Mount San Jacinto State Park
A cool experience with 6 to 10 mile hikes
Trek into the wilderness and sleep in the backcountry
Ideal for first-timers
Trip · 3-day backpacking trip
For · Friends and first-time backpackers
Vibe · Moderate and fun
Distance · 10 miles with 2,933 feet of elevation gain
Permits · Yep, apply for a $5 wilderness permit at Round Valley campground
Drive · 2.5 hours from LA
Ideal dates · May to June or September or October
Pets · Not allowed in the park
Mount San Jacinto State Park has 54 miles of hiking trails, prominent peaks, like Mt. San Jacinto Peak (10,804 ft), the second highest mountain in SoCal, two campgrounds and four backcountry wilderness camps: Round Valley, Tamarack Valley, Little Round Valley, and Strawberry Junction. Unlike other treks, you can ride the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway up most of the mountain! A tram ticket costs $27 per adult, and it's a 15-minute ride to get to ~8,000 feet. Backpacking in Mount San Jacinto State Park just got a little easier :)
Water Sources and Trail Conditions
Directions to Palm Springs Aerial Tramway
Main image credit: Christopher Khoi Tran
The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway is one of the largest and longest single-lift passenger tramways in the world! It carries you up 2.5 miles.
The Cahuilla tribe once used this area for seasonal hunting. Their trails still cross the mountain, and bedrock mortars can be seen in the park
The northeast face of the San Jacinto Range plunges down 9,000 feet in less than four miles. It's the steepest and most spectacular slopes in North America.
You won't be saving money, but you'll save space and weight with these camp sandals.
Clothes
Sleepover! This is a tent you can stand up in and have plenty of space for air mattresses, doggos, and more.
Shared Gear
A reliable, popular, and relatively affordable dual-burner camping stove that is fairly heavy, but performs well.
Kitchen
It's pricey, but the New York Times' Wirecutter recommended this attachment as a way for wheelchair users to navigate uneven terrain.
Essential Items
Instead of transporting stuff on your lap, use this storage bag to easily store items underneath your wheelchair.
Essential Items
Never dig around your pack to find some hand sanitizer. Instead, hang this one on the outside of your pack.
Personal Stuff
If you're an experienced backpacker, this is the lightest full-size, full-featured, frameless pack made.
Essential Items
Add a little magic to your experience by hanging these twinkling lights around your tent every night.
Shared Gear
Sometimes you just want a camp chair that gets the job done. Nothing glamorous or fancy. Well, this is it.
Shared Gear
The more you backpack the lighter your shelter becomes, and the lighter it is, the more expensive it can be.
Shared Gear
Camp underneath the stars and watch glorious sunrises in Joshua Tree National Park, the second largest national park in California.
