NavySeabee - May 2, 2006 9:40 pm Date Climbed: Apr 28, 2006
Granite Mtn / Monument Peak
I left the trailhead at 7:30 with every intention of following Bob Burd's day of Granite and San Ysidro. With lots of spring daylight and the weather predicted to be on the mild side, I was confident I could make that goal despite the time of year.
I had no troubles following the lower washes and enjoyed the dry falls and various game tracks including some healthy cougar prints. Unfortunately I started up the wrong ridge after taking the rightmost fork at 0.9 miles. This fork ends up forking again some 200 yards and as a result I ended up on the ridge north of the main route. It wasn't until climbing up to 3300 feet that I realized my error and crossed over to the correct ridge and followed it up to 4624 without much incident and it was only 9:00 despite my error.
I headed down the saddle enroute to the false summit at 5100' and quickly located the ducked route to the climber's right of the ridgeline. However, once I topped this false summit my luck started to turn sour. I repeatedly lost the ducked route and spent more time than I bargained for trying to find it again, the worst of which was right below the summit. So due to my analness and not following my better instincts I didn't summit until 10:45. No sweat though, as long as I made it down by 1:00, I could still make it up San Ysidro with plenty of daylight left.
The views from the NW clockwise to the SW were spectacular. The valleys to the West were still filled with the cloudy marine layer I drove through on the way in from El Cajon. So I gobbled up some crackers, sucked down some water and was heading back down by 11:00.
I figured my route-finding luck would improve heading down, but I was sadly mistaken. I continued to have difficulties picking my way through the boulders and desert scrub and didn't know if it was because this was the most altitude I had gained in a climb since last summer or due to the rapidly increasing heat. I was frequently forced to stop and decide which side of the crappy large boulders to descend and every time I took a long draw of water from my camelbak. To make matters worse I decided to go down the southern side of the false summit to a shoulder off 4624 to avoid gaining "unnecessary altitude". This display of ignorance at its finest presented more delays and difficulties. My motivation was starting to wane. Through sheer determination, I finally made it off the bouldery slopes of 4624 and onto the main ridgeline where I should have been all along. I made good time back down the ridge and through the washes and arrived at the car at 1:45. Along the descent, I sucked my camelbak dry and the temperature was well into the 80s so I came to the conclusion that San Ysidro would have to wait until another day.
After consuming some food and Gatorade I left in the car, I was motivated again and headed back towards Julian. Somewhere along Hwy 79, I decided I would hike up Monument Peak in the Lagunas to complete my day.
I left the car at 3 at the horse corrals (north of the Big Laguna Trail) and enjoyed the good trails / roads to the highest antenna farm in the Lagunas (I think). At the summit, I only stopped long enough to soak in the amazing views down the escarpement and power down a bagel. I arrived back at the car by 4:20, covering the 4.6 miles at a much better pace. A fitting end to the day. The Lagunas were very quiet (despite the state/federal workers' metallic clanging on Monument), peaceful and uncrowded this day and it was a shame to leave them and return to the marine layer and reality.
NavySeabee - May 2, 2006 9:40 pm Date Climbed: Apr 28, 2006
Granite Mtn / Monument PeakI left the trailhead at 7:30 with every intention of following Bob Burd's day of Granite and San Ysidro. With lots of spring daylight and the weather predicted to be on the mild side, I was confident I could make that goal despite the time of year.
I had no troubles following the lower washes and enjoyed the dry falls and various game tracks including some healthy cougar prints. Unfortunately I started up the wrong ridge after taking the rightmost fork at 0.9 miles. This fork ends up forking again some 200 yards and as a result I ended up on the ridge north of the main route. It wasn't until climbing up to 3300 feet that I realized my error and crossed over to the correct ridge and followed it up to 4624 without much incident and it was only 9:00 despite my error.
I headed down the saddle enroute to the false summit at 5100' and quickly located the ducked route to the climber's right of the ridgeline. However, once I topped this false summit my luck started to turn sour. I repeatedly lost the ducked route and spent more time than I bargained for trying to find it again, the worst of which was right below the summit. So due to my analness and not following my better instincts I didn't summit until 10:45. No sweat though, as long as I made it down by 1:00, I could still make it up San Ysidro with plenty of daylight left.
The views from the NW clockwise to the SW were spectacular. The valleys to the West were still filled with the cloudy marine layer I drove through on the way in from El Cajon. So I gobbled up some crackers, sucked down some water and was heading back down by 11:00.
I figured my route-finding luck would improve heading down, but I was sadly mistaken. I continued to have difficulties picking my way through the boulders and desert scrub and didn't know if it was because this was the most altitude I had gained in a climb since last summer or due to the rapidly increasing heat. I was frequently forced to stop and decide which side of the crappy large boulders to descend and every time I took a long draw of water from my camelbak. To make matters worse I decided to go down the southern side of the false summit to a shoulder off 4624 to avoid gaining "unnecessary altitude". This display of ignorance at its finest presented more delays and difficulties. My motivation was starting to wane. Through sheer determination, I finally made it off the bouldery slopes of 4624 and onto the main ridgeline where I should have been all along. I made good time back down the ridge and through the washes and arrived at the car at 1:45. Along the descent, I sucked my camelbak dry and the temperature was well into the 80s so I came to the conclusion that San Ysidro would have to wait until another day.
After consuming some food and Gatorade I left in the car, I was motivated again and headed back towards Julian. Somewhere along Hwy 79, I decided I would hike up Monument Peak in the Lagunas to complete my day.
I left the car at 3 at the horse corrals (north of the Big Laguna Trail) and enjoyed the good trails / roads to the highest antenna farm in the Lagunas (I think). At the summit, I only stopped long enough to soak in the amazing views down the escarpement and power down a bagel. I arrived back at the car by 4:20, covering the 4.6 miles at a much better pace. A fitting end to the day. The Lagunas were very quiet (despite the state/federal workers' metallic clanging on Monument), peaceful and uncrowded this day and it was a shame to leave them and return to the marine layer and reality.