Hiking trails and nature trails as of 29/May/2010
Volunteers and paid construction crews have been restoring the hiking
and nature trails in the Crystal Lake camp grounds. About half of the
trails are in excellent and safe condition.
- Half Knob Trail -- This trail was completely restored and is
currently in excellent condition. This is a short hike trail
which begins and ends at points along the main paved roadway leading
to the Visitor Center. The trailhead is located at North 34 degrees,
19.444 by West 117 degrees, 50.210 at 5717 feet.
- Lake Trail -- Lake Trail is in great condition with the start of the
trailhead having a new rock bridge built by volunteers. The trail
cuts across the camp grounds and joins the main road that heads up to
the Visit Center to Lake Road. The start of the trail head from the
main road end is located at North 34 degrees, 19.410 by West 117
degrees, 50.261 at 5744 feet.
- Golden Cup Nature Trail -- This trail has been nearly completly
restored. There was extensive flooding along this trail. This is a
short hike with four or five information boards placed along the
trail. The trail itself forms a loop such that the start and end of the
hike is near a main paved road. The trailhead is located at North 34
degrees, 19.630 by West 117 degrees, 50.108 at 5865 feet.
- Big Cieneca Trail -- This trail was reworked on 01/Sep/07 and it is
in excellent condition. All of the downed tress across the trail were
removed. This trail is 1.2 miles long and has its start at a
paved road.
- Windy Gap -- The condition of this hiking trail has been reported to
be moderate, with large sections in excellent conditions and parts of the
trail in unusable, unsafe condition. When details about the condition of
this trail are acquired, this web page will be updated. This trail is
2.5 miles long and has its start at a paved road. The trailhead is
located at North 34 degrees, 19.890 by West 117 degrees, 50.021 at
6099 feet.
- Pacific Crest Trail -- The condition of this trail is not known.
This trail is 2.5 miles long and has its start at a paved road.
- Little Jimmy Trail Camp -- The condition of this trail is not known.
This trail is 2.8 miles long and has its start at a paved road.
- Mount Hawkins Trail -- The condition of this trail is not known.
This trail is 4.8 miles long and has its start at a paved road.
The trail actually swings around the camp grounds and passes through a
heliport (condition unknown) and then ends at Souyj Mt. Hawkins lookout
(which burned to the ground.)
- Pinyon Ridge -- This trail was fully restored during National Trails
Day of 2006, and it's in excellent condition. This is a moderately
long trail which forms a loop that takes hikers up the side of the
mountain ridge, along the ridge, and then back down again, curving around
to form the loop. There is water present at three places along the trail
all year, and the start of the trail requires about an hour's worth of
effort to remove new growth. The trail head location is the same as the
start of Soldier Creek: North 34 degrees, 19.354 by West 117 degrees,
49.976 at 5656 feet.
- Soldier Creek Trail -- Fire damage and flooding has effectively
destroyed this trail and it is currently extremely dangerous to
hike along. The San Gabriel Mountains Trailbuilders sent experienced
and trained volunteers to scout the condition of this trail to determine
how much of an effort is needed to restore the trail. This is a long
hiking trail and without a doubt the best hiking trail in the Crystal
Lake Recreation Area. It follows Soldier Creek which contains good,
high-volume water, sporting rare vegetation such as Catalina Cherries.
This trail may or may not be restored prior to the Crystal Lake Camp
Grounds being opened. The trail head location is the same as the
start of Pinyon Ridge trail: North 34 degrees, 19.354 by West 117
degrees, 49.976 at 5656 feet.
- Lost Ridge Trail -- This is another excellent hiking trail which has
been fully restored by the San Gabriel Mountains Trailbuilders.
This trail is a long one with one end of the trailhead up near Deer
Flats and the other end on Lake Road. To increase safety, the
Trailbuilder crew installed steps in a number of places and the volunteers
may decide to install more steps in moderately steep places in the future.
The lake road trail head is located at North 34 degrees, 19.452 by West
117 degrees, 50.463 at 5728 feet. The other end of the trail is in
the Deer Flats Campgrounds and it's located at North 34 degrees, 19.977
by West 117 degrees, 50.365 at 6344 feet.
- Tototngna Nature Trail -- Some work has been done on this trail
however it needs a considerable amount of effort to make the trail
safe and usable. This is a moderately long trail which forms a
loop and can be accessed from a paved road. The trail head is located
at North 34 degrees, 19.538 by West 117 degrees, 49.767 at 5929
feet.
- Cedar Canyon Trail -- This trail has its start on the main road
leading up to the Visitor Center. It's a moderately long trail
that leads to a good volume of water. The trail actually meets up with
Soldier Creek Trail which requires extensive repairs before the trail
is safe and useable. The trailhead for this end of the trail is located
at North 34 degrees, 19.366 by West 117 degrees, 50.280 at 5820
feet.
- Sunset Ridge Nature Trail -- This trail is located inside of the
Deer Flats Campgrounds. It's a short trail which forms a loop
that ends about 30 feet from where it begins. The trail is currently
being restored and about 20% of the trail has been completed. The
location of this trail is at North 34 degrees, 20.002 by West 117
degrees, 50.249 at 6423 feet.
When the camp grounds open, nearly all of the hiking trails and nature
trails will have been restored with an effort to increase safety being
one of the major priorities in that effort.
In addition to the established trails, hikers can also pack water and
walk up to the old fire watch tower which burned down to the ground in
the last series of fires.
