Mt. San Jacinto
Posted: Sun Feb 19, 2012 8:50 pm
Hello all, new guy here. I'm looking to do my first solo winter backpacking trip towards the end of March. One of the places I'm looking at is Mt. San Jacinto SP. I'd be taking the aerial tram up from Palm Springs (the wife and kids would be hanging out there). I'm thinking about a 2-3 day max trip. I'm not looking to actually summit on Mt. San Jacinto because I have zero winter climbing skills (and even fewer summer climbing skills ). This is mainly for a sort of shakedown trip to see what works and what doesn't. I'm pretty set on gear, I have decent cold weather clothing, bag, pads, etc.
I'm looking for advice on things specific to this area (such as is the ranger station at the top of the tram open in winter to get a pass), what weather I can expect, etc. I know they rent snowshoes up on top, so that should work for the hiking part of it. I was thinking of simply hiking to Round Valley or somehwere similar and camping for a night or two, before returning.
As for stoves, I could use a little schooling on the benefits of each. I already own an Ezbit stove, an MSR Whisperlite International, and a Snow Peak Giga Power stove. So in other words I have one of each of the three major types (what can I say, I'm a gear junky). I'm not a chef by any means...I simply boil water. I bought the Whisperlite because I can use the same gas I put in my motorcycle for my road trips. But do either the liquid fuels or the gas fueled stoves have advantages such as how long they last, performance at altitude, etc? Secondly, is it safe to cook inside a vestibule? I know it would obviously depend on the height and size of the vestuble, but provided it's a big one, can you cook under it?
Thanks in advance for any advice. I know by my questioning it is fairly obvious I'm new to backpacking in general and winter backpacking in specific. I've done only a few overnight backpacking trips so far.
I'm looking for advice on things specific to this area (such as is the ranger station at the top of the tram open in winter to get a pass), what weather I can expect, etc. I know they rent snowshoes up on top, so that should work for the hiking part of it. I was thinking of simply hiking to Round Valley or somehwere similar and camping for a night or two, before returning.
As for stoves, I could use a little schooling on the benefits of each. I already own an Ezbit stove, an MSR Whisperlite International, and a Snow Peak Giga Power stove. So in other words I have one of each of the three major types (what can I say, I'm a gear junky). I'm not a chef by any means...I simply boil water. I bought the Whisperlite because I can use the same gas I put in my motorcycle for my road trips. But do either the liquid fuels or the gas fueled stoves have advantages such as how long they last, performance at altitude, etc? Secondly, is it safe to cook inside a vestibule? I know it would obviously depend on the height and size of the vestuble, but provided it's a big one, can you cook under it?
Thanks in advance for any advice. I know by my questioning it is fairly obvious I'm new to backpacking in general and winter backpacking in specific. I've done only a few overnight backpacking trips so far.