A buddy and I decided to tackle Smith Mountain on the edge of the San Gabriel Wilderness off of Highway 39 on Saturday.

We hit the trailhead shortly before first light. Overnight, the mountains had gotten a light dusting of snow.

South Mount Hawkins


The first light of dawn illumines the upper slopes of Smith Mountain (5111'/1558m).


The trailhead sign. Note snow on top of sign. Our first destination is Smith Saddle (4300'/1310m) which marks the eastern boundary of the San Gabriel Wilderness.


The north face of Smith Mountain. This is the standard approach.


As we ascend, Smith Saddle comes into view.


The higher we go, the more snow we encounter, although we never encountered anything more than half an inch.


Here, a spider's web captures some snow.


Surprisingly, we crossed not one but four flowing streams. Normally, all of the streams would not be running. In fact, in most years, I seem to recall that none of the streams were running.

The first stream crossing.


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