Distance: 10.9 miles round trip on use trail and cross country
Summit Elevation: 2884' (Towsley), 3745' (Oat)
Elevation Gain: 3540'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 2.8
Round trip time: 8 hours 50 minutes
Recommended water: 112 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free at Towsley Canyon Park
Difficulty: Strenuous (brush, route finding)
Nate Underkuffler planned a hike for his 39th birthday from Towsley Canyon Park to Oat Mountain. It was a revenge hike with route modifications from his unsuccessful attempt the prior year to rach Oat from the northeast. The standard route was a road hike from the south. In early 2024, I was still recovering from an ankle break and could not join the group on a cross country scramble. I was able to reach the top of Oat Mountain that day via the standard route, and I waited for the group to reach the road until they informed I was informed they had cliffed out. This year, my ankle was solid, and seven hikers were determined to make the eastern route work. The group included Nate, his father Craig, Dima Kogan, and three people I hadn't met before: Matt, Wes, and Dave. Most of the group were young and strong. Craig and I were in our 60s, relying more on our experience and skill. We expected severe brush on the upper ridges. I was armed with Fiskar loppers. As a group, we had four loppers and a hand saw.
The first few miles were on the Don Mullally trail, then we followed an overgrown use trail up a drainage, to a ridge and Towsley Benchmark. The benchmark was immaculate, but no register was around. We took a break in the shade, then continued east on a good use trail up and down along the narrow ridge. We turned south on a connecting ridge that would take us to the fire road. We expected the brush to get much worse. At first, minor clipping was all that was needed to reach a large sandstone outcrop. The brush got steadily worse, but everyone was chopping and sawing through it. The sun was out in force and temps increased to the low 80s. The worst part of the ridge was the last 1000', but we made steady progress and burst through the last of it onto the Palo Sola fire road.
We gathered in the shade below Oat Mountain to decide the next course of action. Nate wanted to make a game time call on whether to take his planned route down a different ridge back into Towsley Canyon or bail on the standard road route to the south. Dima and a few other people were planning to bail due to low water. The heat had taken its toll. It was already 2 PM and I was concerned about having enough time to complete the other ridge. I donated a 32 oz gatorade and a 16 oz water to the group that wanted to take the ridge down. That was enough for Dima to change his mind, then Nate, Wes, and Dave geared up for it. Craig, Matt, and I planned to summit Oat, then take the road down. We parted ways. The three of us continued up to Oat and had lunch under a large tree. We made our way down, encountering one bull, a coyote, and a few calves grazing on the green slopes. We took a shortcut near the bottom to explore the abandoned Nike missile silos. Nate's wife was kind enough to pick us up and shuttle us back to Towsley Canyon. On the way, we got word the ridge group had run into harsh brush and were going to come down the south side as well. When we got back to Towsley, I found my tailgate missing. Gone. It had been stolen in broad daylight at a busy county park with a lot street traffic. The thieves left my bags in the bed alone. It was brazen, but at least there was no other damage to the truck. I said my goodbyes, then drove home, knowing I would have to deal with the tailgate the next day. It was a fine hike with an unfortunate end. The initial estimate to replace it was $4200, covered by insurance except for the deductable.
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