Seven Pines Trail 9/15

[Sally]

The Seven Pines trail was the trail I took the first time I ever hiked to the top of San Jacinto, about 15 years ago. I have only hiked it 2 other times since then, and that was also a long time ago. So on Wednesday I decided to give it a try.

I don't remember there being such a long dirt road to the trailhead, but it wasn't too bad even in my Corolla. I just took it slow.
The trail doesn't waste any time getting steep. In fact it reminded me of Marion in spots. Soon I came upon some neat boulder heaps that would be fun to climb on. To the left was a nice view of Fuller Ridge.

After gaining some elevation the trail goes down and down into the San Jacinto River. There are a few signs along the way warning of up to a $5,000 fine and 5 years in prison for coming within a few feet of the river because of the endangered California yellow-legged toad. It's OK to cross the river on the trail. The trail crosses the river maybe 3 times, and it was still flowing fairly well. There is a nice wading pool near one of the crossings, but sadly, no wading allowed.

The trail looks as though it is seldom used and is even a little hard to distinguish in some areas. There are also a few fallen trees to maneuver around. Eventually I met up at the junction of Deer Springs Trail where I stopped and chatted with a backpacker.

The trip to the summit was typical with the buckthorn, switchbacks, etc. There were 4 hikers at the top when I got there which surprised me because of the tram being closed and the fact that the last 3 times I'd been up there I had the place to myself.

The trip back down went quicker than the trip up, and more than once I thought I'd screwed up and lost the trail. It's funny the way things can look so different when viewed from the opposite direction.

I had a great day and would recommend the trip to anyone who likes boulders and little-used trails.

http://picasaweb.google.com/sallymorley ... directlink

[Andy]

Sally, thanks for the TR and Pics. Funny thing is I climbed around on those exact boulders the last time I was up there about 2 years ago. I remember thinking who else has been up here. I guess my idea wasn't so wild after all.

Glad you had a good hike.