I haven't had much time to get to all the photos I've shot lately, much less add to this blog, but I've been especially remiss in not posting something about the Beach-to-Baldy bike and hike I did Sunday, Oct. 5, with Joel and Darren. The three of us did the bike portion (they've done it a many times and invited me along for the first time this year). The motley crew in the photo below did the hike with us (or, in some cases, far ahead of us). From left to right, here are Darren, Steve, Jacob, Daniel, Austin, Brenda and Joel:
Everyone made it to the top -- and they were awesome! Joel and I figured out that the order of reaching to the top (and returning to the bottom) was pretty much according to age. Darren's son Austin was first and the two 50-somethings (Joel and me) took turns bringing up the rear.
Joel and Darren left on their bikes from Huntington Beach about 7 a.m., the same time I left from Claremont heading in their direction. Unfortunately, I missed a turn and kept heading south right before they made that turn heading north. They had to backtrack to pick me up in Brea Canyon, which cost us about 20 minutes. (Sorry again, guys!) As it turns out, the extra distance I rode (turning around at elevation 198' - not quite "Beach" to Baldy) meant we rode the same distance from our respective starts to the ski lifs at 6,350'.
Here is a good shot of Brenda and Joel. Brenda is training for the Pasadena Marathon in November and ran 15 miles the day before this hike. She kept coming back to Joel and me to see if we were OK, then taking off like a mountain goat to catch up with the others. She was amazing!
The view was spectacular, as you'll see when l have time to edit and post the photos to my SmugMug gallery. [Update Oct. 13: The photos have been posted to SmugMug, so check them out -- and download any of them you want.] Here's one of my faves: A panorama looking west over the top of East Baldy Peak (click on it to see a larger version). What a day!
I learned at dinner in Baldy Village afterward that this trip is Darren's brainchild. Well, it's one arduous brainchild! I was toast afterward -- and for a few days after that. Here is a link to the GPS data for the bike ride (click on the images to see the MotionBased Dashboard and Player versions of the trips):
Here is the GPS data for the hike:
