Old Mt. Baldy Trail

Natalie P. wrote (on 10÷26÷14) below that the hikers learned one important lesson – stay on the trail. The unfortunate thing is that there’s a trail that could lead you to getting badly lost, with no one else there to help you. It goes to the crashed plane site. People think it’s the way down and they keep going instead of going back to the main trail. Also, the route through the Rock Garden at the bottom of Baldy Bowl isn’t clear because of all the rocks. People often lose the trail and wind up in the cliffs below the Hut. The most important lesson is actually to bring a map. Even a simple map can save you from a terrible experience. Terrible includes being lost overnight in very cold temperatures. Really terrible includes dying. It happens up there. Mt. Baldy isn’t Disneyland. It’s a big bad mountain waiting for you to make a mistake. It can be a great hike if you’re prepared. If you’re not prepared, you can get lucky and make it down okay; but dumb luck will not carry you forever. (Sorry to be so glum, but there are too many people who have no clue that they’re supposed to be self-​reliant. Unfortunately, they don’t know even what that means, so other hikers have to save them. Read Natalie P’s post below.)

Everytime I visit this place its a total blast! This past visit I went there was snow, during spring and summer you can also come up here to hike or fish. They rent fishing poles, sell sleds, tubes, and snacks. You do have to get an adventure pass to park or you will receive a ticket.

Old Mt. Baldy Trail begins near the Visitor Center. Across the street from Mt. Baldy Lodge, walk past the Village Church, continuing beyond Bear Canyon Drive to a sign post pointing to the Mt. Baldy trailhead (6 mi) via Bear Flat (1.6 mi). This is also known as Bear Canyon Trail, the more strenuous of routes to the top of Mt. San Antonio (10,064 ft) in terms of elevation gain. A great trail for solitude. It took us about 5 hours to ascend at a leisurely pace, soaking in all the amazing vistas with liberal breaks for lunch and photos. Going down the same way took about 3 hours and was a literal nightmare. The super slippery rock and dirt prevented us from rushing it. Would strongly suggest returning via an alternate route just to change it up rather than dread the all-​too-​familiar descent. Definitely wear hiking boots and not running shoes.

Love to hike here, you get to really interact with nature and there are different levels for the trails, don’t come alone and remember to bring snacks and water because with the heat it really wares you out! Enjoy the scenery and get a workout!

Its worth clarifying that this review is for the original trail up Mt. Baldy, the Old Mt Baldy Trail aka Bear Canyon trail (west approach). Its much steeper than the other routes to the summit and now seldom used, except for those hardcore hikers training for Mt Whitney. Its known as being the hardest way up and should only be attempted if you’re very well-​conditioned.
Its separate from the Ski Hut, Baldy Bowl, Baldy Notch or Devil’s Backbone trails (all of which start at Manker Flats, about 4 miles up the road from where this trail starts at Baldy Village). Some other reviewers have mistakenly posted those trails here, so wanted to clarify.
This is a very strenuous hike and a pretty steep climb the entire way. The trail has a 5744′ elevation gain/​loss, over 12.8 miles r.t., which is about 1000′ of elevation gain per mile. After the first 1.5 miles of a nice shaded trail, almost the entire rest of the trail is loose gravel, mostly exposed. Make sure you bring all the water you need because there is none the entire way. I brought four liters and drank 3.5L.
Wear proper hiking shoes/​boots and wool socks. Trail runners will not cut it here because of the many rocks you’ll have to maneuver around.
Definitely bring warm layers for the very windy summit, cold at the top even on a hot day. At the top I put on a light down jacket, fleece hat and gloves. Because of the drought there were only small patches of snow, but normally the snow lingers well into the summer.
I hiked this at a much slower pace than usual because of how steep it is and how loose the gravel was. It took me 7 hrs up and 5 hrs back, with frequent breaks on the way up. Somehow it wasn’t much faster coming down. I have been doing long hikes with high elevation gains every weekend, but this one was still hard for me. Normally, I hike at 2mph with a pack and this one I did at 1mph.
The views from the top third of this trail were phenomenal. On a clear day like I had, one of the most beautiful views I’ve ever seen.
The trailhead starts from Baldy Village (behind the Church, across from Baldy Lodge), about four miles down from Manker Flats. You walk along a private residential area until you see a sign for the trailhead. You need an adventure pass for parking.

Once upon a time there were five hikers who prepared extensively to hike the Mt. Baldy Trail. They brought 2L of water, crazy amounts of food, jackets, cameras, sunscreen, and other useful objects for their journey.
On the day of their fateful journey, they arrived bright and early to Mt. Baldy. They promptly parked at the Manker Flats parking lot at 9:00AM and were quite lucky since the arrival of October meant no Adventure Pass had to be purchased.
As the hikers made their way through the Mt. Baldy loop, they traversed through many areas, including the Devil’s Backbone, which proved to be quite challenging despite their past hiking experiences. Nevertheless, the hikers remained steadfast and they overcame the Devil’s Backbone and reached the summit.
At the summit, for the time being, the hikers were happy. Little did the hikers know that their journey would soon take a horrendous turn. After relaxing on the summit, the hikers continued on the Mt. Baldy loop, or so they thought. After 1 – 2 miles, they had realized they took the wrong trail! Times were tense between the hikers, but eventually with their help of some kindhearted travelers, they made their way back to the correct trail.
But alas, Mt. Baldy proved to be quite cruel and the hikers were promptly lost again. Night was coming quickly, and the hikers thought their lives were in great peril. After a 7-​mile detour, extensive rock climbing, aimless wandering, and help from more benevolent people, the hikers finally made their way back to their car. They rejoiced at their victory, but the hikers learned one important lesson:
ALWAYS STAY ON THE TRAIL, or else sheer exhaustion will cause you to write a crazy pseudo fairy tale Unilocal review.

Tough, but not Mt. Wilson tough. Great training for Half Dome.
PARKING: We parked at Manker Flats parking lot (less than a quarter of a mile past the campground). When I hiked Mt. Timber a few weeks prior, I bought an Adventure Pass for $ 5 which this parking lot said was required, but someone told me it’s not enforceable so I took my chances this time. When we got back to the car about 10 hours later, there was no ticket so it was a wise decision. Though, the same person told me giving $ 5 to National Parks isn’t the worst thing you can do. Agreed. Just cheap.
TRAIL: Well marked, easy to follow and there’s a restaurant on your way down (or up, depending on which trail you take to start)! We took the Ski Hut trail up. The first quarter-​mile up is paved. Once it turns into a dirt road, keep an eye out for the steep veer-​off to the left where the Ski Hut trail starts. If you keep going straight, you’ll end up at the lifts. There is a good variety of uphill, downhill and flat parts with plenty opportunity for everyone’s favorite– SWITCHBACKS! Expect to gain 1,000 feet of elevation per mile. We summited in just under 5 hours. There were a ton of people at the top, including a group that had brought a grill with propane and was serving hot dogs and hamburgers to all fellow summiters! We took the Devil’s Backbone down. Some parts are very, very steep so if you have bad knees, this may not be the right mountain to climb. It was about 2 – 3 miles from the summit to the restaurant, The Lodge.
RESTAURANT: Beer and great food a-​plenty and definitely a well deserved meal. Credit cards are accepted. It’s kind of camp-​style in the sense that the tables are large, worn and communal. Order at the bar.
SKI LIFTS: We descended from the restaurant back down to the parking level by ski lift. We purchased one-​way tickets at the restaurant for $ 9 each and the ride took about 15 minutes. While we were going down, there was a guy and his very nervous dog going up, so it appears they do allow pets on lifts. From the base of the lifts, it’s about a 5 minute walk back down to the Manker Flats campground.

Baldy from the Village! Bear Canyon Trail, Old Baldy Trail are the names used for this hike. I’ve done it twice. Last year it was a beast! I was struggling mightily, my trekking poles felt like crutches and I thought I would never reach the summit.
Yesterday, as prep for Whitney, I did it again. I’m happy to report the ascent to Baldy didn’t feel as grueling. I took it easy, enjoying the scenery and soaking it all. Doing the Echo Mountain Ridgeline hike 3 – 4 times a week for a couple months has paid off! (
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Me and my fellow hiker started from the Village at 5:40am on a Wednesday and summitted in less than 5 hours, had lunch, took photos, then took the Devil’s Backbone trail back. We realized summitting via the Old Baldy Trail was so much nicer than via Devil’s Backbone and Ski Hut Trail (a.k.a. Baldy Bowl). Instead of boring, rocky, slippery, never-​ending trail to the top; you just walk up from beautiful scenery and there you are! At the summit. No mighty struggle.
Unfortunately, we failed to realize that the Baldy Notch and ski lifts were not running on a weekday. We were hoping to use the restrooms and take the ski lift down. But as we were walking down the boring fire road to Manker Flats, I realized this was good prep for Whitney because there will be many times you want the hike to end (especially after summitting), but you just have to trek on. That’s what going down that fire road felt like.
We were able to hitch a ride back to the Village from a couple kind hikers. The Visitor’s Center was closed but we were able to use the restrooms at the Baldy Lodge without having to buy anything.

This hike is on the difficult side. About 80% of the hike going up is incline, so you really feel those muscles burn. There is a good amount of shade, which are good rest areas. You really need to wear the right shoes. I made the mistake of wearing my nikes, but next time I feel I need to wear hiking boots. Also, make sure you wear thick socks and have snacks/​plentiful water.
At the beginning of the hike there is a waterfall and you see it when you’re finishing the hike as well. It’s perfect to dip your feet in because the water is very cold and feels refreshing :)
It’s perfect to take a break at the midpoint, which is where the green cottage is. There are benches for eating, lots of shade and a portapotty.
If you’re not up for hiking downhill for 5 – 6 miles and causing strain on your knees, then you have the Option of taking a cable car down from the top. If you hike to the top of the mountain, it is 10,064 ft elevation.
I got to the hike at 8 am and finished around 245.

I’ll just say here, right now, that Mt. Baldy was an awesome hike because of the loop. I tend to get over a hike when its an «In/​Out» trail. You see the same shit coming back down and I’m thinking to myself, «Well I’m ready for this to be over.» Don’t get me wrong, nature is neat, yet the hype of the summit tends to fade away when I have to trek over the same crap. If you hike Mt. Baldy the first time, I highly recommend the Mt. Baldy loop trail. This way you could see AND experience new terrain and challenges up the summit and down the summit. Keeps it interesting. The views on the loop, on either side, are UH– MAZING. There’s also a sweet «oh shit» moment when you’re making your way around the loose basin, which is also, a muddy single track to ‘Devil’s Backbone.’ The loop for this hike is the complete package deal.
Make sure to check out my blog
for pictures of the current conditions and direct links to a topographic map which I highly recommend you to print, and a link to another blog that just writes about the trail so in depth… I wasn’t about to reinvent the wheel… I definitely support that blog and a must read. So descriptive, you wont need a gps, just a really good memory.
Here is a direct link to my Mt. Baldy blog:
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I also provide a direct link to the compiled Mt. Baldy video on my youtube channel:
… Trust. this video isn’t the yappy yappy type. It’s under two minutes, music, and captures only the important segments a new hiker could use as a guide for when s/​he goes on the trail. Oh and also some random happenings of course :)
–Yogi

This is a grueling 12 mile /​5,736 feet elevation gain round trip hike that starts off in the Mt Baldy Village (4,328 feet) and ends up at the top of Mt Baldy, 10,064 feet!
On the weekdays you can park in the Mt Baldy Village Church parking lot located on Bear Canyon Road, across from the Baldy Lodge. On the weekend, just park along Mt Baldy Road or by the visitor center. Then walk towards the back of the church parking lot and up the steep asphalt road for 0.4 miles to reach the trailhead.
In 0.12 miles you will see ‘Old Glory’, the oldest Bigcone Douglas Fir tree at 600 – 700 years old. Amazing! You will also pass by some unique cabins on the way to the trailhead sign. The first 1.6 miles of the trail is really nice as it is shaded from the trees, with the ones along the hillside exposing their intertwining roots. Just below you can hear the sounds of the flowing water from a small creek as you immediately head up the steep switchbacks. After you reach Bear Flats at 1.6 miles, the trail becomes grueling as it heads up a narrow dirt path between the bushes in the open sun with no shade. I found this one mile section to be boring and hot until I reached my halfway up landmark, the ‘Split Rock’ at 2.9 miles, already climbing 3,800 feet.
From here on, it was back to being an amazing trail with some awesome views! Passing through and over large rock boulders, the large pine trees reappeared, the usual Manzanita bushes and even getting excited on a false summit. Then at 4.37 miles and 9,023 feet elevation an AWESOME short ridge crossing appeared, west of Mt Baldy.
What a feeling of solitude. Up so high, no one else around except for my pooch Sammy… and just taking in the view. After reaching the summit and taking a short break at 10,064 feet, we headed 225 degrees southwest back towards Baldy Village the same way we went up. This was a challenging hike covering 12 miles and climbing 5,736 feet, but what a day it was!
Just six weeks after hiking Old Baldy Trail in the hotter weather I was in the snow and fog! What a difference six weeks can make.
This is the best part of these mountain trails; they offer so many different conditions to keep it all exciting. Just be prepared for them. Have a good pair of gloves, a hat, larger snow baskets for your trekking poles, Kahtoola Microspikes and waterproof your boots. In some conditions, you need to time your passage under the trees just right, to avoid getting hit by the falling clumps of snow and ice falling from the tall trees above. So pack a waterproof jacket or a windbreaker to help keep you dry. Hiking in the snow is such an AWESOME experience. Beautiful views all around. That is until the fog shows up…

Preparations: I was carrying a 20lb backpack to test out new gear. Don’t need that much stuff. I would carry at least 3 liters of water, sunscreen, food and good shoes. Trekking poles would be helpful.
Logistics: Got here 7am on Sunday. We stopped at the Mt Baldy Visitor Center to get Adventure Pass, but they weren’t open. We were planning on going up to Manker Flats, but we ran into a couple of guys that showed us this route. Didn’t need to pay for parking at the Visitor Center.
Hiking: I estimate we did 12mi and 6000ft in elevation. According to our car it was around 4500ft at Mt Baldy Visitor Center. We started through the Village, which was mostly shaded and open. The bush started to get a little heavier and then we reached the switch backs. Started to climb while the sun was coming out. It was an incredible view. We made it to the top and had to traverse over the Mt San Antonio Peak. Took a break for 20 minutes to eat, drink, reapply sunscreen, and take pictures. Took us 4 – 5 hours to make it to the top and 2 – 3 hours to get back down. Total about 7 hours going at a pretty good pace. Be careful coming down. Very steep. Not sure which way we came down, but we passed the ski hut.
End: We ended at Manker Flats and the drivers hitch hike down to the Visitor Center to drive up and pick the rest of the people up. I thought I was definitely going to have blisters, but my trail runners fit me pretty well and my feet were fine.
Overall: I definitely want to hike this again. Great training for Mt Whitney. I liked this more than Echo Mountain/​Inspiration Point and Santa Anita Canyon.

My cousin and I hiked Mt. Baldy yesterday, it was pretty tough but totally worth it!
Our route: Up from Manker Flats Campground, past the Ski Hut, through Baldy Bowl to the peak. Down Devil’s Backbone Trail, past the restaurant, down the dirt/​service road. A total of 11.3 miles. It took us 8 hours. We are in above average shape.
A few words of advice:
–When you’re driving up Mt. Baldy Road, at a certain point, the street becomes Ice House Road (if you continue straight) and becomes Mt. Baldy Road if you go left. Go left to go to Manker Flats campground.
–Park just past the Manker Flats campground. I read instructions online that said to go towards San Antonio Falls. Don’t actually try to climb the rocks next to the Falls. We did — that’s not the trail! We discovered that after climbing all the way up the rocks and seeing that there’s no trail.
When hiking up a paved road, you’ll see San Antonio Falls directly ahead. Turn hard right and you’ll walk onto a dirt road. There is a small sign that reads «Mt. Baldy Trail» just off to the left, about ¹⁄₃ of a mile from the beginning of the dirt road. That’s the beginning of your adventure. (This is the same dirt road that you walk down when you’re going back down the mountain from the restaurant).
From there, hike to the Ski Hut (it’s a moderately difficult hike to the Ski Hut). Make sure to take a break there (drink some water, eat some energy gels, suck in the clean mountain air) and then continue on to the summit. My opinion is that the second stretch from the Ski Hut to the Peak is more difficult than from the base of the mountain to the Ski Hut. The peak is deceptive — you’ll see what seems like 2 peaks before you get to the actual peak. Don’t worry, it’s up there.
When you get to the top, you can see all of Southern California. North, south, east, and west. It was windy at the top, and windy as we came down Devil’s Backbone Trail. We came up the shorter route (4.5 miles up) so the climb was steeper, then came down about 6.8 miles. There wasn’t as much tree coverage along Devil’s Backbone Trail so take your pick as to your approach.
There are a number of forks in the trail where there are no signs as to where to go. A lot of those forks are just short splits in the path — the two paths will end up meeting a little further away. Take your time to look ahead at where the trail goes, and look for footprints — those are generally the best indicator of where to go.
There’s a trail map at the trail head, and you can also buy a map of the Angeles National Forest trail system. Be prepared — I took 100 oz of water (the Camelbak is the best hiking invention, after hiking shoes) and drank all of it by the time I came down. Also, during the summer the restaurant is only open Fri-​Sun, and there are no vending machines outside. However, you can fill up water there.

My second time around this mountain minus the snow so I was able to make it to the summit with my «non-​hiking» gear (trail running shoes and shorts.) This hike is by far my favorite because of its elevation and very steep terrain. If you’re planning to run this during the late spring or summer make sure you hydrate well. I am definitely going to make a few more trips up here and cross the devil’s back bone. It’s easy to get lost up here so if its your first time come in a group and do your homework!

Great, rigorous trail. About 6000 + feet straight up with a nice summit. I did it without the snow at the top, so it wasn’t bad.
In terms of rigor, i’d put it on par with most of the days hiking in Peru, except for when I went to 16,000 feet. As far as best hikes in the greater Los Angeles area, it can’t be beat.

It is very hard… but, trust me, it’s worth it!

The Old Mt. Baldy Trail takes you from the Mt. Baldy Village to the summit of Mt. Baldy. Of the three most common approaches to Mt. Baldy’s summit, this is the most strenuous. To get to the trailhead, drive up Mt. Baldy road and shortly after you get to the Village, turn left onto Bear Canyon Dr. There is parking at the bottom of Bear Canyon Dr on the right, and if you arrive really early, there is also a very small lot at the top just before a gate that states that parking beyond the gate is for residents only. I arrived at 7:30am and got the last spot in the upper parking lot.
To get to the trailhead, simply hike up Bear Canyon Dr. The trail is pretty easy to follow and takes you to the summit in about 6.5 miles and 6000 feet elevation gain. The ascent up the Old Mt. Baldy Trail took me about 4 hours.
After you get to the summit, if you have the time and the energy, you can take the northern ridge to Dawson Peak and then continue on to Pine Mountain. This side trip will add about 5 miles and 3000 feet elevation gain to your trip totals. However, as of May 24 there was still a significant amount of snow on Baldy’s north face and a large portion of the trail along the northern ridge was covered in snow. Besides my trekkiing poles, I did not have any gear for crossing the snow, so I found it easier and faster to skirt the patches of snow on right during the descent.
The trail along the northern ridge off Baldy takes you to Dawson Peak. However, the trail doesn’t actually go over the summit, so you need to take a small detour off the trail to get to the top. At the peak, there is a man made pile of stones housing a can holding a summit register that you can sign. Leave the summit and continue on the trail to Pine Mountain. This time the trail takes you to the top, and once again, there is a summit register that you can sign. Take a break, and then turn around and head back to Mt. Baldy. It took me about 5 hours to complete this sidetrip, but I probably wasted about an hour trying to get past the snow patches. Without snow, it should be doable in 4 hours.
Once you get back to Mt. Baldy, head back down the Old Mt. Baldy Trail. The descent took me about 3.5 hours. As you can see, the entire trip took about 12.5 hours, so an early start is required unless you want to finish in the dark. Therefore, I don’t recommend doing the side trip unless you get to the summit before noon or so.
Trip totals: 18 miles/​9000 feet elevation gain