The full impacts from Tropical Storm Hilary, with its impressive 8-12 inches of rain across the San Jacinto high country, are still being assessed, although almost all trails have now been hiked at least once since the storm. Many minor washouts and considerable treefall debris remain in the trails following Hilary, but frankly the impacts could have been much worse. The only trail with major treefall damage surveyed to date is Willow Creek Trail (details and photos below), which sadly had only two weeks earlier been cleared of 60+ downed trees accumulated over the previous three years. The rainfall from Hilary has thankfully helped suppress and shorten our fire season.
Daily survey hikes include many different routes to San Jacinto Peak multiple times per week, most recently on 25th, 27th, and 29th August, plus many other trails on intervening days. A sample of my recent weather observations from San Jacinto Peak is given in the Weather section below. The trail system has been clear of snow since mid July.
On 29th-31st August hikers should be prepared for temperatures well above seasonal. Give considerable extra thought to route choice, start times, clothing, sun protection, and hydration requirements. Conversely, rapid cooling on 1st-4th September will lead to windchill temperatures below freezing above 10,000 ft elevation. Temperatures will then swing back above seasonal – for September – from 6th-9th.
Hikers should also be prepared for rapidly changing weather conditions in the high country. Monsoon thunderstorms are always a possibility in summer and early autumn. Lightning, brief but intense precipitation, and rapid temperature drops can occur in the high country even when such storms are not forecast for lower elevations.
Water sources such as creeks, pipes, and springs are flowing very well (see previous Report for some before-and-after storm photos) with flow rates well above the average of the last decade. Consequently I am not reporting water details for specific locations at this time. This summer has seen the most water on the mountain since 1998 (following the great El Niño winter of 1997/98), even prior to the additional input from Tropical Storm Hilary. Hidden Lake was refilled by Hilary, having been about 50% full by volume immediately prior to the storm (photo below).
Given the intensity of this past winter, and the additional wind and rain of Tropical Storm Hilary, hikers will encounter new treefall hazards and considerable fresh debris, on trails. Trails are slowly being cleared, largely by volunteers, as described in Trail Conditions below.
Be rattlesnake aware. Southern Pacific Rattlesnakes Crotalus (oreganus) helleri have been active on the trail system up to 9300 ft, mainly on warm, sunny days. Above about 5000 ft, the venom of this rattlesnake species in the San Jacinto mountains is predominantly neurotoxic, almost always fatal for dogs and sometimes for humans (see my 2020 discussion here). Devil’s Slide and lower Deer Springs trails, Suicide Rock, near Strawberry Cienega, and trails around Tahquitz Peak, are common locations for sightings.
Black Mountain Road (4S01) was in its poorest condition for at least a decade this spring. The partial grading undertaken on 17th July improved the situation somewhat, but it remained a bumpy drive which has been worsened by the rains of Tropical Storm Hilary. Forest Service roads Dark Canyon Road (4S02) and South Ridge Road (5S11) remain closed to vehicles. Dark Canyon campground and the South Ridge yellow post sites remain closed. The State Park campgrounds, temporarily closed following Hilary, have reopened.
The annual maintenance closure of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway is scheduled to end on Friday 1st September 2023. See the Tramway website for details.
Due to major road work at the uppermost end of Fern Valley Road, Humber Park parking area will be completely closed to all traffic for two weeks in October 2023 (exact dates currently unknown). In general be prepared for disruption accessing trailheads around Idyllwild throughout September-October due to resurfacing work on lower Saunders Meadow and Fern Valley roads and North Circle and South Circle drives.
WEATHER
Temperatures have been on a rollercoaster ride since Tropical Storm Hilary passed directly over the San Jacinto mountains on 20th August. Conditions were pleasantly cool for several days following the storm, before a brief but potent heatwave arrived on 28th August, forecast to last until the end of the month. Temperatures will then rapidly plunge to well below seasonal in the first four days of September, before rising again to above average from 7th-11th at least. There is no significant new precipitation in the forecasts, but the possibility of a brief monsoonal thunderstorm on Saturday 2nd.
At San Jacinto Peak (10,810ft/3295m) on Tuesday 29th August 2023 at 0755 the air temperature was 56.8°F (13°C), with a “windchill” temperature of 52.2°F (11°C), 50% relative humidity, and a very gusty WNW wind sustained at 4 mph gusting to 13.6 mph.
At the Peak on Sunday 27th August 2023 at 0605 the air temperature was 50.9°F (10°C), with a windchill temperature of 43.3°F (6°C), 37% relative humidity, and a fresh SW wind sustained at 12 mph gusting to 19.9 mph.
At the Peak on Friday 25th August 2023 at 0730 the air temperature was 48.1°F (9°C), with a windchill temperature of 37.8°F (3°C), 45% relative humidity, and a blustery SSW wind sustained at 8 mph gusting to 20.6 mph.
TRAIL CONDITIONS
The trail system is clear of snow. A couple of icy snow patches remaining in the Snow Creek drainage (between 8500-9500 ft) will last into September, but others higher up were finally melted by the rains of Tropical Storm Hilary.
Hilary resulted in many minor washouts across the trail system, considerable treefall debris – branches, cones, sticks – in the trails, and water flowing across and in the trails. Damage could have been much worse, and few problems are challenging for hikers. Most trails have one or two new treefall hazards, and only Willow Creek Trail seems to have been more severely impacted.
After three years of neglect by the Forest Service, Willow Creek Trail had a continuous route cleared through in early August, largely by California Conservation Corps, plus volunteers from multiple organizations. Regrettably that relatively clear route lasted only two weeks as Tropical Storm Hilary brought down 19 new treefall hazards, including several very large ones that can be challenging to pass. Seven of these are on the Forest Service section, with 12 on the State Park section, most of the latter near Hidden Divide and the High Trail junction (photos below). In several areas the whitethorn trimming done earlier in August is frankly scrappy but nevertheless the trail is more readily passable than before. Of the 68 trees that were across the trail following the winter (and prior to Hilary), eight remain to be cut on the USFS section for the original course of the trail to be fully restored.
Deer Springs Trail has about 16 significant treefall hazards remaining from the winter. Water is flowing very well in Little Round Valley and in all of the springs and creeks along the Deer Springs Trail route.
Trails around the Skunk Cabbage and Tahquitz area meadows have some significant treefall hazards throughout remaining from last winter. There are seven across the trails between Little Tahquitz Meadow and Chinquapin Flat and another two on the trail south from Saddle Junction to Chinquapin Flat.
Fourteen treefall hazards from this past winter on South Ridge Trail (above the trailhead at the top of South Ridge Road) were removed by the Trail Report in May, and trail trimming is undertaken regularly. South Ridge Road remains closed to vehicle traffic and is not expected to reopen until graded, possibly not until August. Eleven of 13 downed trees were removed from the middle section of South Ridge Trail (between May Valley Road and the top of South Ridge Road) on 15th July.
Marion Mountain Trail has four notable treefall hazards in the State Park (upper) half. One new huge stump came down in Hilary low down on the Forest Service section. The State Park installed new signage near the USFS/State Park boundary on 23rd August.
The Trail Report removed all 38 treefall hazards from Spitler Peak Trail between late May and early June this year, bringing the total removed to 85+ since July 2021. Several minor washouts from this past winter in the upper switchbacks have significantly impacted the tread in places, and were worsened by Hilary; these are not problematic for hikers, but the trail is impassable to stock.
On the PCT treefall hazards remain a problem in many places, most notably between Apache Peak and Red Tahquitz, where I counted 106 between Miles 169-175 in June 2023. This section has not yet been resurveyed since T. S. Hilary. Large downed trees make for especially slow-going around Miles 172-175 (a section severely burned in the July 2013 Mountain Fire).
The Caramba Trail from near Reeds Meadow through Laws Camp and on to Caramba, and the Cedar Trail from Willow Creek Trail to Laws, are euphemistically described by the Forest Service as “not maintained”. In reality both trails have been abandoned and functionally no longer exist. They are so heavily overgrown with dense whitethorn, which obscures dozens of downed trees, that I strongly advise hikers do not attempt to follow them (regardless of how much you may trust a certain app). An informal use trail to Laws is much more direct, well maintained, and avoids the challenging bushwhacking of the unmaintained trails (local Idyllwild hikers dubbed it the “King Trail” when I established the route in 2019). It leaves Willow Creek Trail exactly 1.0 mile from Saddle Junction, 0.46 mile from the Skunk Cabbage turning (trailhead at lat/long N 33.7796, W 116.6590). The route descends largely following established deer trails for 1.2 miles, meeting Willow Creek about 0.2 mile upstream from the site of the historic Laws Camp (the remains of which were destroyed by the 2013 Mountain Fire and subsequent flood and treefall damage). The 11 trees down on the King Trail after this winter were removed in June-July 2023. From Laws east to Caramba the route of the original Caramba Trail has been well-cairned by myself and others and can largely be followed with very careful route-finding. My May 2023 survey counted just over 100 trees down on this 2.1 miles of trail. It is especially obscure for the first 0.3 mile east of the Willow Creek crossing, becoming more obvious (but still subtle) as it descends towards Caramba. Very cautious navigation is advised throughout the area.
Seven Pines Trail is clear of treefall hazards for about three miles of its 3.7 miles length. The Trail Report has “adopted” Seven Pines Trail as a priority for maintenance work as the trail has had a disproportionate number of lost hiker rescues in the past decade. Since November 2021, 67 downed trees have been removed and almost the entire trail thoroughly trimmed and cleared. Nevertheless Seven Pines remains a genuine wilderness trail unlike the relatively wide, bare, and obvious routes of, for example, Devil’s Slide or Marion Mountain trails. Cautious navigation remains essential for those without considerable experience of hiking this trail.
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