Baker Benchmark, Forgotten Summit of the Santa Anas

Hiked: 3/21/2025
Distance: 13 miles round trip on dirt road, trail, and cross country
Summit Elevation: 2829'
Prominence (estimated): 650'
Elevation Gain: 2327'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 1.2
Round trip time: 6 hours 50 minutes
Recommended water: 64 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free at Black Star Canyon Trailhead
Difficulty: Strenuous (route finding)

2021

My fascination with this mountain began in 2021. I found it studying the 2016 Forest Service topo maps around Black Star Canyon. The map showed a benchmark symbol at elevation 2829' near the end of ridge above Baker Canyon, but it had no assigned name. An old dirt road made a loop part way up the base. I wanted to explore it and see if the benchmark was still there, but I could find no information online. The peak was not in Peakbagger, Lists of John, or Summitpost. I scouted it early 2021, riding a mountain bike to the base of the mountain. I found the old road and an overgrown firebreak that was passable to about half way up the first bump. It was a serious bushwhack from there. I thought I could find a way to the top of the first bump, hoping the brush would thin out along the cliffs on top. I prepared for battle and made an earnest attempt on 2/26/2021. For more than two hours, I bashed, ducked, and crawled, but the brush was impregnable. Running low on water, I never reached the top of the first bump. Dejected, I bashed, ducked, and crawled out for two more hours, having nothing to show but bloody scratches and bruises. GPS showed I turned back 0.6 miles from the summit. Later that year, I made an attempt from the south up the East Fork of Black Star Canyon. That trip ended the same way, though I turned back even farther away. I had to respect the moat of snarled vegetation from all directions.

2025

Although it had denied me twice, I decided to revisit it in 2025. My new strategy was Operation Fiskars. Loppers and hand saw. My first bike and hike was in early January. I was surprised to find the firebreak had been cleared up to the point it ended. A new trail branched north, ending at a wooden bench facing west. Mysterious person(s) had been working in my absence, though they had not gone farther than the end of the firebreak. I struck out from there, clipping and sawing a path up the ridge. According to the GPS, my progress was glacial. Hours of pruning netted less than than 0.1 miles. I knew it would take many trips to break through. A second trip in January still left me below the first bump. I found moments of relief when I stumbled on 20' that didn't require clipping, followed by frustration when I saw how little the line on the map moved. On the fourth trip, I reached the top of the first bump and got my first look at the prize. The farthest bump on the ridge was only 0.2 miles away. On the fifth trip, I made it to a saddle below the peak and saw a hundred feet of open slope. On the sixth trip, I brought a register and painted cans in case I made it. I only had to cut through one heavy section, dancing along the cliff edge to avoid much of it. The highest point on the ridge was not the peak, it was the next bump over. I found a reference mark on a cliff boulder. A few feet away, I found a rotten wooden post and a pristine benchmark stamped "Baker" placed in 1928. The name tracks as it sits above Baker Canyon. I placed a register in white cans, in disbelief that I was standing on the benchmark. I spent about 20 hours total clipping, breaking one pair of loppers along the way. The full round trip now should take me about 5 hours. I met a turkey vulture on the way back. There were dozens of vultures and red tail hawks using the cliffs to hunt in Baker Canyon. I also met a coyote on the trail just before reaching the road. Despite the clipping, brush contact was still involved, as well as light scrambling and route finding.

Heading up the old road

Short scramble

Baker Benchmark at the end of the ridge

Looking south

Turkey vultures were legion in this area

Post Mortem

With the name, I was able to look up the datasheet in the USGS database. It showed both the station mark and two reference marks (I only found one). The permanent ID for the mark was DX4244. The last recorded visit (USGS calls it a recovery) to Baker was in 1964. I think the clipped trail will last a while, but will need annual maintenance. I made route decisions on the fly, and sometimes started 15' in one direction, only to change my mind and go another way. This causes confusion both directions following false clips to dead ends. There weren't enough rocks to build cairns at key points, but I am not sure I want to add ribbons. Baker is now accessible. My small contribution to Orange County hiking.

1 National Geodetic Survey, Retrieval Date = MARCH 22, 2025 18:58:43 EDT
DX4244 ***********************************************************************
DX4244 DESIGNATION - BAKER
DX4244 PID - DX4244
DX4244 STATE/COUNTY- CA/ORANGE
DX4244 COUNTRY - US
DX4244 USGS QUAD - BLACK STAR CANYON (2018)
DX4244
DX4244 *CURRENT SURVEY CONTROL
DX4244 ______________________________________________________________________
DX4244* NAD 83(1992) POSITION- 33 47 51.16741(N) 117 38 25.03315(W) ADJUSTED
DX4244* NAD 83(1992) EPOCH - 1991.35
DX4244* NAVD 88 ORTHO HEIGHT - 863.3 (meters) 2832. (feet) VERTCON3
DX4244 ______________________________________________________________________
DX4244 GEOID HEIGHT - -33.671 (meters) GEOID18
DX4244 LAPLACE CORR - 10.69 (seconds) DEFLEC18
DX4244 HORZ ORDER - SECOND
DX4244
DX4244
DX4244_MARKER: DS = TRIANGULATION STATION DISK
DX4244_SETTING: 66 = SET IN ROCK OUTCROP
DX4244_STAMPING: BAKER 1929
DX4244_MARK LOGO: CGS
DX4244_STABILITY: A = MOST RELIABLE AND EXPECTED TO HOLD
DX4244+STABILITY: POSITION/ELEVATION WELL
DX4244
DX4244 HISTORY - Date Condition Report By
DX4244 HISTORY - 1929 MONUMENTED CGS
DX4244 HISTORY - 1933 GOOD CGS
DX4244 HISTORY - 1953 GOOD CGS
DX4244 HISTORY - 1964 GOOD CA-059
DX4244
DX4244 STATION DESCRIPTION
DX4244
DX4244'DESCRIBED BY COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY 1933
DX4244'ABOUT 7 MILES SOUTHWEST OF CORONA, ABOUT 1 MILE WEST OF MAIN
DX4244'DIVIDE OF THE SANTA ANA MOUNTAINS, ON PROMINENT RIDGE EAST OF
DX4244'BAKER CANYON, ABOUT 25 YARDS LEFT OF TRAIL, AND 10 FEET FROM
DX4244'EDGE OF SANDSTONE BLUFF OVERLOOKING BAKER CANYON. TO REACH
DX4244'FROM FLAGPOLE CIRCLE IN ORANGE, GO EAST 5.6 MILES ON CHAPMAN
DX4244'AVENUE, TURN RIGHT ONTO SILVERADO CANYON ROAD AND GO 4.8
DX4244'MILES, TURN LEFT ONTO BLACK STAR CANYON ROAD AND GO 2.6 MILES,
DX4244'TURN LEFT (CONTINUING ON BLACK STAR CANYON ROAD) AND GO 0.7
DX4244'MILE TO BLACK STAR CREEK BRIDGE, GO 0.3 MILE, KEEP TO RIGHT
DX4244'AND GO 0.5 MILE, TAKE LEFT FORK ON MAIN-TRAVELED ROAD AND GO
DX4244'3.0 MILES, TURN RIGHT OFF ROAD INTO RANCH YARD, AND FOLLOW
DX4244'THE HIDDEN RANCH FIREBREAK ABOUT 1-1/2 MILES IN A SOUTHERLY
DX4244'DIRECTION TO STATION SITE. MARKED BY STANDARD STATION
DX4244'DISK IN BEDROCK, NOTE 2. REFERENCE MARK NO. 1 IS STANDARD
DX4244'REFERENCE DISK IN BOULDER, NOTE 12C, 6.515 METERS (21.37
DX4244'FEET) FROM STATION IN AZIMUTH 221 DEG 36 MIN. REFERENCE
DX4244'MARK NO. 2 IS STANDARD REFERENCE DISK IN BEDROCK, NOTE 12A,
DX4244'11.500 METERS (37.73 FEET) FROM STATION IN AZIMUTH 351 DEG 48
DX4244'MIN. STATION BLACK (SEE DESCRIPTION THEREOF) IS VISIBLE
DX4244'FROM GROUND IN AZIMUTH 114 DEG 55 MIN 37 SEC.
DX4244
DX4244 STATION RECOVERY (1953)
DX4244
DX4244'RECOVERY NOTE BY COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY 1953 (RAG)
DX4244'THE STATION WAS RECOVERED AS DESCRIBED, IN GOOD CONDITION AND
DX4244'THE DISTANCES AND DIRECTIONS TO THE REFERENCE MARKS CHECKED. THE
DX4244'TRUCK ROUTE TO THE STATION IS OBSOLETE. A NEW ROUTE IS AS
DX4244'FOLLOWS--
DX4244'
DX4244'TO REACH FROM THE TRAFFIC CIRCLE IN THE CITY OF ORANGE, GO EAST ON
DX4244'CHAPMAN AVENUE FOR 5.6 MILES. TURN RIGHT, ONTO SILVERADO ROAD,
DX4244'AND GO NOTHEASTERLY FOR 5.1 MILES. TURN LEFT, ONTO BLACK STAR
DX4244'CANYON ROAD, GO NORTH AND EAST FOR 5.9 MILES. TURN RIGHT,
DX4244'PASS TO THE RIGHT HAND SIDE OF RANCH BUILDINGS, CROSS OVER
DX4244'SMALL CREEK AND FOLLOW THE TRACK ROAD SOUTH AND EAST ALONG
DX4244'THE CREST OF THE RIDGE FOR 0.3 MILE TO THE END OF TRUCK TRAVEL.
DX4244'FROM THIS POINT PACK EAST FOR 0.1 MILE TO THE TOP OF THE
DX4244'RIDGE, THEN SOUTHERLY ALONG THE CREST OF THE RIDGE FOR ABOUT
DX4244'0.4 MILE TO THE HIGH GROUND AND THE STATION. THIS IS ABOUT A
DX4244'45 MINUTE PACK.
DX4244'
DX4244'OBSERVATIONS WERE MADE FROM A 4 FOOT STAND.
DX4244
DX4244 STATION RECOVERY (1964)
DX4244
DX4244'RECOVERY NOTE BY ORANGE COUNTY CALIFORNIA 1964
DX4244'THE STATION AND REFERENCE MARKS WERE RECOVERED AS DESCRIBED.
DX4244'THE DESCRIPTION TO REACH THE STATION IS ADEQUATE.

Micro Benchmark

Hiked: 3/18/2025
Distance: 3.5 miles round trip on dirt road and cross country
Summit Elevation: 3772'
Elevation Gain: 1555'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 1.2
Round trip time: 2 hours
Recommended water: 32 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free on Chuckwalla Peak Road
Difficulty: Easy

After Palo Verde, Ben and I met up again for Micro Benchmark. This was another desert peak south of I-10 in the Chuckwalla Wilderness. Ben drove in on a bumpy, but decent dirt road and parked below the gate. We saw a couple of service trucks on the road. The road was pretty steep from the gate to the towers. We wandered around the tower area a little, then set off the very slightly higher peak about a quarter mile away. This was open desert and easy to navigate. We had nice views of the local mountains and long, straight stripe of I-10 stretching to the horizon in both directions. Ben spotted a register in the summit rocks. When we started down, it had warmed up quite a bit. We were in the waning weeks of desert season.

Looking up from the start

Service truck at the towers

The slightly higher summit in the distance

Summit rocks

Looking back at the towers

Solar lakes

Palo Verde Peak Redux

Hiked: 3/18/2025
Distance: 3.9 miles round trip on dirt road and cross country
Summit Elevation: 1760'
Prominence: 1000'
Elevation Gain: 1382'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 1.1
Round trip time: 3 hours
Recommended water: 48 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free on Old Palo Verde Road
Difficulty: Moderate (exposed scramble, route finding)

April, 2024 was my first attempt to climb Palo Verde Peak. I turned back at the knife edge ridge, still a little shaken from stepping directly over a rattlesnake in the approach gully. I had run out of risk taking brain juice for the day. On the bright side, I had solved all the route finding problems and other obstacles to that point. I felt like the second attempt would be easier. Ben was dealing with a knee injury and thought the steep, loose rocks might exacerbate his injury, so I was solo again. The morning was cool and I saw a herd of mule deer on the drive. A wild burro was running with the pack. I tried to get good photos, but I only had a few seconds before they ran out of sight.

Palo Verde

The burro is in the middle of the pack
I parked when I hit a complete washout on the Old Palo Verde Road. It might be possible to get closer to the trailhead coming up from the south. I tried to take a shortcut to the ascent gully, but cliffed out. I was very mindful of snakes as I went up the gully. The top section was as loose and miserable as I remembered. I improved the route slightly by clinging to larger rocks away from the wall. I reached the main ridge, then went over the top and scrambled down above the saddle. As before, a 12' class 3 chute below a cave allowed me to reach the saddle. A large cairn marked where to climb up on the other side. I traversed a little right for the next class 3 section. At this point, the ridge proper turns into high, vertical slabs that can be bypassed on the right. This brought me to the knife edge section.

Looking down, about half way up the gully

Chute down to the saddle

Other side of the saddle

I dropped my pack and pole, then crept slowly onto the knife edge. The wind was gusty, up to 25mph. That's why I left the drone in the truck. I favored the left side where possible since a fall on that side would leave me slightly less dead. There was a class 3 down climb at the end on good rock, then a short walk to the summit. After waiting a year for the second attempt, I was quite elated. The views were inspiring. A tall, broken flag pole had fallen down and looked unfixable. An ammo box held a tattered US flag and two registers: a small paper register and a fancy hand made register in a leather tube. It seemed the leather register was left by the Banks family, who recorded their ages as well as their names. I was two years older than the Banks' family patriarch, making me (probably) the oldest hiker to climb Palo Verde so far. I loved this mountain.

Knife edge

Looking back at the knife edge section

Fancy leather register

Back to the saddle crossing

Final look back

Google Maps not showing the GPS track accurately
Would you like to know more...?

Signal Peak, AZ

Desert Peaks Emblem Peak
Hiked: 3/17/2025
Distance: 3.8 miles round trip on trail
Summit Elevation: 4877'
Prominence: 3477'
Elevation Gain: 2159'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 1.7
Round trip time: 3 hours 45 minutes
Recommended water: 64 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free at Signal Peak trailhead
Difficulty: Easy

I met up with my buddy Ben Baumann, a rare time our schedules and locations synced, to tackle Signal Peak, AZ (DPS #70), P3K. It's in the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge, set up for bighorn sheep. The refuge's name (KOFA) was derived from an acronym for one of the area's notable mines, the King of Arizona gold mine. The road to the trailhead was rocky and bumpy, high clearance suggested. The trail was marked with wooden posts but not signed. It was mostly easy to follow, but splintered into different trails in some places, then usually converged. Vegetation and saguaro cactus made it feel like a different world from the California desert only 50 miles away. Agave brandished half inch thorns along each leaf, compared to the smooth California variety. The trail followed Indian Canyon for awhile, then up a ramp on the left side avoiding dry falls. It was steep and steady most of the way, with sporadic class 2. Sharp towers of rock rose up all around. Gain accumulated quickly, along with stunning views that emerged as we got higher. The best views were from the summit. This was my first summit of Signal and Ben's second. The trail went all the way to the summit. The summit area was large and flat. The ammo box that held the register was under some rocks. The benchmark was stamped KOFA2. We hung out on top for a while, then took our time heading down. It was fun catching up with Ben and an awesome start to another Blythe-adjacent tour of desert peaks.