Mt Baldy 10,070 ft (3070m), Los Angeles

Mt Baldy is one of the greatest gifts of LA and I could never understand, though I never minded it, why there are no hordes of people on the trails on any given day. Like there are on the beaches of LA.
In winter Mt Baldy is meant to be skied.

Its only 1.5h drive from the city when traffic is ok. And traffic is rarely bad going away at 6 am. Parking is at 6000ft, for the popular trail that goes up by the sierra club ski hut. 

Build by skiers in 1937, the hut is one of the very few European style mountain huts in California.

With the right snow conditions it is possible to skin from the parking lot all the way to the summit, and then ski back to the car in a fraction of the time! I've been lucky twice. My fast time going up on skis is 2h. Not bad considering that it took me 1h 20 min to run up it in summer. Avalanche awareness is needed on the exposed slopes of the bowl, and crampons are recommended as it is often icy near the top.

Baldy bowl

Baldy bowl is south facing and the snow conditions on the descent are rarely great. Still much better than walking! Below the tree-line, avoiding all the rocks is basically impossible. Hiking out is sometimes safer.





Driving up the mountain road, early morning in winter, especially when snow conditions are right for ski, is certain to bring some excitement. I have slid and lost traction on the steep turns more than once. And I have turned around too. Chains or snow tires are highly recommended.



If weather is sketchy, Baldy ski resort is a good option. They don't mind uphill traffic!!! And have the best terrain in So Cal, when there is snow (not often). Another hidden gem of the San Gabriels is Mt Waterman, the oldest ski resort in LA.

North face of Mt Baldy

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