Mt. Jurupa and Peak 1913

Hiked: 1/13/2018
Distance: 5.3 miles round trip on trail and use trail
Summit Elevation: 2217' (Jurupa), 1913' (Peak 1913)
Prominence: 1167' (Jurupa), 613' (Peak 1913)
Elevation Gain: 2057'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 1.64
Round trip time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Recommended water: 48 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free at Martin Tudor Regional Park
Difficulty: Easy

Mt. Jurupa is north of Riverside and south of Fontana off highway 60. It is one of the many small, but fun urban mountains in the area. There was plenty of parking at the Martin Tudor park and plenty of amenities including restrooms, tables, and play structures. The Jurupa Hills north trail starts northwest of the parking area around a fence. I took a shortcut through the fence to reach the trail. One of the steepest sections is right near the start up wide rutted dirt. A few places were rocky along the way and it is a nice cardio workout. It is also a graffiti art gallery. In general, I despise graffiti in a natural setting, but the city has obviously lost the battle in the park. And I must admit, a lot of the art and murals are high quality and took a lot of effort. Amid the spray painted initials and gang related stuff were images of Pink Floyd, Hunter S. Thompson, Skulls, Donald Duck, and more. After getting over being offended, I started to enjoy the art. I reached the wide, flat top of Mt. Jurupa in a little over 30 minutes and talked with some mountain bikers. Great 360 views greeted me on an unusually clear day. All the major ranges were in clear view. Airplanes flew by regularly on approach to LAX. I walked around the summit but didn't find a benchmark. After a short break, I started down. I tried to picture a route up the second highest peak in the Jurupa Mountains, Peak 1913, just on the other side of Sierra Avenue. I could see a clear road near the top, and a possible use trail on the west side. I didn't see any crosswalks in either direction or any way to get across the busy street other than running across. When I got back to the car, I replaced the bottle of water I drank then headed to the south side of the park to look for a way to Peak 1913. Round trip stats for Jurupa alone were 2.5 miles and 1130' gain.

Start

Follow the white rabbit

The Wall and Dark Side of the Moon

Hunter S. Thompson

San Gabriel Mountains from Jurupa, and a plane on the way to LAX

Santa Ana Mountains

Looking down on Peak 1913

At the south end of the park, I continued on a dirt road hoping to find an overpass that might allow me under the road. Not far past the turnaround, I spotted a large round steel culvert going under the road. Bingo! It was decorated with graffiti but the way was clear. I had to jump over some muddy water at the far end but was energized after finding this secret passage. A trail continued outside the concrete walls of the community nestled against Peak 1913. Around the next corner was the use trail I needed. The dirt was soft from rain a few days before. Like Jurupa, the first section was the steepest. The trail connected with a dirt road for the second hill, then I was on the saddle between Peak 1913 and a lookout point. First things first, I followed the road to the summit and got a great look at Jurupa and the other local hills. No benchmark, no register. Then, I descended back to the saddle and headed out to the lookout point. There was a large class 1 boulder there and more great views. I only lingered for photos before heading back down the use trail, through the culvert, and back to the park. I collected some plastic bottles and other assorted garbage on the way back, but honestly, it didn't make much of a dent in the litter. I was the only person on Peak 1913.

Passage under the road

Peak 1913 from the top of the first hill

Mt. Jurupa from Peak 1913

Lookout point

Oak Quarry Golf Club

Doggy grave

False Sombrero Peak

Hiked: 1/5/2018
Distance: 2 miles round trip on use trail and cross country
Summit Elevation: 3463'
Elevation Gain: 1359'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 1.08
Round trip time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Recommended water: 64 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free on North Indian Canyon Road
Difficulty: Moderate

After hiking Sombrero, I drove from the end of South Indian Canyon Road to the end of North Indian Canyon Road. False Sombrero (SDC #63) had two major sections. The first part was climbing up a rough gully and the second part was a steep sandy slope. It offers up a calf ripping 1359'/mile of gain. From the turn around, I started north into the gully. I didn't see any use trail so I picked my way up and around the boulders and thorny plants. Occasionally, I saw a footprint in the sand, but mostly the terrain felt wild. It had warmed up since the morning into the low 70s and I expected to run into some slithery reptiles but didn't. Once I got out of the gully, I tackled the long sandy slope toward the saddle. I found a use trail and did my best to slog up. The sand was 3" deep and it was like walking on the beach at a 35 degree angle. Because I finished Sombrero ahead of schedule, I didn't have any time pressure so I took my time going up and sliding back. It was slow, but eventually I got to the saddle. I continued around north of the peak, then scrambled up. The summit block was an easy class 2 from all sides. I found the register inside a glass jar inside a red can. The register was small and although it went back to 1989, it wasn't full. Outside of list chasing peakbaggers, I'm not sure who would even know about False Sombrero. I went through the list and recognized nearly half the names. I took a lot of photos of the register pages for posterity before signing my own. The views were even better than from Sombrero, especially of the Sawtooth Mountains and the Inner Pasture. I hung around the summit for 20-30 minutes, an eternity for me, resting and enjoying the sights and perfect weather. I couldn't help but think of the poor souls in most of the country dealing with sub-freezing and sub-zero temps. The West is the best. Get here and we'll do the rest. Returning was much easier as I casually plunge stepped the sandy slope and scrambled back down the gully. It was a short, stiff hike and worth every step.

North gully and False Sombrero

Rough country heading for the saddle

Looking down the sandy slope, Sombrero in the background

Summit block

Indian Valley

Red Top right, Inner Pasture, Laguna Mountains left

Red Top and Sawtooth Mountains high point

First entry in the register

Paul Freiman

Bob Burd, Tom Becht

Ben Baumann and Anna Tan

Daren Sefeik

Craig Barlow

Greg Gerlach, Kelley Laxamana, Larry Edmonds,
Shelly Britton, Mikey Sullivan

Matt Hanan

Patrick O'Neill

Driving out

Sombrero Peak

Hiked: 1/5/2018
Distance: 3.5 miles round trip on use trail and cross country
Summit Elevation: 4229'
Prominence: 329'
Elevation Gain: 2011'
Elevation Gain (in Empire State Buildings): 1.60
Round trip time: 3 hours
Recommended water: 64 oz.
Parking/Fees: Free on South Indian Canyon Road
Difficulty: Moderate

I headed back to the desert for Sombrero Peak (SDC #46, DPS #80) and False Sombrero (SDC #63). The trailhead for Sombrero starts at the end of South Indian Canyon Road. The first 2.5 miles of Indian Canyon Road has some large rocks and the road is sandy in places, 4x4 recommended. After the fork, both North and South Indian Canyon Roads are smooth to the end. Sombrero is a short, stiff hike, gaining more than 1000'/mile. At the trailhead, I headed up a gully following a use trail that faded in and out. The use trail stayed slightly above the gully on the left side. I made a point of not starting too fast and focusing on good route finding. A good path goes a long way to preserving energy which is easily lost on the jagged slopes with huge boulders. After clearing the first ridge, there was a short level section before the second steep section started. Although the terrain was rough, the cactus and vegetation were spread out enough that it wasn't a constant problem. On the second slope, I was surprised to find the use trail again after losing it several times. With significant effort, I cleared the second ridge and got my first look at the summit, a bump several hundred above. I picked up the use trail once again and followed it up as it weaved through a giant boulder maze. Some class 2 was required to get over several obstacles, leading to the summit area where two granite boulders made arguments for the high point. The first one was a class 1 walk up that appeared to be higher by inches. I took several photos from the first boulder, taking in awesome views of McCain Valley, and the Sawtooth, Laguna, and In-Ko-Pah mountains. The floor of Indian Valley looked impossibly far below. From the top of the first boulder, I thought I spotted a benchmark on the second boulder so I turned my attention there.

Dawn of the desert

Sombrero and False Sombrero from the road fork

Trailhead

Looking back about half way up

Sombrero Peak

Summit view

McCain Valley

Sawtooth Mountains almost lost in the background

The second possible high point was a tall block with no easy access. The first two visible routes included a negative angle chute with an extra 20' of exposure, and a chimney that was closed off at the top. Before looking on the other sides, I made an attempt on the chimney, getting myself wedged inside. The following move was to transition to the face on the right where thin holds were available. It was awkward and risky so I decided to back down and check out the rest of the boulder for better possibilities. On the other side, I found a much nicer ~12' class 5 crack. I used hand jams to ascend the crack, not getting much assistance from my hiking boots. It was an unexpected thrill. On top, I looked around for a register that wasn't there. I didn't find a register anywhere on the summit. I was very happy to find a benchmark, but it wasn't placed by the USGS. It was from the Division of Beaches and Parks in 1958. Getting down was easier than coming up, using hand jams and gravity. I had done my standard due diligence on Sombrero, but wondered why nobody mentioned this summit block or benchmark. I went back and read dozens of trip reports from every possible source and the only one that mentioned this block and climbed it was someone going by "BMS 914" on 3/16/2013. I still think the first boulder was slightly higher, but the benchmark was a nice find for extra credit. I had a lingering adrenaline buzz when I got back to the truck and drove the short distance to False Sombrero.

The second possible summit

Easiest way up was this crack

Sombrero benchmark on the second summit block

Looking back at the rest of the summit, the highest point probably the boulder on the left

The hard way up

Awesome view from the second summit block

I found this weird pole and chain on the way down,
a few hundred feet below the summit

See also:
Sombrero Peak 2026