Fuller Ridge

[Ellen]

Howdy All

Yesterday I was on the summit on San Jacinto for the first time since February 2.

I haven't hiked up San J via Fuller ridge since 2001 so it was time for another visit. Karin Meyer was hankering to experience this trail for the first time, so once again I had the pleasure of her company on the mountain.

We started at 6 AM due to the heat. The view from Castle Rocks was breath-taking. There's nothing quite like the feeling of being suspended up high between the desert and pine trees. We ran into an exquisite fast-flowing stream with miniature waterfalls before reaching the trail to Little Round Valley.

The only unpleasant part of the hike was maneuvering through the buckthorn section. I always enjoy climbing up the switchbacks out of little Round Valley but was happy to see the .3 mile to go sign.

It's difficult to explain how moved I felt as I passed the hut and scrambled over the rocks to the summit. This experience was dramatically different -- the sun was warm on my face and I enjoyed the caress of the breeze. I touched the summit sign and my heart swelled with happiness.

We visited the hut on the way down. On my last visit, it was half-buried in snow. It felt very odd to be walking around upright inside. The hut and summit soon became too crowded, so we signed the register and started down.

We stopped at the enchanting stream to obtain relief from the heat and refresh ourselves. We carelessly hiked along, relishing the shade of the trees. In an instant, everything changed. I simultaneously heard Karin screaming my name and a blood-chilling rattling.

I somehow ended up five feet back up the trail holding onto Karin and shaking. The snake had been coiled and was ready to strike. One more step and CRUNCH! It was in the shade and difficult to see. This is the second time I've encountered a buzz tail at ~8,000 ft on San J.

Fortunately, the rest of the hike was uneventful and we stayed alert. I was very happy to be on the gently-descending and shaded Fuller trail for the remainder of the hike. Most of the day hikers we encountered had used the Marion trail.

Miles of smiles,
Ellen
The Phoenix

[Cy Kaicener]

Ellen - Thanks for the trip report. I just received an e mail from Tina saying that she did Skyline yesterday and drank four and a half quarts of water.

[guest]

That's very cool Ellen, and I can imagine the feelings you must have had, the memories come flooding in I'm sure.

Aren't we all so fortunate to be able to commune with nature!
(even if it's bout ready to bite us!!).

ss

[WOLFDOG]

Well, finally I hiked the Fuller Ridge Trail on what must of been the most hottest day in June (last Saturday). Hiked 4 miles to Shooting Star Creek to see the only Dodecatheon Redolens that know of, unless if someone out there knows of others in the San Jacintos. Anyhow, noticed much less of flowers blooming this time compared to ten years ago after El Nino (1998) when there were tons of these flowers all over the creek. Also noticed a great amount of Chinquapin and Mountain Lilac die-off along the north side of Fuller before Castle Rock Pass, which must have been a result from the great drought of 2001-2002 that we had up in the San Jacintos. Hopefully this reverses, sure would like to see the beautiful purple lavender Dodecatheon Redolens sprout all over again, what a Treasure.