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| Hiking | 10.11 Miles |
2,458 AEG |
| | Hiking | 10.11 Miles | 4 Hrs 59 Mns | | 2.09 mph |
| 2,458 ft AEG | 9 Mns Break | | | |
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| no partners | | When I hiked Rivas Canyon trail for the first time a few weeks ago I explored a spur trail that led to a peak with a nice view. I could see that the trail continued farther, but didn't have time to explore. This time my main goal was to explore the unnamed trail that followed the ridge line between Temescal and Rivas canyons. The trail was narrow and a bit overgrown as a result of the wet winter in SoCal, but it was still a pretty decent trail. I've hiked worse named trails in the past.
After not too long I got to the top of the hill where I turned around last time. Looking towards the ocean it was gray and overcast. It was also overcast around the Temescal Ridge trail to the West. But it was hot and sunny where I was and with the humidity I soon had sweat pouring off of me. I ran into a couple of hikers with a dog and they told me that the high point was not too far from where we were, but it was still a fair way off with several hundred vertical feet to climb. But the high point was my goal, so I pressed onwards and upwards. The last big hill was a killer. There was a section that I had to scramble up near the top, which wasn't bad. But the steep continuous climb at that hill was a challenge, and I had to stop a several times to catch my breath. Finally at the top there is a clearing with a plastic tub filled with lots of random paper and notebooks to sign. The lid of the tub says "You made it!!! Congratulations!!! Goat Peak (High Point); 1729 feet above the sea." From there I was looking down at Skull Rock across the canyon to the West.
Rather than try to climb down that steep trail I continued onward to the North. After about 3/4 mile with several ups and downs I reached the junction with the Backbone trail. I expected a wide, well maintained trail, but it was quite overgrown with tall grasses and blooming mustard plants growing into the single track trail in a few places. There was an interesting shrine that was built to look like a large nest with beach glass, some decorated eggs, rocks with inspirational sayings and a Buddha figure. Fun stuff. It was nearly a 4 mile hike down to the Rivas Canyon trail, and from there another 2 miles to get back to Temescal Gateway trailhead where I started.
This loop route was about 10 miles total. I will definitely do it again, but I think I'll wait for cooler weather. |
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