| Peak | Mt Baldy |
|---|---|
| Group | Calabasas Day Hikers |
| Trailhead | Manker Flats |
We started at the Manker Flats trailhead at 7:00 AM and it was cool, but bearable enough to wear shortsleeves, knowing it was only going to get warmer from that point. There were many people out there and I had to park down the road a ways. I’ve never seen it this crowded. The group’s plan was to ascend via the Ski Hut trail and descend on Devil’s Backbone. I’ve hiked Baldy numerous times but have never ascended the Ski Hut trail route (descended a couple of times). The trail was steep, which was expected having ascended about 4,000 ft within 5 miles.
At the top there were several groups but the main group was there to celebrate the life of Seuk Doo Kim, aka “Sam”, a veteran hiker who summitted Baldy more than 700 times but tragically died in a fall last month. His sons and grandson had also hiked to the top yesterday, and, with the group, observed a minute of silence in Sam’s memory. We have heard of his death on the news, but had no idea his family would be hiking that day, and at that time. It was a really heartfelt memorial.
Descending the first mile was rough, as it is steep and technical descent with loose gravel and rocks. Those who were ascending via this trail looked like they were struggling. I know, I’ve been there, I assured them! Once we were past that it was a pleasant hike down to the Notch, stopping along the way on Devil’s Backbone for some great photo ops. At the Notch we stopped and had a beer (something I’ve also never done before, indeed, never knew the Notch at the Top existed), while waiting for the rest of the group. One of the members opted to use their Zipline; we didn’t know about it but we eventually leanred that you can’t zipline down to the parking lot; it was only a short ride. This member then took the chairlift down while we hiked. All in all, an epic hike and momentous occasion for it.
