Quivers of Shivers wrote:A friend and I are totally unfamiliar with San Jacintobut we were hoping to do the tram to summit hike there in two weeks time when we fly out there from the East.
It looks like this wont be an option as we do not want to use crampons and picks. Nor are we experienced mntnrs. Will there be any hiking trails around the tram mid-March doable with just poles and possibly yaktrax or would that be ruled out? we dont want to take any inordinate risks so alternate suggestions would be appreciated.
i.e. that main desert view trail above poster reccomended, would it likely be iced up and need at least snowshoes with cleats or should we just check on the wx again a few days before we get there?
Snow flurries are predicted for this weekend. Keep checking this site, but if you're not familiar with ice axe and crampon use you may want to choose another trail.
Here's a good map http://www.parks.ca.gov/pages/636/files/MtSanJacintoSPmap.pdf. The desert view trail will probably be fine. Heading out to Round Valley may be fine but there are a couple of steep rocky sections. If it were icy, I'd think twice about it. There's a trail that goes south to Hidden Divide that might be open. Definitely stop and turn around if you get into icy stuff. This may not be the time of the year to ride the tram if you don't like ice.
Alternatively, if you have a car or can get other transportation, the Devil's Slide Trail and the Deer Springs trail, both in the town of Idyllwild area are much lower altitude trails that go into very nice areas. The problem with the tram in March is that you start your hike at 8500', an elevation at which you're almost guaranteed snow/ice.
There is also a local guide service, http://www.PalmSpringsHiking.com. You might see if they're leading any hikes or could take you on a hike. I don't know what their rates are.
There are hundreds of places to hike in the local area other than the tram.
