Walthier and Stiles Landing Whitewater ?'s

[Screerider]

Since we have Walthier Landing, and for lack of a better term, I'm gonna call this little hill "Walthier Island". If catsclaw was flooded, it would be an island anyway.

East end looking towards catsclaw.
Tributary of clear water merging with white colored water of Whitewater


A little further west looking south.



Didn't get a lot of pics. First time in that area.
Here's an old one of middlefork you may have seen on the SGWA board.



I have others of NF and HFS put away on disc somewhere. The camera didn't fare too good coming out of EF.
If I can get to Millard from there, I know I can get to the convergence of eastfork. Nice area. It was pretty difficult getting down east fork. One would have to be a rock climber to make it up. We ended up literally jumping into south fork.

[Hikin_Jim]

Wait. You came down the east fork? Where did you start? Presumably below Silverwood Falls, yes?

HJ

[Screerider]

Mill Creek to Silverwood and down. Not always directly on the river. Not bad above the dam. A lot of clawing our way up the bank to get around the falls below the dam. Finally climbing the east side and cutting over to south fork. The first finger down into SF cliffed out, as did the second finger but not as high. It was kind of a sliding jump into the sand below. We came out Millard which was open at the time. A lot of fun but I don't recommend it.

[Hikin_Jim]

Zoiks. Sounds gnarly.

Must have been some time ago if Millard was open. I'm fairly curious about that area down there, but I bet those trails are overgrown and gone to heck.

Another guy who posts here occasionally, Pi, has been over there relatively recently.

HJ

[gonehigher]

We've been out on both sides of Kitching with the FS doing surveys the last few years. The Kitching Peak Trail from the west (East Millard Canyon) is negotiable to the summit. We actually flagged the trail in the "lost" parts and did some minor brush clearing. It was hands and knees to the summit for the last 100 yards. Overgrown, huge bear scratches on some trees, confusing cattle tracks at the bottom off the road. Rumor has it if you can get an in from the Morongo Tribe you may have a chance of entry. We were with the FS, so no issues for us.
From the east we hiked into and stayed overnight at Stills. The trail is sadly completely overgrown and eroded away above there (read don't even try to follow it!) and we only bothered going to a saddle 2 1/2 miles up towards the Sink. Needless to say the approach to Stills from the Mission Creek Preserve is a wonderful hike in. Pick a good (cool!) winter day and it's a pleasure.
There was a pot grow in the area around Stills last year, so be careful out there!

[Screerider]

I appreciate all the responses and the pictures.
I was still a young man in my forties when we did EF. A couple years back.
According to the guard at Cabazon, if you know somebody, you can get in.
Never made it up Kitching. Made it a short ways up the trail but as noted, the cattle made a mess of it. Easy to follow, just not overly enjoyable with the mess. Not much for doing peaks anyway. More interested in the unknown and abandoned. I like finding the through routes. Until we came down middlefork, all I heard is it can't be done, then we went and Pi went a few years later. While I can't believe that we were the first, I wouldn't doubt the gal in our group may have been the first, and only, woman to do it.
Mission is a good place to start when heading to MF or NF. Less rock, a little shorter. The trout farm is closer for Stiles. Fairly recent mud flows have paved over some of the rock making it easier. The flows also brought down some large drip hose, possibly from the Grape Canyon grow. Not too worried now. The season is wrapping up plus there were very few human prints in the area.
Always lots of bear sign. I've only seen one. They haven't been spoiled like park bears. It's the mountain lion track that keeps me on guard.

[Hikin_Jim]

That's very cool stuff over there, and largely untraveled, particularly today.

I know a couple of guys who, back in the 70's, went down N Fork, up Middle Fork, over Mill Creek JO, and exited at Forest Falls. Now that sounds like some cool stuff!

Pi has done extensive travels in the N Fork and Hell-for-Sure area as well as Kitching and Millard. He's also traveled all the flumes and such from S and E forks.

Halhiker has done a lot of that stuff too.

You're not alone but definitely part of an exclusive club!

HJ

[Screerider]

A lot of the EF flumes were being replaced with pipe. They were replacing parts of the SF flume. Not sure how far they got. Hard to bend pipe around the hill. There used to be trout at the SF dam and in the flumes. The EF ones ran into the SF flumes and down. Much nicer path than the road into Banning and there was no need to carry water.
I figured others had been down MF. It used to be more accessible for one thing. I'm sure prospectors were all over the area. Don't know about the woman. Who knows though, it may have been a popular path back in the day.
Some old literature I had on the history of Morongo Valley has an interview with a guy with the last name Bobo. His dad was a trapper and worked up in the Big Morongo area. He speaks of camping in Whitewater near a 100' waterfall. He also mentions that Whitewater's name came from the color of the water. It's not clear, it's white. If there was a waterfall, and it's still there, it would have to be up SF past Stiles. Only SF and MF are cloudy. Besides, it's not anywhere else. Not up MF unless it collapsed.

[Hikin_Jim]

The falls I know about are near the mouth of the NF (above where it flows into the MF), H-F-S, and of course Silverwood. H-F-S might be about 100'.

HJ

[Screerider]

There's a little finger that goes up on the west side of NF. Taking it, you can drop in after the first fall, then a short walk up a tight overgrown canyon to a second fall that's real nice.
I often wondered if Bobo was talking about HFS. I thought that he was talking about whitewater itself though because he mentions the water color from the minerals. As far as I can see that comes out of MF. He may have been there before the dams were built. SF loses most of it's water at the dam. Most of the water we see comes out of EF and lower tributaries. The date I saw on the flumes was 1930 something. I don't know if that was when they were built or when they were repaired.
He also mentions buying hay from a guy named Kitchen(SP?) who grew it up in Mission Creek. Kitchen would transport trout by horseback into WW to stock ponds that he had. It just doesn't sound like HFS.
Anyways, thats all I know and it's sketchy, sure like to find out more.
Apparently there is a fall up Grape Canyon as well.
http://angeles.sierraclub.org/longbch/B ... ation.html
They speak of Millard, but it's the Stills/Kitchen portion of the trail, not the trailhead further up SF.
A great area where all kinds of geological features come together. Tell me it's not a great place for an atmospheric port of entry. An alien invasion with machetes and orange spray paint. It really needs to be explored more cause it actually could happen.