Black Mountain #4 and Peak 5990

Hiked: 9/30/2026
Distance: 5.3 miles round trip on trail and cross country
Summit Elevation: 6152' (Black)
Elevation Gain: 1455'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 1.1
Round trip time: 3 hours 30 minutes
Recommended water: 48 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free on unnamed road north of Burns Canyon Road
Difficulty: Easy

There are a few HPS peaks between Big Bear and Joshua Tree. Black Mountain #4 (HPS #179) is one of these remote peaks. I got to the starting point by driving up Burns Canyon Road from Pioneertown. The road was in decent shape for being privately maintained. High clearance recommended. Since this was a relatively short hike, I did not push the driving. I could have easily driven a little further. I parked next to a private drive with a sign that read "No Vacancy Ever". There was also a sign on the post that read: "Nothing Here Is Worth Your Life". Friendly folk out in desert.

I continued up the unnamed dirt road (not the private drive!), turned right and went about a half mile to where the road ended. It was cross country from there, but mostly open country with some rocks and rolling hills. A faint use trail appeared then vanished, but much of the route was marked with cairns. It was hard to follow the ridges or determine whether going over or around a bump was better. I followed a GPS track when unsure. Black Mountain didn't come into view until I was at Peak 5990. Before the final slope, I dropped about 200' and crossed a dry stream. The final climb looked steeper than it was, never exceeding class 1. A standard set of HPS cans held a couple of registers. The most recent one was placed in 2021 and only had a few pages of entries. The previous visitor that signed was more than a year ago. I didn't check the other registers, so maybe people were signing into different ones. There were nice views of Tip Top Mountain and nearby HPS peaks. San Jacinto was visible in the distance. The view east was mainly a desert expanse. On the way back, I visited Peak 5990, 150' off route. Below 5990, I spotted an unusual mark. It was stamped 1/4 S19/S30. An Internet search said this was a cadastral survey marker established by the U.S. General Land Office (GLO) in 1937. Unlike USGS or National Geodetic Survey (NGS) benchmarks, which are set to establish precise elevations or geographic coordinates, cadastral markers define legal land ownership boundaries. I ran into a similar one near Tule Mountain in San Diego County.

I stopped twice to pull fox tails out of my socks. Ankle gaiters highly recommended on this one. Packed out one mylar balloon.

Terrain made it hard to see what was ahead

Black Mountain #4

Benchmark was stamped Antelope. The topo map showed that as well.

San Jacinto distant left, rising above the smaller peaks

On the way to Peak 5990, found a class 1 route

Cadastral mark

Tip Top Mountain on the right

Cienaga Peak

Hiked: 9/22/2026
Distance: 9.8 miles round trip on trail and cross country
Summit Elevation: 9144'
Elevation Gain: 3046'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 2.4
Round trip time: 5 hours
Recommended water: 72 oz.
Parking/Fees: Adventure Pass or Annual Pass at Humber Park, Free day hike permit
Difficulty: Moderate

After clearing it with my physical therapist, I decided to test my left shoulder on a moderate hike to Cienaga Peak. The MRI and surgery are still weeks in the future. Most of the pack weight was carried by my hips, while the shoulder straps were supported mainly by the collarbone and trap muscles. Nothing directly hit the external rotator or deltoid. I modified how I put the pack on and took it off, and didn't use my left arm with the hiking pole. I tried to keep the left arm down and stationary.

I arrived at Humber Park in Idyllwild about 8:45 AM to a mostly empty parking lot. It was sunny and cool, 55F, where pleasant temps hovered all day. I think the San Jacinto Wilderness is the most beautiful of the three major SoCal ranges (others being the Angeles and San Bernardino). I had kept this peak in my back pocket for when I needed a chill hike. I really needed a chill hike. I started up the Devil's Slide trail, a moderate grade with soft sand winding through giant evergreens. I was focused on my shoulder as I gained elevation. At Saddle Junction, everything seemed OK. I turned north on the PCT and hiked to the saddle north of Cienaga, then came back south to the summit. When I left the PCT, I had about a quarter mile of open country to reach the summit. I half expected a use trail, but found none. I went around various boulder piles until I reached the highest one. Since Cienaga has low prominence, I didn't see the summit through the trees until I was near. The summit block was about 20', class 2. I dropped my pack and was able to get up without using my left arm at all. Cienaga was not a listed peak, but there was a register in a single can. The most recent visit was a week prior and it appeared quite popular based on the number of entries. The views were great up toward San Jacinto and the satellite 10k peaks, and down to Tahquitz Peak and Suicide Rock.

Lily Rock

Summit block

Marion Mountain, June Peak, San Jacinto

Tahquitz and Suicide Rock

A note on permits: The Devil's Slide trail starts in a national forest and requires a self signed day use permit you can get at the Idyllwild ranger station. The section of the PCT that heads toward San Jacinto goes through the state wilderness and requires a different day use permit. The route I followed barely crosses into the state park (about 500') before turning south. Cienaga itself is in the national park. I didn't have a state wilderness permit, but if you left the trail earlier, it wouldn't even be a consideration.

My shoulder seemed no worse the day after, no noticeable change in pain. This was a successful test of the shoulder on a moderate hike, and I'll take it. I'm slightly encouraged, but I'm not counting it as a data point for how things will feel post recovery.

Mount San Antonio routes

This is a meta post showing the most common official and unofficial trails to Mount San Antonio (Mount Baldy).

The official trails:

• Ski Hut trail (aka Baldy Bowl trail)
• Devil's Backbone
• North Backbone
• Bear Canyon

The unofficial trails:

• Register Ridge
• San Antonio Ridge

Here is my take on difficulty in ascending order:

• Devil's Backbone
• Ski Hut trail
• Register Ridge
• North Backbone
• Bear Canyon
• San Antonio Ridge

The Devil's Backbone and Ski Hut are the most popular by far. If you want solitude, any of the other trails get you some.

The single ascent I did in winter was the Ski Hut trail, and it was quite a bit more challenging with snow and ice. The Devil's Backbone is notoriously dangerous and fatal when covered in snow.

Register Ridge used to be a faint use trail, but it's well groomed now and seems more like a maintained trail.

For the San Antonio Ridge, I went up the Ski Hut trail, then descended from Mount San Antonio to Iron Mountain #1 and finished at Heaton Flat. The trail along the ridge is good until you get to Gunsight Notch, then it becomes technical and harder to follow. It remains one of the most difficult and dangerous hikes I've done.

An uncertain future

A couple of weeks ago, I started getting severe pain in my left shoulder. It built up over four days, and I woke up one day with limited ranged of motion. Multiple trips to the doctor, including a PT and orthopedic, showed arthritis and deterioration of the joint. The orthopedic recommended a shoulder replacement and I am waiting to complete the MRI and CT before scheduling the surgery. It will be a very long and difficult recovery with some permanent loss of strength. It's unknown whether I will be able to get back to the challenging scramble routes I enjoy the most. I knew the day would eventually come, just not this soon. I am left with mixed feelings about whether to continue my peak bagging adventures or call it.

Mount San Antonio via Register Ridge

Hiked: 8/21/2026 (x7)
Distance: 7.8 miles round trip on trail
Summit Elevation: 10064' (San Antonio), 9538' (Harwood)
Elevation Gain: 4120'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 3.3
Round trip time: 5 hours 40 minutes
Recommended water: 120 oz.
Parking/Fees: Adventure Pass at Manker Flat trailhead
Difficulty: Strenuous

This was my seventh summit of Mount San Antonio (Baldy), and fifth different route. I had been up Register Ridge once in 2013, but stopped at Harwood, then looped back over Thunder. This time, I continued up to San Antonio from Harwood and descended the Ski Hut trail (aka the Baldy Bowl trail). The Register Ridge trail is unofficial and unmaintained, following the ridge directly below Harwood. It started on the right just around a bend from the register stand. The trail was in much better shape than I remembered. It looked maintained, but I had forgotten how steep and loose it was in places. When I intersected the Devils Backbone trail, I continued up the use trail to Harwood. Like my last time on Harwood, I found no register or marks. Even though it's a minor bump on the ridge, I appreciated the packed gravel look. I dropped off the north side of Harwood, then up the heavily braided backbone trail to Mount San Antonio.

Approaching Mount Harwood

There were a few people on the summit, but it wasn't as busy as a weekend. I rested for 15 minutes and enjoyed a store bought sandwich. I descended on the Ski Hut trail. It also seemed improved with more signs to help navigate the braiding near the stop. The official trail went down a boulder outcrop that seemed new to me. It's possible I always followed other use trails near the top. A steady flow of water ran in a creek below the Ski Hut. I felt a little better about my performance seeing a group of twenty-somethings crashed out and asleep on the tables there. The rest went quickly. It was a fine calf-burning trainer in nice weather.

Mount San Antonio