This was my third trip up the beautiful East Fork of the San Gabriel river. The first when I was about 12 years old with my Boy Scout troop and the second the summer of 2003 with my oldest son.
This time I took my youngest son with me, and he managed the many aspects of the trail flawlessly. We started at 7:30 and hiked the 4 1/2 miles to the bridge in about 3 hours. We watched as the bungee jumpers got set up, and headed around the corner to look for a place to pitch our tent. We could hear the screams of the jumpers echo up the canyon walls a short time later.
There were also a lot of gold prospectors in the area. I did not realize how many folks are into this. I spoke to one gent for a short time, and he said he pulls about 3/4 of a gram out on average per day...the farther up you go, the better your chances he said.
This visit was the best of the bunch (but I do have fond memories of sliding down the river as a Scout). It was very warm, hoovering near 100 degrees during the day, but the hike was good and I even managed to make it both ways without getting my feet wet! For those who have not been there, this is no small feat. You cross the stream about 15 times each way.
Also on this trip, we got within 10 yards of a big horn sheep. It came done the canyon wall while we were resting in the shade. Truly an amazing sight! I have heard people mention sightings, but was a little skeptical until this trip!
All in all, even though it was very hot, it was a wonderful short overnight trip...and yes, I did slide down the river again!
In the past, after I went on a backpack trip, I got it out of my system and felt I needed some recovery time before I even thought about another trip. This has changed with my most recent hikes.
