Adventures of 2015 Mountain Baden-Powell Day Hike

At 9,407 feet tall, Mount Baden-Powell is named after the founder of Boy Scouts, Lord Robert Baden-Powell. Originally called North Baldy, Baden-Powell is the fourth highest mountain in the San Gabriel Mountains. We thought it would be an easy day hike since this is the second time the troop hiked this peak; we conquered the peak the first time in 2013 summer.

There were many surprises this trip. First of all, on the way to the South Lake middle school where we would meet and pick up Joseph in the early morning, the police blocked the road 2 blocks away from the school because of the Reaching for the Cure Run and Ride. We found Joseph was riding in the car in front of ours while we took a detour. We pulled over and picked up Joseph on the roadside. Because of the road blocking, some cars couldn't make it to South Lake middle school. It resulted in carpooling issues, but some people backed out at the last moment. We managed to have all the hikers there at the trailhead. When we arrived at the Vincent Gap trailhead parking lot, we found out that the road to the Dawson Trail parking lot, our exit point, was closed because of weather conditions. Instead of hiking more peaks along the Pacific Crest Trail, we had to hike back the way we came. Now it became an 8-mile day hike.

We waited in the parking lot for Mr. A for a half hour before the adult leaders let us start. We were short on older and more experienced scouts, with only an Eagle Scout, two Life Scouts, and two First Class Scouts to lead the fourteen other young scouts. To many young scouts, this would be their first peak. As a result, we split into one senior scout leading two to three younger scouts to help guide them. This was also my first service of being an outing patrol leader.

The switchbacks at the beginning were long and steep though the experienced scouts thought they were easy. The scouts reached the first milestone, the branch to the Lamel Spring, quickly without much effort. The leading group paused and waited at a wooden bench at the second mile to catch their breath and to regroup and wait for the slower scouts. The snow clumps started to show up along the trail soon after we resumed the hike. It became larger after each switchback. Pretty soon, the trail was covered by the snow. Even if we proceeded cautiously on the icy and risky snow covered trail but there were still many scouts slipping. Because Mr. A still had not caught up, the troop decided to stop for an early lunch break. During the break, two hikers coming from the peak shared with us that we were within 30 minutes away from the peak but most sections of the trail ahead of us were covered by snow. The adult leaders and senior scouts had a brief meeting. We decided to push forward to the peak. ASM Erh-Chiao gave us a technique session. He taught us to kick our feet into the snow at an angle, to knock off the ice on top.

The hiking resumed after regrouping the scouts by mixing experienced scouts with two young scouts, and adult leaders also blended into the group. To avoid the slippery snow patches, we chose the route connecting the dirt areas as much as possible. The steep route became the shortcut for the final few switchbacks. On the way to the peak, we paused at the famous "Wally Waldron Tree" which is a 1500 years old Limber Pine named after Mr. Wally Waldron for his dedication to Scouting. Finally, we conquered the peak. People started to take the pictures and snow ball fight. About half an hour after we had fun on the top, Mr. A arrived and was proud of the fact that no one had turned back and there was no whining. Billy, Joseph, Aaron, and I went back down to help two dads who were a little slower than us. 12 first time peak conquering scouts took group pictures at the peak. Mr. A briefed us on the histories of the Mountain Baldy, Throop Peak, which is named after the founder of Cal Tech, and other nearby peaks.

Before starting down, we shared a pineapple as the reward for conquering the peak. Kyle again reminded the scouts to avoid the snow patches and to watch their footsteps since descending would be more dangerous than hiking up. The scouts heeded his advice, although some scouts still slipped. However, we arrived back at the trailhead safe and sound. Originally, we thought this would be just another plain day hike, but because of the surprises, it turned out to be an exciting journey.

Gallery 2015 Mountain Baden-Powell Day Hike