Devil's Slide before 8am on Sat when arriving Fri night?

[JustinB]

I'm staying the weekend up in Idyllwild, and am hoping to do a loop going up Devil's Slide, across Wellman's Divide and down Deer Springs. Because of the weather, my preference would be to start before 8am, but I know during the summer there is a quota and the Ranger Station doesn't open before 8am. If I don't get into town until Friday evening, any idea on how to solve this conundrum? Thanks in advance.

[zippetydude]

You can get a permit at two places besides Idyllwild that I am aware of - the ranger station at the upper tram station and at the Stone Creek kiosk at the beginning of the road that leads to Marion Mountain. (See square 35 on HJ's Caltopo map: http://caltopo.com/m/6N5B) These are self-serve and you can get them at any hour. The only question would be if they would be valid on a trail that has a quota - but you can check with the ranger about that. The rangers I have spoken with are beyond helpful so I'm sure you'll get the info you need. Good luck with your hike.

z

[GoPlayer]

I've been up there twice this summer and both times there were no self-issue Devil Slide permits at the Idyllwild ranger station. There was a sign saying that those permits have to be stamped with the trail name and obtained after opening hours.

Work around would be to do the loop the other way around, start up Deer Springs, come down Devil Slide.

[JustinB]

Yeah, I could do the loop the other way around, but I'd like the sun to be illuminating the other side of the mountain (not my side) in the morning and afternoon respectively, both for better views and cooler temperatures. I think I'll just do the loop on Monday, and go up Fuller Ridge on Saturday morning. I'll just fill out of the forms at the kiosk on Saturday morning going from town, and on Monday I won't need to worry about anything since the quota on Devil's Slide is for Saturday and Sunday only.

Does that sound sensible?