San Gorgonio Mountain via Vivian Creek Trail
8.3 mi
Distance
3 hrs 34 min
Time
terrain
5,184 ft
Elev Gain
Overview
This is a difficult one way trail to San Gorgonio Mountain in San Gorgonio Wilderness.
This trail goes by Halfway Camp and High Creek Camp.
Sights to See
Rate this Hike
★★★★★
Solo hiked Tues 10/15/2024 – No time for the Sierra this week so I was looking for a “maintenance hike” close to home and Vivian is always a great choice. Started very early in perfect weather with a nearly full moon and had a nice go of it. Summit views were nice but a little hazy with 15 minutes of wind gusts before settling down. I brought up a new register pad as there were only fully used or shredded ones in the box on my last trip up. I couldn’t find the newer painted sign while the older wood sign with steel handles has been split in two. Mill Creek is dry, lower Vivian is still flowing well at the first crossing but is flowing very slowly at the Halfway Camp crossing (you can scoop water for filtering here as of 10/15). High Creek is flowing well and still provides fast vertical bottle/bag fills. Met a handful of people on the way down on a quiet day and was back to work in the early afternoon. Logged 18.4 miles / 5632 vertical ft with Gaia
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This was an excellent trail to the top of the highest peak in Southern California! The trail was easy to follow, with ample signage at all forks in the trail. The beginning of the hike certainly caught our attention as it is a steep, unforgiving mile before entering the San Gorgonio Wilderness. A steady climb from there passes three campgrounds along the way as we ascended towards the summit. Water was readily available at High Creek Camp, where we chose to fill up during our descent. Be sure to always filter your water. We begun the hike around 5:30am and summited just after 10am. It is certainly important to note that the summit is only half way! We completed our descent at 3pm and passed three uniformed rangers along the way down.
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The highest summit in Southern California a brutal hike, but great training for higher peaks. Just a relentless uphill slog, one that is seemingly endless on the way down. I’ve done San Gorgonio twice from the Vivian Creek trailhead and I’d say the total hike from the parking lot is about 18 miles round trip. The trailhead is actually 1/2 mile up a dirt road from the parking lot. There are several water sources on the mountain, depending on time of year, so bring a filter if you want to refill. Otherwise bring at least 3 liters of water per person. Give yourself an early start, no later than 6:30 am, and remember to bring an Adventure Pass for the parking lot.
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For a 19 mile hike that ascends 5,500 feet, it feels unaccountably pleasant. Ok. Ok. Ok. The first mile is punishing. And there are some sections there at the end that remind one this isn’t a gimme. But, get there at 6:30, throw back some pre-workout, sip on some protein powder during, and you’re good. I did the hike on a Wednesday and finding a parking spot wasn’t an issue. Even though it was 93 degrees in LA, I was cold at the start of the hike. Light pants and a long sleeve cool max shirt over a T for the ascent. T and shorts for the descent. Choose a day where the weather report has the wind under 10mph. You’ll be happy for that. Oh, and you need an Adventure Pass to park.
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The weather was perfect for this hike. A bit chilly at first, but by the time we got up to the peak it was cold and windy at 1 p.m.
The first mile could be considered a gate keeper, as it can lead you to think that the hike will be brutal for the remainder of the trail. Also the last mile could be daunting, but one foot in front of the other gets the job done.
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vivian parking lot closed (covid?) so add another mile to the round trip. we got to lot at 0600 and there were four legal spots left. halfway camp is really third way to summit. took is almost 6 hours to summit including a few breaks. couple guys passed us and brisk hike made it in just under 4hours. if camping plan on halfway camp since high camp (which is more like halfway up) only has 3 to four spots and was full (Saturday). trail was clean but we picked up two water bottles along the way and there was a cigarette butt in the rocks at the peak.
my knees are killing me as the super steep part of Vivian from the river to halfways really a challenge on the way down for this 55uear old. took us almost 12 hours for the round trip. felt good to soak knees in the cold water at the bottom
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Public Tracks
20240610_San Gorgonio Mtn via Vivian Creek TH (6/10/24, 3:18:04AM)
Solo hiked Mon 6/10/2024 – Trail crews have done a lot of work on Vivian from cutbacks to deadfall removal – big thanks to those responsible! The trail is much drier and Mill Creek a trickle compared to this time last year. Nice for a change to just follow the trail in autopilot mode with no winter navigation work or trail obstacles to deal with. Good flowing water to filter from at Vivian Creek-Halfway Camp crossing as well as High Creek. Switchbacks up from High Creek and the upper summit trail have a few trivial (soft and boot packed) snow patches that are just ornamental at this point and won’t be around after another week or so. While Vivian Creek itself is much lower this year, it’s still burbling nicely and is as beautiful as ever. Same slightly muddy trail patches before Halfway and at High Creek, all of which can be side stepped. Nice breeze and views off the summit today, especially towards San Jacinto, Cherry Valley and the San Gorgonio Front Range. With the trail maintenance complete and the snow virtually gone, now is a great (and fast) time to hike Vivian before the bugs come out in force. Brought a heavier pack for the day to get ready for an upcoming high altitude trip but didn’t really notice the weight (and finished earlier than planned) with the trail in such great shape! Logged 18.7 miles / 5425 vertical ft with Gaia
Hike San Gorgonio
Everyone wants to hike San Gorgonio. At 11,503 feet, it's the highest peak in Southern California, and a challenging hike, not only in distance, but in climbing. This San Gorgonio trail guide goes via Vivian Creek, which is the quickest (yet hard) way to the summit, doable in a day.
Hike San Gorgonio
Everyone wants to hike San Gorgonio. At 11,503 feet, it's the highest peak in Southern California, and a challenging hike, not only in distance, but in climbing. This San Gorgonio trail guide goes via Vivian Creek, which is the quickest (yet hard) way to the summit, doable in a day.
Hike San Gorgonio
Everyone wants to hike San Gorgonio. At 11,503 feet, it's the highest peak in Southern California, and a challenging hike, not only in distance, but in climbing. This San Gorgonio trail guide goes via Vivian Creek, which is the quickest (yet hard) way to the summit, doable in a day.
San Gorgonio via Vivian Creek
Peak #6 of 6 in the SoCal Six-Pack of Peaks Challenge.
Get all the details on this hike plus many more photos here: https://socalhiker.net/hiking-san-gorgonio-via-vivian-creek/
San Gorgonio via Vivian Creek
Our 6th peak in the six pack of peaks! Awesome hike. Very windy at top. Spent night at halfway camp. No water there. Get water at Vivian creek. Hike w/ Mark and Bev.
San Gorgonio MTN via Vivian Creek Trail
San Gorgonio Mountain via Vivian Creek Trail
San gorgonio summit via Vivian creek out/back
Forgot to pause at camp for 30 min
San Gorgonio (9/1/19, 8:24:04AM)
Never again. Hiking is the worst.
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