Anyone up for a second helping?

Final Stats:

18 miles, 16800 ft

Skyline – Back to Back

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“Palms to Pines”, “Desert to tram”, “Skyline”. Whatever its called, the hike up from the Palms Springs floor all the way up to the upper station of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway is no joke.

With 8,000+ ft elevation gain over 9-10 miles, it is essentially the equivalent energy of a marathon. Except you are in the desert, need to carry all your water & gear with you, and you can’t just stop in the middle of it. It is only for the experienced hiker who understands the preparation needed. Many have suffered fatal injuries from the wrath of the mountain.

That being said, if you are prepared, it is an extraordinary adventure. And one which some people wanted to do twice in one day! Not an easy task, but one that is feasible for those who were experienced with the trail.

The first goal was to hike up once and reach the tram station just before 8am, when the first tram goes down. We wanted to catch the first one so that we could start the 2nd hike as early as possible to avoid the severe heat.

Everyone started at different times, from 1 to 3am, to pace themselves to make it up in a comfortable time. Lee, Steve, and I left just before 3am. The moonlight aided my sight and I didn’t even use my headlamp. The temperatures were okay and felt even better when we got about halfway up.

I wanted to keep a pace that would get us up there just before 8. Since we would have to wait anyways, might as well conserve energy for the next trip. But Steve was feeling good so we followed him at a bit faster rate all the way up to Flat Rock. Of course I was giving him shit for the pace, but I stayed in front past Flat Rock and slowed us down a little bit. Early on we had met up with Rick and Mike, and then met up with all the others along the way near the end.

We will made it up at like 7:15 for a 4:20 time. Too fast! Oh well, I felt fine. Others arrived shortly after and we hung out in the tram station for the first car down.

At the bottom, Tina’s family and cameraman were there to offer some food and a ride back to the museum parking lot. Their help was much appreciated and we couldn’t have done this trek without them.

We got back to the parking lot and everyone starting preparing for the 2nd trek – filling up on water, changing, eating, etc… Most people starting leaving at one point and I was still getting ready, so I started hurrying up and left just before 9 am.

Heading up the lower part, I felt really good actually. Although I knew it wasn’t going to last, I started to push myself pretty good. I wanted to see if I could get a 4 hr 2nd ascent. The 1st hour or so I was alone. A couple of times I got off trail and scrambled up some steep stuff which didn’t slow me down but definitely taxed the legs. After the 1st hr I had climbed 2400 ft!

I heard Steve whistling from behind and gratefully slowed down a bit while he caught up. At this point, my legs were jello. Just zapped. I wasn’t sure how it was going to go, but Steve and I kept pushing. Taking turns in front and just going hard, non-stop. We appreciated the flat parts a lot more than normally!

My legs were jello and killing me (and I’m sure Steve too) but I could push through it and keep going. Never having done this sort of ultraexertion, I didn’t know how my body would respond. Would I hit a bigger wall if I tried to push through the pain? I guess not. It seems I could keep going as long as I could tolerate the pain.

So we kept going through the undulating middle section of the hike, until we got to Flat Rock. I filled up on water, and looked at the time and thought I still had a chance to catch 4 hrs, but it would be close. So we stopped our short break, and on we went once again!

Again I was pushing hard – too hard. We gained the next 1000 ft in about 23 min. At that point I slowed down a bit as it was simply too much! We traversed across toward Coffman’s Crag and at this point my legs were toast and I was just going to be happy finishing!

Up the final 700 ft, I took a steady pace, not too hard. My legs felt like they could have the potential too cramp, or give out, but they didn’t. I kept looking up hoping I could see the top but then had to tell myself to stop doing that!

Finally, we reached the top, in just at 4hrs. It was quite simply the most painful 4 hrs of exercise I have ever experienced.

I laid around at Grubb’s Notch for an hour or so talking to people, then on inside for a beer.

For everyone who did one, two, or three, congratulations. What a great group of people. I met a lot of people yesterday and it was nice to meet everyone. Who would have thought hiking would have turned into this!!!

Until next year!

Final Stats:

8.3 miles, 8400 ft gain

Skyline – Palm Springs to Tram at EveryTrail

I was interested in doing Skyline once before the planned “back to back” attempt that’s going to happen in a month, so luckily I had some friends who were planning on doing the hike, as they usually do.

Tina and Mike were headed up pretty early with a possibility of doing the whole C2C, but I met up with Steve and we started hiking at a “reasonable” time of 7 am. There were already 15 or so cars in the museum parking lot!

I had done Skyline once before as part of a C2C hike, but that started in the dark so I was glad to be able to see more this time.

But this wasn’t a hike for too many pictures, as Steve set out a great pace. Mixed in with some chat, before we knew it we hit 4300 ft. We continued on, and when we hit Flat Rock, we took a nice 20 min break. We had caught up with a bunch of C2C attempters along the way, a few of which pointed out a big rattlesnake just 10 yds before Flat Rock. Somehow we didn’t see nor hear it.

At this point I was starting to feel it. Luckily Steve kept the pace and so we kept making good ground. Soon enough we were heading straight toward Coffman’s Crag, when we started hearing some chattering from above. Turned out to be Kathryn, Mike, Tina, and Mark above us on the switchbacks. Tina started talking trash not wanting us to pass her, and Mike had some nice defensive blocking methods with his poles. We all ended up getting done about the same time, meeting up with Ellen, Cy, and Scott.

It took 3:56, which seemed pretty good. Taking out the breaks, 3:30 seems like a nice goal. It only took us about 8 miles, down from 10 when I did it previously. Steve seems to know a whole bunch of shortcuts (although at least one seemed to add gain!), which really made a difference.

Plus, the weather was perfect. I imagine it stayed around 60 degrees for most of the hike. Even I only drank 3 or so liters.

This was a good warmup for the back to back. I think a 5 hr pace, along with actually resting the day before could work well.

Turn the audio down if you don’t like potty mouths!

blue jay from Zé Apelido on Vimeo.

9/19/09: Mt. Yale Loop – Starting from Sierra Madre trail will head up and connect to Jones Peak and go along the newly carved fire break to the Mt. Wilson Toll Road. From there head on up the ridge to Yale. Depending on time or how I feel, may just want to come back down the same way.

9/27/09: No hike – Will be busing/boozing it up with Ze. Will most likely end up biking somewhere with hills to work on cardio.

10/3/09: Mt. Wilson via Santa Anita Ridge – haven’t done this one. Will probably not do this one though if it’s hot. If it is hot, will probably do Mt. Wilson from Chantry Flats.

10/10/09: ?

10/17/09: Hike in the back country. Not sure where exactly. Also depends on what areas are burned out.

10/24/09: Baldy via Bear Flats – The warmup hike for C2C.

10/31/09: Baldy via Register Ridge – sneak in one more weekend at elevation.

11/7/09: The big day!!!

Hike Details

Time: 4:00 AM at the Museum Trail in Palm Springs

Distance: ~ 22 miles (16 miles up, 6 miles down to tram)

Elevation Gain: ~ 11,000 ft

Gain / Mile: 680 ft / mile

Estimated Time: ~ 12-13 hrs

Terrain: Trail, Unmaintained Trail

Difficulty: 11/10

UPDATE!

Since will be starting so early, it is a good idea to spend the night out in Palm Springs. Rachelle and I – and probably others – will be staying at the Palm Springs Motel 6.

Here are some GPS coordinates for the hike.

We will definitely be starting out in the dark. While there should be moonlight (just past a full moon), you should have at least a flashlight or headlamp (even better).

Hike Description

Well it’s time. This is the culmination of the big peak hiking season. After the success of the Iron Mountain hike, I think a bunch of people are ready for this. What is C2C? Well, according to this magazine it is the 5th hardest dayhike in the U.S. We start in Palm Springs – at the bottom of the mountain – and hike all the way up!

Most people take the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway up and hike up 3 miles to the top. We will only be taking the tram down. The elevation gain is a killer, but as those who hiked Iron Mountain know, not having to do the downhill is a major benefit. And once we descend from the peak to the tram, there is a restaurant where we can feast immediately.

One of the main difficulties with this hike is dealing with the weather. It is so hot in Palm Springs during the summer months that people so easily get dehydrated as it stays hot even at higher altitudes. If we waited until the winter, then the top several thousand of feet would be covered in snow and ice making successful summiting difficult and dangerous. So, it is generally accepted that October is one of the best times to try this hike. It should cool off enough to make the heat reasonable without snow.

I have not done this hike, but it is well-documented, and we will be well-prepared. For those attending, I’ll expect a group effort in preparation for this including logistics of 1) how to get there, 2) where will we stay, 3) nagivation with GPS, 4) water supplies, etc…

In a section below I will be providing links to information about this hike. I expect all who are attending to read this information, as well as let me know if they find out any more info.

Who is Ready?

Well if you’ve been on my hikes before, I think you understand the need to be strict on the requirements of who can do these hikes, as people often overestimate themselves (and some underestimate). We cannot have this problem on this hike! And based on recent successful summits, I don’t think we will.

The pace of this hike has a goal to summit in 10 hrs. This is a little over a 1,000 ft per hour. Who can do this pace? Well my specific prediction will be based on time to ascend the Original Baldy Trail

From Mt Baldy Village to Mt Baldy:

One way distance: 6 miles

One way elevation gain: 5600 ft

Cutoff Time: 4 hrs!

If you want to do this hike, you must be able to ascend Baldy from Baldy Village in 4 hrs or less. Keep in mind this is using an ideal pace with minimal breaks. I am choosing this hike as an example because it is of sufficient elevation gain to be predictive of the longer C2C hike.

One week prior, I will organize a hike, most likely up to Baldy – though it may be another hike – that will contain 6,000 ft of elevation gain, and those who want to try C2C must attend. If you can’t, I think John Quan might organize a hike 2 weeks prior of similar magnitude.

Several of you don’t need to worry about this, you know who you are. Everyone will only be allowed to RSVP “No” but indicate interest, and I will sign those up immediately that I can vouch for.

Otherwise, it’s time to ramp up the training! If you want to improve your time, you should start doing moderate to intense cardiovascular training 3 times a week. In 3-4 weeks, this will make a marked difference in your performance.

Message Board

To discuss this stuff as group (and for future hikes), I’ve create a simple message board. Please use it!

Links

Read and Take the Quize

Sac Jacinto Hiking Forum

SummitPost Link

Hiking Member Tim’s Photos

The Skyline Trail

What to bring:

WATER! We will at least need water to carry up the first 8,500 ft. [4-6 L, depending on weight, is a good quantity for October]

The rest of the 10 essentials

A will of Iron!

Zé’s picture of San Jacinto from Gorgonio.

Getting There

We need to get to Palm Springs Friday night. More on logistics later.