looking for connector route

[ps_native]

good morning all,

not sure if an introduction is necessary on here, but if so, here goes;
30 year old palm springs native here, residing in san diego now.
avid hiker and 'mountain person'.

now to business.
I am looking for a connector route from the PCT trail head on fuller ridge (the top part of the PCT trail that goes down into snow creek). i am looking to hike from there to the San jacinto summit (peak) and have yet to find any trail on my google earth research.
can anyone assist? also i was hoping to do the hike either this coming weekend or the following one, so current conditions (snow and PCT trail conditions) woudl be great seeing as how i cant actually see the mountain from my home in san diego ( ).

thanks in advance, and stay safe out there.

[asabat]

You mean somethings besides the usual PCT southbound from Fuller Ridge Trailhead up to the trail to Little Round Valley and the MSJ peak? I can't imagine the work building any trail going more direct given the steep topography.

[ps_native]

Unfortunately i have never made it to MSJ peak (this will be my first time), and the extent of my PCT knowledge (san jacinto wise) is only from snow creek to the fuller ridge trailhead.
Since my young son will be joining me on this hike, therein lies the reason behind starting as high up as possible (he's only 10 years old but can hike pretty damn well).
Also, i was curious how much further black mt truck trail continues past the fuller ridge trail head....that way, in case of an emergency, my wife could ultimately reach us quicker with the truck rather than us hiking all the way back down to fuller ridge.

I've looked online left and right, but cant seem to find a map with marked trails/forest service roads for this specific hike...anyone have a link they could share?
Again, thanks in advance.

[Florian]

The map on the state park site is pretty good ..

http://www.parks.ca.gov/pages/636/files ... oSPmap.pdf

Fuller Ridge to the peak is a long hike. If you're concerned about quicker exit you might try Marion Mtn trail instead. It's steep however until you get to the PCT.

-Florian

[Florian]

Also, i was curious how much further black mt truck trail continues past the fuller ridge trail head....that way, in case of an emergency, my wife could ultimately reach us quicker with the truck rather than us hiking all the way back down to fuller ridge.

The road does not go through. Quicker way to pavement would be out via Marion Mtn. The map shows the road to Marion Mtn as unpaved but if i recall correctly it is paved.

-Florian

[ps_native]

outstanding, thank you very much Florian and asabat.

how is the terrain going up/down on Marion vs going up/down Fuller PCT?
are we talking about boulder hoping stuff or good clean trail similar to the PCT coming up from snow creek?

[Hikin_Jim]

Since my young son will be joining me on this hike, therein lies the reason behind starting as high up as possible (he's only 10 years old but can hike pretty damn well).

Have you considered taking the Palm Springs Tram? That's the easiest way to the peak that I know of. Starting elevation for your hike is over 8,000'. There's less than 3,000' of gain to the peak. It's about 12 miles round trip.

Fuller Ridge is about 14.5 miles round trip, and the trail head is below 8000'.

HJ

[Florian]

how is the terrain going up/down on Marion vs going up/down Fuller PCT? are we talking about boulder hoping stuff or good clean trail similar to the PCT coming up from snow creek?

Fuller Ridge is maintained trail but there's a lot of up and down along the ridge. It can be pretty tiring especially on your way out. Plus you have 6 or 7 miles of bumpy dirt road to drive. Marion is good trail just very steep.

-Florian

[ps_native]

Cool thanks.
What should we expect regarding trail conditions, is there a lot of deadfall (downed trees, overgrowth) from the winter months?
Also looking to find out about PCT trail conditions (fuller ridge down to snow creek) since i might be hiking solo down that way (withOUT my son of course).

[Florian]

What should we expect regarding trail conditions, is there a lot of deadfall (downed trees, overgrowth) from the winter months?

I've not been on Fuller Ridge nor Marion Mtn trails yet this year. I'm sure someone else will chime in with current/recent conditions.

-Florian