Southern California's highest and most rugged mountains are in the San Bernardino and San Jacinto ranges, in a unique region where desert cactus and pine trees, plus snow-capped peaks and palm oases, are found in close proximity. With the Pacific Crest Trail weaving its way through the mountains and desert, there are endless opportunities to explore Southern California trails. After more than 40 years in print, San Bernardino Mountain Trails remains the bible for Southern California hikers. This updated guide by veteran hiker and author David Money Harris contains new trips as well as old favorites — 100 hikes that traverse San Bernardino National Forest, the Santa Rosa Mountains, and the San Jacinto Mountains. This edition brings John Robinson's classic guide up to date with the latest trail conditions. Eight old trails, especially in areas that have become overgrown after fire damage, have been replaced with recently built or more heavily used trails. San Bernardino Mountain Trails is noted for its comprehensive coverage of the San Bernardino, San Jacinto, and Santa Rosa Mountains and its meticulously researched history of the ranges. JOHN W. ROBINSON has been exploring, backpacking, and climbing throughout the Mountain West, from Alaska and Canada to Mexico, for more than 50 years. His first guide, Camping and Climbing in Baja (now out of print), set the standard for guides to the Baja California mountains. His Trails of the Angeles, now in its eighth edition, remains the definitive hiking guide to Southern California’s San Gabriel Mountains. He has authored or coauthored a number of the original Wilderness Press quadrangle guides, covering California’s three major southern ranges: the San Gabriels, the San Bernardinos, and the San Jacintos. In addition, he has published numerous articles in Westways, Desert Magazine, Southern California Quarterly, Overland Journal, and Summit. If the mines of Southern California’s mountains revealed gold and other precious minerals, they cannot compare to the treasure trove of information contained in this one man. His love for these forests, peaks, and wilderness areas is apparent on every page of his many works. DAVID MONEY HARRIS is a professor of engineering at Harvey Mudd College. He is the author or coauthor of six hiking guidebooks and five engineering textbooks. David grew up rambling around the Desolation Wilderness as a toddler in his father’s pack and later roamed the High Sierra as a Boy Scout. As a Sierra Club trip leader, he organized mountaineering trips throughout the Sierra Nevada. Since 1999, he has been exploring the mountains and deserts of Southern California. He lives with his wife and three sons in Upland, California, and delights in sharing his love of the outdoors with their boys. Hike 1: PACIFIC CREST TRAIL TO SAN ANDREAS RIFT VIEWPOINT HIKE LENGTH 6.5 miles out-and-back; 1,000' elevation gain DIFFICULTY Moderate SEASON October–May TOPO MAP Cajon (7.5-minute) FEATURES The San Andreas Fault, perhaps the most famous fault in the world, has carved a badland beneath the Cajon Pass between the San Bernardino and San Gabriel Mountains. This hike climbs the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) from Interstate 15 to the ridgeline. It offers terrific views, both of the natural features that the fault has carved and of the complex lifelines that man has built through this gap between the mountain ranges. DESCRIPTION From Interstate 15, turn east onto Highway 138. Immediately turn right onto the Wagon Train frontage road and follow it 0.3 mile south past gas and fast food to the Pacific Crest Trail Trailhead at the end (GPS N34° 18.362' W117° 27.969') Follow the trail northeast up a shallow canyon. In 0.7 mile, cross a gas pipeline road. Just beyond, cross seasonal Crowder Creek beneath some cottonwoods. The PCT now begins a long climb up the ridge to the east. In another 0.2 mile, pass under the first of three sets of high-voltage transmission lines that run along this side of the freeway. The trail now loosely follows and occasionally crosses Forest Road 3N44, which services these power lines. Soon pass the second set of transmission lines. Views expand as you continue up the ridge. Whipple yuccas dot the slopes and put up an impressive show of blossoms in late spring after a good winter’s rain. At the top, reach a breathtaking view atop heavily eroded cliffs (GPS N34° 19.029' W117° 26.198'). From here, you can take in the handiwork of nature and man. The San Gabriel Mountains, pushed up as the Pacific and North American Plates crash together and buckle, represent one of the fastest-growing (and fastest-eroding) mountain ranges in the world. Mount Baldy is the highest point, surrounded by a host of subsidiary summits. The jagged sandstone slabs in the San Andreas Rift Zone are called the Mormon Rocks to commemorate these early American settlers who crossed this pass in 1851 en route from Salt Lake City to San Bernardino. Through this landsc