Big adventures require proper preparation. All the cool gear in the world won’t get you up the mountain if you neglect the two most important pieces of equipment: your brain and your body. Whether you are tackling a big peak like Mt. Whitney or a long trail like the John Muir Trail, you need to arm yourself with knowledge and the trail smarts to handle the unexpected. And your body needs to be physically prepared for the strain of long, steep miles at altitude.
When I developed my training plan for the John Muir Trail, it included several weekday conditioning hikes, longer weekend hikes, weight-bearing hikes and most importantly, hikes at higher altitude with substantial elevation gain.
As I researched my options, I settled on a series of six peak-bagging hikes, each progressively more challenging and all within a couple hours drive from anywhere in Southern California. These six peaks provided great preparation for the JMT, but they are also perfect for hikers training for Mount Whitney or other big adventures.
The SoCalHiker Six-Pack of Peaks
With that in mind, I organized a series of hikes called the Six-Pack of Peaks. Here they are, in sequential order:
 | #1 - Mt. WilsonDistance: 14 milesElevation: 5,713 feet Vertical gain: 4,200 feet |
 | #2 - Cucamonga PeakDistance: 11.6 milesElevation: 8,859 feet Vertical gain: 4,300 feet |
 | #3 - Mt. San Antonio (aka Mt Baldy)Distance: 10.2 milesElevation: 10,064 feet Vertical gain: 3,900 feet |
 | #4 - San Bernardino PeakDistance: 16.5 milesElevation: 10,649 feet Vertical gain: 4,702 feet |
 | #5 - Mt. San JacintoDistance: 11.4 milesElevation: 10,834 feet Vertical gain: 4,689 feet |
 | #6 - San GorgonioDistance: 17.3 milesElevation: 11,503 feet Vertical gain: 5,840 feet |
It adds up to 27,108 feet of elevation gain over 82 miles!
The first year I led this with small groups. I had anywhere from 7-11 friends with me on each hike. And we brought along an actual 6-pack to toast the completion of each hike.
Take the Six-Pack of Peaks Challenge
Are you up to the challenge? Register for the Six-Pack of Peaks Challenge. We now have challenges across the country, giving you an opportunity to flex your adventure muscles and explore new mountains.
You can feel good about signing up, with a portion of your registration going to support Big City Mountaineers.
Sign-up today!
Sounds like a great plan. We have the Mt Charleston Wilderness here in Las Vegas (well, it’s about an hour away) with a few peaks over 11,000. The elevation can take its toll on the body. Good to see that you have worked that into your prep. I am really looking forward to the trail reports. Great job on SocialHiker.net – I love it!
Thanks, Tim. I checked out your site. I was in Vegas late last summer and did some short hikes in the Red Rock area. Next time I visit, I’ll lookup your trail reports and find some more serious hikes to tackle.
And for those of you keeping track, we toasted Cucamonga Peak with Rolling Rock. I swear it never tasted so good…
I wanna be like you. I’m 50 with a sore knee but not in too bad shape and I need to get out of my head! I’ve been taking hour long walks with my dog. I wanna expand my horizons, literally. I’m setting a goal for McKinley. Let me know please if you have any advise. Thanks.
I meant Whitney. Mt Whitney is my goal. Where do I start?
Robert, I just turned 50 last month, so I know how it feels! It’s great that you’re taking hour long walks with your dog. That’s a great place to start, and you’ve got a built in hiking buddy.
The key to building up to something like Whitney is consistency over time. The hour-long dog walks are great for weekdays, but you’ll want to start doing a longer hike on the weekends. I would suggest checking out some of the local hiking clubs (Meetup.com is a great resource). These are great not only for finding longer, more challenging trails in your area, but it’s usually more fun to hike with others.
The Six-Pack of Peaks is what I would prescribe when training for Whitney, but you’ll need to do much more than just six hikes. When I was training for the JMT, I hiked three times a week: a six mile hilly hike on Monday nights, a 4.6 mile hilly hike on Wednesday night, and a long hike on Saturday. This gives your legs a chance to recover in between, and ultimately conditions you for the elevation gain and altitude you’ll experience on Whitney.
Of course, I’m no doctor, so you’ve got to do the smart thing and check with your doc beforehand. Let them know what you’d like to do and your plan to work up to it, and make sure that knee or other problems won’t get in the way. My training plan was six months, but your mileage may (literally) vary.
One thing I will recommend that will help save your joints is a good pair of trekking poles. Just be sure to learn how to use them properly. You can check out my trekking pole advice with videos on proper form under the gear section here on SoCal Hiker.
Good luck, and let me know how it goes!
Thanks Jeff! That sounds like great advise. I’ll keep you updated on my progress.
I’ve done several trails so far some for distance and endurance and others to see what they were like. .so far of the peaks my 15 year old son and I have done Mount Baldy and Mount Wilson..a regular thing I do for training as well is I do loops around the Rosebowl which each loop is 3 miles.. I continue to train in hopes to get to Mount Whitney.
Sounds like an exciting challenge! Wish I were on the West Coast so I could give it a shot 🙂
– Molly
Hi Jeff, thanks for the great website! Are any of these peaks doable in early February? I’m in Chicago and often pretty naïve about the realities of elevation in that part of the country. Thinking of doing the TCT in early February too as an alternative. Thoughts?
Hey HikeHistorySarah! Thanks for the kudos!
As for the Six-Pack, Mt Wilson is usually hike-able year round, although when a cold snap comes in and snow is dumped, the snow level can drop below 5,000 feet.
The other peaks often have lots of snow. Even so, if you’re prepared for it, a lot of people do Baldy and San Jacinto in the winter and it can be quite beautiful in the snow. I would only recommend it if you’re confident, equipped for it, and have someone experienced to lead the way (navigation in snow gets dicey).
The TCT on the other hand would be AWESOME to do in February. There’s always the chance of rain and it will get chilly, but it’s a beautiful trail worth hiking. And that time of year, the hills will be green and the wildflowers might even be starting to bloom.
If you have more questions, post them in the forums here (link in the menu bar).
Happy trails!
Is the mileage trail-head to summit or total mileage for an out-and-back?
Caleb, all mileage is total (round-trip). Because… that’s how I do it. 🙂
Hey, i just moved out here to southern california and im looking to get out and do some strenous multiday hiking and the six pack of peaks looks pretty promising. is there a way to link all 6 peaks through trails or is it only possibly to do them one by one?
Red,
Welcome to Southern California! As you’re discovering, there’s a wealth of great hiking trails across a very diverse eco-system.
The Six-Pack of Peaks are spread over a big area. While there might be a way to string them together, it would probably take a couple weeks to hike due to the distances.
If you’re looking for a strenuous multi-day trek, I suggest the Trans-Catalina Trail or section hikes on the Pacific Crest Trail.
I hiked Mt. Wilson yesterday to begin conquering the six pack. Woke up sore this morning but so excited for the next one!
Starting the research to do this challenge this summer. I’m nervous and excited at the same time.
We did Mt Wilson from the trailhead one weekend. 2 weeks later the Chandary Flats loop to Wilson Peak. One week later Cucamonga Peak and tomorrow San Bernardino Peak. Last three will be done late July or August? Hope it won’t be too hot?
Gabe – When it comes to heat, use common sense. On the Six-Pack, I always try to start as early as possible — usually around 7am. The altitude on these mountains is high enough that the heat isn’t usually a big problem — except for the climb up.
Is it possible to do each of these as a day hike or are any of these multi day hikes?
Emma, yes — I have hiked ALL of the Six-Pack of Peaks as day hikes, and that seems to be what most people do. Note that they are long and challenging day hikes, and we often started hiking at 6am (and hiked most of the day), but yes — day hiking them is a popular choice.
Having said that, I’ve also done both San Jacinto and San Gorgonio as overnight trips. This can be a nice option and let’s you spread the milage over a couple days. The trick here is that you’re carrying more weight and you have to consider what you’ll do about water — especially in this dry year.
If you look at each of the detailed hike guides, you’ll get a sense of how long it took from the photos. Usually the first photos on the trail are before or soon after sunrise, and the last ones are often at dusk.
One piece of advice: Know your average pace and you’ll be able to estimate how many hours of hiking you’ll do. Then have a cut-off time that’s roughly half of that. If you don’t make the summit by the cut-off, turn around and head back down. The mountain will be there tomorrow.
As Ed Viesturs says, “Getting to the top is optional. Getting down is mandatory.”
thank you so much! 🙂
Just started your challenge a few weeks ago with Mt. Baldy. Completed Mt. Wilson last week, and then my friends and I are doing San Gorgonio this weekend. You trail guides are really great! Thank you for putting this together. I hope to be able to share this challenge with more of my friends.
if i’ve registered for the 2015 challenge, but i dont think im going to finish it, is it possible to “roll-over” my registration to 2016? None of my friends wanna do this with me and my boyfriend cant request any more vacation days off work :,( i need better friends!
Hello Jeff,
My name is Philip Yoho (Phil). I have just recently taken up hiking as a method of physical conditioning. I am no stranger to exercise. I work out at least 6 days a week (cardio, strength and endurance training). I am a Marine veteran of 20 years so hiking (or as we say humping) is not stranger to me. Hiking at elevation, however, is! I have recently been training to hike the San Jacinto Peak on the Marion trail. We (about twelve of us) are hiking that trail on October 11. In preparation I have done my normal workout routines (which are very strenuous) and have included hiking Potato Chip Rock (twice) and several other 8 to 10 mile hikes locally, None of which have the elevation change that San Jacinto offers. I am hiking the Devils Slide trail this Friday in preparation for the elevation changes. I am really excited about doing the six pack of peaks; however, I know I cannot complete this by the end of this month. So, my question is, will there be a Six Pack of Peaks challenge for 2016? Thank you for the challenges and for your response.
Phil
Phil,
Welcome to SoCalHiker! To get right to your question, YES there will be a 2016 Six-Pack of Peaks Challenge. Registration will open in December — so stay tuned!
I’m over the MOON for the 2016 6-pack!! Especially since I’ll be half-a-hundred in just a couple short months !?
I can’t find where to login and log my hike. Did San Bernadino yesterday but see no Login place.
Sandra, are you registered for the Six-Pack? If so, be sure you’re logged in here on the website (if you see a LOGIN option on the menu bar, you are not logged in). Once you’re logged in, you can find a link to Log your Hikes on the Six-Pack of Peaks drop-down menu.
Jeff, do we have to complete the six peak in that order? I heard if you don’t do it like that it doesn’t count?
I did San Jacinto first and Wilson 2nd for 2016 I done others in 2015 when I was not register.
Patty I’m pretty sure you can do them in any order you desire. I myself did wilson first then baldy. I still need to do cucamonga. I believe the only stipulation is that you do all six peaks in the same year.
Philip is correct. You can do the six-pack in any order, and from any trailhead. The challenge is 100% yours!
Thank you for confirming, I was a little disappointed because I was not doing them in order.
Sounds like quite the challenge! I will share this on my blog. I know several people that will be interested.
The six pack has created a nightmare for those trying to get permits for San Gorgonio which has already been impacted by several trailhead closures due to fire. Please consider an alternate peak so thaqt those of us just wanting to visit San G are able to get permits. My understanding is that San G is booked though August
You can always show up early at San G and get your same day permit. Be sure to be first in line. You can get up to 12 people on one permit.
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Thanks for the 6-peak challenge! I completed all the hikes except San Gorgonio before my JMT NOBO hike in August. I hiked out of Onion Valley to Happy Isles due to the fire but thoroughly enjoyed all 27 days in the wilderness… Solo with 2 Llamas until Reds Meadow where I met up with a friend for the last 60 miles. Looking forward to going back in 2017 to finish up from horseshoe meadows to onion valley. I hiked Mt Whitney in a day last August of 2013. Thanks again & look forward to the 2017 challenge!
Hi Jeff! I just learned about this challenge. Looks like it’s over in two weeks. Will you be hosting it next year?
Also, I am not familiar with these mountains. I assume you end the challenge in late Oct due to weather in Nov, Dec, etc. Is that correct? Or…are these mountains hike-able late in the year? Thanks.
Hi John! Yes, this challenge will begin again next year as well. I believe registration for it opens in December. I guess you can say the mountains are “hikeable” later in the year, but not without special equipment and experience! Not recommended for most. Happy hiking!
Looking forward to next year!!
Are any of the meetup groups taking the 2017 Challenge for the Six pack of Peaks?
Teresa, there’s an idea!
Wow! I am trying to find a good hike for a solo trip. Have done the Canadian Rockies, Jasper, Mt Washington (up and down) and Ranier. My hiking buddy has a new gf who is too jealous to let him come with me anymore. Would love some ideas on ways I can find someone to hook up with this summer to do some of these with!
Jen
Great site…I just got lost for a few hours! You are incredible!
Awesome Site Jeff!! Wife and I are thinking of doing this six-pack :), do you recommend a pre-game list of peaks? lower than 10K Ft, here in SoCal? For us just noobs just starting out our passion in hiking and climbing?
Many thanks for the valuable information on your blog!
Cool stuff Jeff!
Climb for Heroes Mt. Baldy summit was fun. 5 more peaks to go…
Hi Jeff!.. I just learned about this great challenge. If I had already completed one of this peaks last month, will this count towards the completion if Im just starting to register?
I was just curious as to the fastest time someone has done the whole six pack? I don’t really care about speed records or anything. Just about pushing the limits. Thank you.
Oh my goodness! Amazing article dude! Thank you, However I am going through
problems with your RSS. I don’t know why I cannot join it. Is there anybody else having the same RSS problems?
Anyone who knows the answer will you kindly respond? Thanks!!
Six pack. Can I sign up and just do four of the six I already did baldy and san jacinto. Or do I have to redo the one’s I’ve done during the paid challenge.
If you’ve already done some of the peaks in 2017, they will count. You’ll still need to log them, but they absolutely count. If they were before 2017, sadly, they do not count.
Hi Jeff,
Thank you for all the hard work you put out to make us a stronger hiking community. I wanted to suggest an update to the Mt. San Bernardino and Mt. San Gorgonio challenge in reference to the Mill Creek Ranger station. The station has gone officially to self permits. If you are there while the station is open you will need to go inside to fill out the self permit, but after hours (meaning any time no one is at the station) the permits are available self serve on the outside. This eliminates the need for the previously cumbersome fax- and fax back process. I validated this on 9/23 for my Gorgonio hike. (I will be back on 9/30 for my San B hike, yes, I know I am a$$ backwards) I hope this will be helpful for some.
Best,
Gerhard
Thanks, Gerhard! Good tips. I will update both of those guides accordingly. It’s worth noting that the self-serve permits only applies to day hikes. Overnight trips are still subject to quotas and require a permit application.
I am so bummed to see you went the profit route for this, having folks pay to register instead of it being about the community itself. While I do realize merchandise production was coming from your own pocket and folks were ordering patches and shirts, it breaks my heart when people take the monetized route on just enjoying nature. I know we can do this for free but having to pay for the feeling of community bums me out – the entire.idea of hiking and being outdoors is to get away from the commercial entity that is our society. Big ol’ sad face.
Hi Christina,
I saw your comment about the Six-Pack of Peaks and just wanted to let you know that we hear you. There are plenty of ways for you and others to be part of the community without signing up — such using and following social posts with the hashtag #sixpackofpeaks, and joining in the SoCal Hikers Facebook group.
The challenge is not about profit. It’s about getting people excited about getting outdoors, going to places they might not have otherwise gone, and giving back. To date, we’ve raised nearly $80,000 for Big City Mountaineers and The Heroes Project.
BCM gives under-served youth an opportunity to experience life-changing wilderness adventures — usually for the first time. And The Heroes Project works with combat veterans who have lost one or both legs, helping them change their perception of what is possible by training with them and supporting climbs up some of the tallest peaks in the world.
Both of these non-profits are great organizations that do wonderful work — and both are tied to the outdoors.
As you noted in your comment, nobody has to pay for the challenge if they want to hike the peaks, and statistically, many more hike them without registering. Not everybody can afford it, and of those that can, not everybody wants to. That’s perfectly okay with us.
We don’t want to exclude anyone who wants to enjoy the outdoors, which is why our forums and FB group are open for anyone to join for free.
Feel free to reach out to me anytime, but until then,
Happy Trails!
Has anyone ever attempted all 6 in 6 days?
Hi Ashley! Yes, we’ve had several people complete the challenge in six consecutive days. And we’ve had two people complete all six within 48 hours.
Personally, I’ve completed peaks 1-3 in three days, and peaks 4-6 in three days (but with several weeks break between). It can be done, although I wouldn’t even attempt it when the trails have snow and ice.
With San Gorgonio likely closed for the rest of the season due to the Valley Fire, will a substitute peak be named?
David, yes — we have announced the alternate peaks here on our sister site, Social Hiker.
What would you say the youngest kids age is that can handle these hikes?
We have two 4-year old twins who completed the challenge, but they are the exception: https://www.instagram.com/super_hiking_twins/
Personally, I wouldn’t have taken my young kids on the original Six-Pack of Peaks hikes. I’d wait until middle school age. But each family and each child is unique. Are they into it? Are they active? Maybe it’s for them!
Hi there, is there a group I can join to hike the 6 peaks in Southern California? I have hiked Mount Wilson so far, and I would like to hike to the other 5 peaks, but I don’t want to hike by myself. Thanks.
Diego, there are a number of groups that organize hikes up the Six-Pack of Peaks. Under current guidance from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) most group hikes have been cancelled until the pandemic crisis passes. Hiking is still possible, when practicing responsible social distancing, but only solo hiking or hiking with others from your household. Hiking with friends is okay, but you need to maintain a minimum of six feet of distance (i.e. no carpooling to the trailhead). With all that in mind, if you’re not comfortable hiking these alone, I would hold off on planning them for the time being. When the COVID-19 threat has passed, here are a few hiking groups you can connect with: https://sixpackofpeaks.com/hiking-groups-clubs/