Azaleas and other flowers on Marion Mtn Trail

[Sally]

On Sunday, Marilyn and I decided to hike the Marion Mtn Trail. We decided on this after 1) having the urge to do a tall peak, and 2) wanting to make a short day of it so we could get home to our loved ones. Marion Mtn trail will get you to San Jacinto Peak faster than all the rest, excepting starting from the tram. We started hiking at 5:50 AM. We weren't on the trail long before we began seeing a couple of different varieties of pentstemon. But we really got a treat when we came across a rather lush patch of California azaleas, a type of the rhododendron. There were also patches of thimble-berries, columbine, Indian paintbrush, lupine, and wild strawberries. As we continued up the trail we were rather amazed at the amount of new green growth at the tips of the fir boughs and how well the fiddle-back ferns were coming along despite the dang drought.

At the beginning of our hike it was warm, muggy, and buggy, but as we neared San Jacinto Peak we were getting a few rain drops. On the Peak a light rain was coming down, so we paid our respects and went down to the hut for a little lunch. We started back down and quickened our pace when we heard a few rumbles of thunder on the switchbacks on the way to LRV. Below LRV we encountered many huge groups of hikers going up, to whom we gave the right of way. I do most of my hiking mid-week and am not used to crowds on the mountain. We were wondering how many of the hikers were displaced San Gorgonio hikers.

The rain made the colors more vivid and the scents more fragrant, but as we neared the TH we felt we were in a sauna. The best thing about the rain is that it has helped with the containment of the Lake Fire in the San G Wilderness. I am going to keep up the rain dance until the fire is out.

Please enjoy the pictures:
https://picasaweb.google.com/1009477359 ... directlink

[SoCal Mike]

Thank you for posting these pictures. The azaleas are amazing!

Michael

[Pitownpi]

thanks Sally,
nice to see so much green after weeks of smoke and ash!

i'm also a weekday person...hiding on weekends from the masses of weekend warriors and their rather apparently urgent recreational goals & PR's in mind.

it will be interesting to see how SGW closures will impact S.J. and other spots.

always looking for weekday shuttle opportunities...!
i love getting an alpine start!

[Ulysses]

Thanks for sharing Sally. Love the azaleas when in bloom. so fragrant. Did you happen to see any Lemon Lilys in bloom? There is usually a nice patch of them on the climb between Fuller Ridge trail and LRV. It's about that time of year.

[Ulysses]

urgent recreational goals & PR's in mind.

What's a "PR"? I'm terrible with acronyms!

[zippetydude]

Wow, Sally, excellent shots. The last two were especially beautiful!

[Hikin_Jim]

urgent recreational goals & PR's in mind.

What's a "PR"? I'm terrible with acronyms!

I think he means "personal record" or something like that. In other words, they're out there for the stats alone. It's not nature, it's a workout routine.

The thing that's been bugging me most lately is people playing their tunes without headphones. Bad form.

HJ

[zippetydude]

urgent recreational goals & PR's in mind.

What's a "PR"? I'm terrible with acronyms!

I think he means "personal record" or something like that. In other words, they're out there for the stats alone. It's not nature, it's a workout routine.

The thing that's been bugging me most lately is people playing their tunes without headphones. Bad form.

HJ

Yes, PR means personal record. BTW Pi, I've often blended setting a PR with appreciation of the wilderness. It's very boring to run in the city, and the time drags. I can be on the trail for hours in the wilderness and it's a whole different story. Running lets me see more of my favorite places when I have limited time.

HJ, I totally agree on the tunes. I love music, but in the wilderness, I like silence, or the sound of the wind in the trees, or even the mildly annoying caw of that squawky bird (I haven't been able to identify the species) that lives on the east flank of San G near the old plane wreck. But no electronic stuff from other people's speakers!

z

[Hikin_Jim]

Yeah, maybe I should have said something. I hate to be a "jerk", but yeah, I come to the wild to get away from that kind of noise. I mean, really, do you need music in these surroundings?


S Fork Meadows (before the Lake Fire)

HJ

[Ulysses]

Wow. "Personal Record". I had no clue. That's heavy.