Mission Creek Preserve

DAY THREE HUNDRED AND SIX

The Mission Creek Preserve is part of the 33,000 acre Sand to Snow Preserve System. This includes the Pioneertown Mountains Preserve and is adjacent to the Whitewater Preserve. The Preserve gives access to the Pacific Crest Trail and the San Gorgonio Wilderness Area. To reach the Preserve, take Highway 62 North from I-10 and turn left on Mission Creek Road. Follow the road to the gate and park there.

After driving a few miles along the dirt road you come to this sign.

Beyond that is a locked gate topped by this sign.

There is very good signage at the beginning of the Preserve but later on, not so much.

There is a nice information board but, oddly enough, there's not a very good map for hikers. Later, I'll wish I'd had one.

Right inside the gate there are four little stone structures.

Inside each one there is a picnic table.

I didn't bring a lunch so I start hiking up the "trail". I really hate these trails that have tire tracks on them.

As I'm walking along I hear this weird sound and can't place it. I look down toward the creek and discover what's causing it: water.

A mile up the "trail" is the Painted Hills Wetlands. It is very lush with growth and an impassable thickets.

Beyond that is the parking area for the Stone House. I've got to find out how to get a key to that gate so I don't have to walk all this way next time.

The Stone House is a great structure with screen windows and doors without locks.

It's got a nice comfy chair on the porch.

The inside of the Stone House is spotless with some picnic tables.

There is also a fireplace but it's just for looks.

There are even restrooms.

With flush toilets! I was preparing to hold my breath in anticipation of the outhouse smell.

An old windmill and pump are also part of the property.

I continue on the "trail" up beyond this wilderness sign. This turns out to be a mistake because I should have taken a different route here but there wasn't a sign or map directing me in the proper direction. I found out later there is a section of private land ahead.

But when I got to this gate I wondered what was going on.

I followed this trail around the gate and down to the creek bottom. Upon returning, I found out I should have gone up a different fork of the creek to bypass the private land.

I hiked up the creek until I got to the PCT and had to turn around at that point.

It's too bad, too, because it was just starting to get interesting. Next time I'll know which way to go and I'll see if it's possible to drive just a bit further up the road. There's a lot of interesting terrain up here and I'd imagine in the springtime when there's snow on the surrounding mountains and the flowers are blooming that it is incredible. I'm looking forward to coming back.

Just Passing Through

DAY ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY SEVEN

Today I went on a nice little hike on the Pacific Crest Trail just north of Highway 74. When I left the desert the temperature was 105º. At the trailhead it was 88º. 88º for a desert hiker is like 70º for a coastal hiker or 50º for someone from the Pacific Northwest, perfect.

I start on the trail and hit the sign showing mileage to different areas along the trail. Today, I will be going to none of them.

There is also another sign with a monument to a guy who was murdered near the PCT parking area. He surprised some robbers at his car and was killed. Very sad.

The weather is tolerable for me but it gets even better. There is one lone cloud in the sky and it gives me shade for about twenty minutes. Someone must be living right.

There were plenty of flowers along the trail and while I won't try to identify them right now (I need a new, more comprehensive flower book) I'll post the pictures.

This one looks like cotton candy to me although I didn't try to taste it.

I hiked up to these rocks and decided this was a good turnaround point.

What really convinced me was this place to sit in the shade and enjoy a little drink.

I saw a few critters on the way back. This picture is not misaligned. This is how the lizard was on the rock. He was also doing pushups. Show off!

I saw this little horned toad well disguised just off the trail. He was a very docile little guy and I easily could have picked him up and brought him home. My kids would have loved that but he belongs here in the mountains so I left him.

Finally, I came upon another Pacific Crest through hiker. Her name is Jean and she goes by Monologue in her Trail Journal. She'd been going most of the day and said the heat was tough (obviously she's not from the desert then). She was planning on camping just a little further up the trail. I gave her what was left of my Gatorade and offered her my water. She said she'd just picked up a water cache and was trying to save weight. She had plenty of water. I asked her if her water was cold; she then smiled and accepted my gift. Cold water after a hot day on the trail is worth the extra weight. Too bad I didn't meet her at the trailhead because I had another Gatorade and three more waters in a cooler with ice. I guess to be a through hiker, though, you have to get used to roughing it. She was looking forward to a shower in Idyllwild on Tuesday, though.

Whether someone is on their way to Canada or just out for a little walk, the Pacific Crest Trail is a wonderful place to do it. Before summer is over I'm sure I'll have covered every inch of it in our area and then some.

Snow Place to Hike

Day Forty Five

There's something about fresh snow in the mountains that makes native Southern Californians giddy.  We have never had the experience of shoveling driveways, bundling up just to go outside or having our tongues stuck on a metal pole.  For us, snow means one thing: recreation.  So when I asked the boys if they wanted to go to the snow today they were downright ecstatic. They also wanted to take three friends.  But since I'm a cool dad, I said OK and we piled in the mini van and headed off.  

My father-in-law lives up in the mountains so we headed up to his place.  Since he's about a mile from the PCT (Pacific Crest Trail) I left the boys to play in the snow at his place and went down to do a little hike.

Looking up at Santa Rosa Mountain from near the parking area for the PCT.

I'm gonna head south toward Lookout Mountain.  I don't want to leave the kids unattended for too long so I doubt I'll get all the way to the summit.

The trail heads across this hillside.

Even with fresh snow the trail is pretty easy to follow.

Views of the trail continuing south.  If I keep walking in a few days I'll be in Mexico.

This area is called Rock Point.  I wonder why.

This is an interesting little peak.  It think it's called Cone Peak for some reason.

After hiking a mere forty-five minutes I head back to make sure the guys haven't destroyed my wife's father's property.  I am greatly relieved to find them with no broken bones, enjoying the snow.  Had I known they'd be so well behaved, I might have continued on to Lookout Mountain.  Oh well, that'll give me something to do next time.

No wallet required

January 6, 2009

Day Six

For years, the best place to take your kid fishing was the Whitewater Trout Farm.  It was a little place up the Whitewater River where some ponds were built and stocked with trout.  It was great for kids because all you had to do was toss in a line and you were guaranteed to catch a fish.  They kept those fish hungry and you paid by the pound.  They even provided tackle.  All you had to do to ensure your kid had a great day fishing was bring a fat wallet.

Well, the Trout Farm has been taken over by the Wildlands Conservancy and, except for a few specially arranged youth programs, they no longer have fishing there.  However, the offer a lot of other things to make up for it.  There are great picnic areas there.  They have nature walks, star gazing programs, campfire talks and fabulous hiking. 

Follow the rock lined trail about a half a mile until you hit the first trail junction.

At the trail junction, you will intersect with the Pacific Crest Trail.  On the PCT you can pretty much hike as far as you want.  It goes all the way to Canada.  Literally.

A constant flow of water comes down the Whitewater River, fed by the snow capped mountains in the San Gorgonio Wilderness.

Following the trail was fairly easy due these large trail markers.  However, I missed the last one and went up the creek bed a bit further than I should have.  Doh!  Too bad I forgot to bring item number one on the list of the ten essentials: a map.  Oh well.  If you always follow the trail you will miss out on a lot of great adventures.

As an example, I found this little corral up about a mile or so beyond where I should have turned right to stay on the trail.  I asked the ranger at the Wildland Conservancy office about it and he said he didn't even know it was there.  Well, now he does and he can go out and have an adventure finding it, too.

Even though you can no longer catch an overpriced trout at Whitewater, I love what they've done with the place and highly recommend it as an outing for the whole family.  I'm really looking forward to going back and next time I may even bring a map.

There is an article about the area in the Desert Sun newspaper.  You can find it here.

Find out more about the Wildlands Conservancy here.