Cave Mountain

Hiked: 12/19/2025
Distance: 5.1 miles round trip on dirt road, use trail, and cross country
Summit Elevation: 3620'
Prominence: 1740'
Elevation Gain: 1788'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 1.4
Round trip time: 3 hours 45 minutes
Recommended water: 54 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free on BLM Road MT9622
Difficulty: Moderate

I discovered Cave Mountain from Madison Christian aka Uncle Rico. It's a prominent desert pear along I-15 on the way to Vegas. I was looking for a desert peak that was drivable and Cave fit the bill. I drove up I-15 and took the exit for Afton Canyon, a washboarded but easy dirt road. Then, I took BLM Road MT9622 (second dirt road on the left) to get closer. MT9622 had some washes, sand, and ruts. 4x4 recommended, high clearance mandatory. I parked at the same location as Brian Richardson in his peakbagger report. The sand got very deep after that and it might have been difficult to turn around. I brought my La Sportiva approach shoes which had caused blisters on my right foot when I had worn them before. I tried to stretch them out and used this hike as an experiment to see if they still caused problems. Hiking on the road was very much like hiking on a beach with extra rocks. After about 1.5 miles, the dirt road split in two. I took the steeper road on the left, which was correct, but didn't see the continuation and walked over to the other road to see if I had missed it. Then, I spotted Cave rising up from the way I came. I left the road and followed the ridge picking up a use trail that faded in and out. As I approached steeper terrain, I could see the giant cairn that I knew was close to, but not the actual summit. My instinct was to head for the large gully, but when I got near, I saw it would not be easy to reach. Instead, I started up the steep shoulder.

Cave Mountain from I-15

Approaching the road split

Steep shoulder on the left
Once past the shoulder, I took a more or less direct line to the cairn with more class 2 at the end. I added a rock to the cairn, then walked a couple of hundred feet to the summit block, also class 2. Views were great in all directions. A stream of tiny vehicles flowed along I-15. I found two benchmarks, one stamped "El Frio 1929" on a rock below the summit block. El Frio translates to The Cold. The other was on top of the summit block and unmarked. The register was in an ammo box. It was open to the page with Madison's signature from February. Only a couple of other parties had signed since then. I took some photos and noted that my La Sportivas were still comfortable. That changed on the way down. I got down all the steep terrain and could feel the friction on my right toes. I diverted into a sandy gully so I could plunge step to the road. Plunge stepping was the highlight of the hike. As I continued back along the road, the pain built up on my right foot and I had to stop. I took off my sock and saw several layers of skin had been peeled back on top of my third and fourth toes. A bandaid and loosening the laces in the shoe did not help. I resigned myself to finish the last 0.7 miles with just a sock on my right foot. The road had enough deep sand to allow me to walk at almost normal speed. I stepped on a few sharp rocks, but it was far better than letting the cursed La Sportivas shred my foot. They got tossed as soon as I got home and I am now in the market for some new approach shoes.

Big cairn energy

El Frio

On the summit block

Morris Peak and Mount Jenkins

Hiked: 12/12/2025
Distance: 14.7 miles round trip on trail, use trail, and cross country
Summit Elevation: 7221' (Morris), 7939' (Jenkins)
Elevation Gain: 4135'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 3.3
Round trip time: 8 hours 15 minutes
Recommended water: 130 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free at Walker Pass Trailhead (Highway 178)
Difficulty: Strenuous (combined)

With unusually warm weather for December, I drove to Walker Pass Trailhead for the standard route to Morris Peak (HPS #109) and Mount Jenkins (HPS #73). I was greeted with a sunrise filtered through the joshua trees. Most of the hike was along the PCT with half mile off trail diversions to reach the peaks. The trail was in great shape and steadily gained elevation as it wrapped like a belt around the midsections of the foothills. In the shady north slopes, frozen snow lingered in small patches. I had considered bringing spikes, but decided there wouldn't be enough for it to be a hazard. After four miles, I reached a saddle with Morris Peak where a clear use trail branched right. The use trail was well worn and steep, climbing about 500' in a half mile and ending at the summit. A nicely preserved benchmark had been set in a flat rock in 1926. The highest point had a reference mark pointing to the lower, official benchmark. Multiple registers were in a plastic container. I signed the most recent one that had visitors as recent as last week. Mount Jenkins had been visible as I approached and looked like a more serious endeavor. I took a break, then followed animal trails down the north ridge, making wide turns to avoid snow. At the saddle between Morris and Jenkins, I rejoined the PCT.

Morris Peak ahead

Mount Jenkins from Morris
I stayed on the PCT as it cut a path on the east side of Jenkins. From the east, Jenkins appeared as a line of broken cliffs with no clear line. From the start of the use trail, it was well marked with cairns. I remained a little nervous as the cliff bands grew closer. I was amazed the trail avoided serious exposure with a fun class 2+ scramble all the way. There were fine 360 views from the summit. Owens Peak (one of my favorites) rose up to the north and snow capped 14ers Langley and Whitney were clear. The jagged granite spine running below Owens was impressive. Although I didn't find a benchmark, there were multiple registers filled with familiar names. I took some aerial video, but a lot of the shots were washed out by the angle of the sun. No matter, I've grown to love the transition zone of the southern Sierra. I took a long break on Jenkins and had just the right amount of food and water. Once I got back to the PCT, I was on cruise control. There was more snow on the trail below Morris, but it was soft in the afternoon and no longer icy. I eyeballed a couple of unnamed bumps on the way back, but none mustered enough interest for bonus.

Plaque was mounted along the PCT a mile from the summit

Approaching the cliffs

Mount Jenkins summit

Owens Peak and the high sierra on the horizon

Cerro de la Calavera

Hiked: 12/4/2025
Distance: 1.3 miles round trip on trail
Summit Elevation: 513'
Elevation Gain: 350'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 0.2
Round trip time: 40 minutes
Recommended water: 0 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free on Tamarack Ave
Difficulty: Easy

Cerro de la Calavera is the remains of a small extinct volcano, part of the Carlsbad Highlands Ecological Preserve. Parking was free along Tamarack Ave and there were a dozen or so vehicles lined up on the road. There was a single public restroom at the start. The trail crossed a dam and led to a view point with a storyboard about the volcano. A weave of trails provided many options to reach the high point, but I took the shortest route along the ridge. It only took a few minutes to reach the summit. It was just high enough to see the Pacific ocean over the Carlsbad hills. There were no marks and no register on the summit. Nearby was a makeshift grave surrounded by painted rocks, most in loving memory of a pet. An odd location for such a memorial. I got back to the truck in 40 minutes and made it home earlier than planned. The day didn't require much effort, but I was glad to get outside for a while.

Cerro de la Calavera

Summit looking west to the ocean

Van Dam Peak and North Van Dam

Hiked: 12/4/2025
Distance: 2 miles round trip on trail and cross country
Summit Elevation: 1038' (Van Dam), 1114' (North Van Dam)
Elevation Gain: 636'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 0.5
Round trip time: 1 hour
Recommended water: 16 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free at Middle Ridge Terrace cul-de-sac
Difficulty: Easy

With only half a day to hike, I drove to north San Diego County for a couple of quick and easy peaks. The first stop was on Middle Ridge Terrace in a sleepy subdivision where I parked in the cul-de-sac. I was the only non-resident car on the street. The trail to the open space preserve ran between two houses, but not so close that it might annoy the homeowners. The trail was a single track that ran through some dense San Diego county brush. It was steep in a couple of places, but it didn't take long to reach the ridge line. First, I followed a good trail all the way to North Van Dam Peak. I found the cement base of some kind of structure that was no longer there. I couldn't find a benchmark or register, but someone had created a small shrine to Jean Claude Van Damme, the muscles from Brussels. I had to admire the effort. Larger, more popular mountains were nearby: Black Mountain, Woodson Mountain, Iron Mountain, etc. I only stayed a few minutes before heading back along the ridge toward Van Dam Peak. I wasn't sure if Van Dam would require a bushwhack but it looked isolated about a quarter mile away from the ridge with an intervening saddle. When I got near the saddle, I pushed through some light brush and found a decent use trail. It was overgrown in places and I lost it near the saddle, pushing through moderate brush to find it again. The use trail wound around the south side of the peak past a large boulder, then north to the summit. Van Dam proper had a register in a set of cans with only a handful of visits since 2021. On the way back, I took a couple of minutes to climb the 12' boulder with one class 3 move. I did a better job following the use back to the ridge, then cruised back to the truck.

Trail started between these houses

Van Damme shrine

Leaving the ridge trail toward Van Dam Peak below

Overgrown use trail

Van Dam register

Big boulder below the summit