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I bagged my second peak!

Hike number six was probably my favorite hike to date for this project.  The gentle gain along a well-groomed trail amongst a rare coastal Mediterranean ecosystem made for a very enjoyable hike.  The blooming flowers, fluttering butterflies, and other active wildlife made it difficult to concentrate on hiking rather than photography – but what is hiking without stopping to enjoy the surroundings?  I stopped and enjoyed it many times, capturing  plants and insects I have never seen.  And the views!  The views were spectacular in every direction.  To the north and east, the Conejo and San Fernando Valleys spread out below.  To the west, the mountainous Santa Barbara area.  And to the south, the great Pacific, shrouded in a marine layer where only the Channel Islands revealed themselves in the distance.

Chris, a friend of mine, suggested that I hike Sandstone Peak (officially known as Mount Allen) during my quest to hike one hundred times by the end of the year.  I took him up on his suggestion and invited him to join me for a Saturday afternoon hike.  However, it was more of a challenge to find the Mishe Mokwa Trailhead than it was to traverse on it.  Although Chris has mountain biked Sandstone Peak before via another trail, he didn’t know exactly where the Mishe Mokwa trailhead was located.  I had read about the trail on LocalHikes.com, where they mentioned it is  “one of the most beautiful hikes in the Santa Monica Mountains.” I had printed out the topographical maps, but didn’t think of printing out the directions to the trailhead, located deep in the 4,000-square mile Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. Again, like hike number four, it was a case of knowing a lot of the small details, but missing one important piece of info. After a few wrong turns and a little guesstimating, we found the trailhead around 4:15pm, two hours later than we had planned.

But the timing couldn’t have been better. The weather was a pleasant, with a slight ocean breeze.  The sun was much lower in the sky than it would have been earlier in the day, allowing for the terrain and foliage to provide shade along the trial. Many of the visitors had already come and gone, leaving the trail virtually empty.  We had originally planned to do the strenuous six-mile round trip hike, but instead opted for the shorter and faster route leading straight to Sandstone Peak.  We spent a half-hour on the jagged summit, ate some snacks and took photos before heading back down.  We got back to my car at 8:00pm, just before sunset.

I’m definitely planning on going on more hikes in the Santa Monica Mountains before the end of the year.

What I learned on the hike:

1. Always print directions to the trailhead and bring a map of the area.
2. The Santa Monica National Recreation Area provides free pamphlets at all of their major trailheads that include information on the area and trail maps!
3. My new KEEN boots do a terrible job of hiking downhill.  I’m afraid that they are too short for my size 15 feet, causing my toes to hit the front of the boot on downhill treks.  I’ll be packing my older Columbia boots along with me for my Sequoia trip next week.
4. I had a high amount of energy and stamina on this hike compared to earlier hikes.  Am I getting into shape?  Time will tell.

Hike #6 Trip Stats:

• Date of hike: May 17th, 2009
• Location: Mishe Mokwa Trail to Sandstone Peak, Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, California
• Length: 3.41 miles
• Duration: 3 hours, 44 minutes, 1 second
• Average speed: ±0.9 mph
• Altitude at start: 2,066 feet
• Altitude min.max: 2,066/3,111 feet

*GPS Data (above) is not accurate due to frequent stops, mostly at the summit.

This map was made with the data my GPS captured on the hike.
For a more detailed trip report map, check this out.

Photos: