Distance: 7.8 miles round trip cross country
Summit Elevation: 5272' (Round), 5967' (Luna)
Elevation Gain: 2070'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 1.6
Round trip time: 3 hours 55 minutes
Recommended water: 60 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free on Oak Springs Road
Difficulty: Moderate
Another random Tuesday chasing Sierra Club peaks. Round Mountain (HPS #255) and Luna Mountain (HPS #188) were on the agenda, north of Lake Arrowhead. Both of these peaks are in the high desert and the ecosystem felt like the higher mountains in Anza-Borrego around Warner Springs. I like the high desert, even though they lack the soaring vistas of the Sierra. I'm a desert rat at heart. I took Bowen Ranch Road, a smooth dirt road to Oak Springs Road that had deep ruts and needed high clearance. I parked just north of Round Mountain and started up a trail in that direction. OHV trails crisscrossed but generally went the same direction. There were three parallel use trails heading up to Round. I took the rightmost, though they were functionally identical. It was a steep, sandy ascent ending at a tame summit. I didn't find a benchmark, but the register was in a pile of rocks, inside a PVC pipe inside a can. The previous party had visited in May. The nicest view was of the Angeles National Forest, white tipped from a recent storm. I also recognized the HPS Pinnacles to the south. I plunge stepped back to the road and headed toward Luna Mountain looming above.
After a small dip, the road started climbing up to a saddle east of Luna Mountain. There was a maintained trail that climbed the east ridge while the summit was on the opposite side. I was tempted to go cross country from the south, but didn't think I'd save much time or distance. The trail hit all the sub-peaks along the ridge and passed some interesting rock piles. The summit had a pristine benchmark from 1928, a register, and apparently a working antennae of some sort. Views were even better from the higher perch of Luna, including the Pinnacles to the south. The late October sun was warm but not hot. On the way back, I noticed an odd sticker on one of the gates: "Goggle Packers MC". With some net-fu, I learned it was an off-road motorcycle club that clearly doesn't take itself too seriously. A relaxing day and two more HPS peaks checked.
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