Big Pine Mountain is a long, long, long hike. It is the highpoint of Santa Barbara County. I parked at the gate near Willow Campground. I decided to take the scenic route to the summit, so I took the trail south up Santa Barbara Canyon (and crossed the creek about 47 times...) to the old Madulce Guard Station and then took the Madulce Trail west to the Big Pine Road. I followed the road past the Alamar Guard Station. I entcountered snow on the road just past the guard station and the rest of the climb was on snow all the way to the summit.
I followed the road all the way back to my truck and arrived there well after dark. I did drink from the Chokecherry Spring on the way down and it was wonderful. I also encountered a cougar/mountain lion on the road in the dark. Apparently it had never seen anyone without a headlamp before. Total hike 31.8 miles, gained 6,157 ft in elevation, and took just over 15 hours to complete. This is the furthest I have ever hiked in one day, but I have had hikes that lasted longer and gained more elevation. 4/1/2005 Images
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Big Pine Mountain > Big Pine Mountain
