March Livestream Recording

[Jeff Hester]

All the Explorer and Trailblazer Challengers are invited to join me monthly for a live video chat, where they can ask questions about the Six-Pack of Peaks Challenge and hiking in general and get answers straight from the horses’ mouth (so to speak).

For those of you who couldn’t join, or are Starter Level Challengers, I always post the recording and our notes.

Notes from the Livestream

What are my feelings about waterproof boots?
Waterproof boots are overkill most of the time in SoCal, and they tend to make your feet hotter (and sweatier, which kind of defeats the purpose). Personally, I wear breathable trail runners for dry, smooth trails, and waterproof boots in wet and/or snowy conditions or when I know there will be a lot of water or mud.

What are the current conditions on Mt Wilson?
I share three ways to find current conditions: using the weather forecast on the trail guides on the Six-Pack menu; the webcam link on the trail guides; and reviewing recently logged hikes on those peaks.

Is Mt San Jacinto harder in the snow?
YES, for a number of reasons. It’s not a hike; it’s winter mountaineering. There is no “trail” to follow. You need to know how to detect avalanche danger, self-arrest, navigate, etc. For all of these reasons, 99.9% of the challengers will wait until snow melts and the trail can be hiked. Same is true for all peaks other than Mt Wilson.

Are there multiple route options for the Six-Pack peaks?
Absolutely! You can make the challenge your own, choosing an easier or harder route to suit.

I mentioned that I always carry a paper map, even though I use GaiaGPS on my iPhone for tracking. My personal favorite are the Tom Harrison maps, which are lightweight, compact and water-resistant. They last pretty much forever. Here are the one’s I recommend for the Six-Pack of Peaks (all link to Amazon with our affiliate code).

• Mt Wilson
• Cucamonga Peak & Mt Baldy
• San Bernardino & San Gorgonio
• San Jacinto

Does anyone hike on weekdays?
Most people tackle the Six-Pack of Peaks during the weekends, but there are folks who have one or more weekdays off and go during the week. Meetup.com is a good source to find hiking groups, as is the SoCal Hikers group on Facebook.

Favorite podcasts for hikers?
I have two:

• The Trail Show
• The First 40 Miles

Will there be a Team SoCalHiker t-shirt for the Climb for Heroes?
YES! You can sign-up here. You’ll need to hit the $100 fundraising minimum by 4/30 to get a shirt. And this counts as one of your Six-Pack of Peaks, too!

New profile badge for Big City Mountaineers Summit for Someone fundraisers!
Add meaning to your Six-Pack of Peaks Challenge, by helping us raise additional funds for Big City Mountaineers, and you’ll get a special badge on your profile. Find out how to get started.

Those are all my notes! If you have anything to add, leave a reply.

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