number of switchbacks, you may begin to feel the effects of the altitude as you approach 10,000 feet. The view opens up and you gain stunning vistas of Mt. San Jacinto and the Inland Empire.
The final section of the trail is a long, diagonal traverse near the ridge that leads to San Gorgonio. You climb steadily, with sparse vegetation and full exposure to the sun. But it’s a well-engineered trail that climbs steadily and not-too-steeply to the summit.
