Wilson (SDC #30, 4586′) • map • directions*
Pinyon Ridge (SDC #29, 4614′) • w/Wilson
Travelers FAIL (SDC #14, 2701′) • map • directions
Wilson and Pinyon Ridge
Pinyon Ridge and Wilson Point are two infrequented peaks that are accessed by an old jeep trail, now closed to vehicular traffic. We found the trailhead by following the directions in Schad’s “Afoot and Afield in San Diego County,” though by the time we found the signed trailhead I wasn’t too happy as I’d put several deep scratches into my dark blue truck in the three off-road miles it took to get there. It was bound to happen as I was going to beat the truck up quite a bit over the next few months and “desert pinstripes” soon became a way of life.
We followed the mellow jeep trail south and then east, aiming for the furthest of the two peaks first, Wilson. We wrapped around our other planned destination, Pinyon Ridge, on the way to Wilson, and looked forward to it on the return.
The going was almost too easy, only gaining 1000 feet or so over 4 miles. The views were great and it was nice taking our time here. After an hour and a quarter, the jeep trail fizzled into a hiking trail. We followed it through some overhanging trees before leaving the trail south to climb up the final 100 vertical feet to Wilson. We dodged cactus and other brush and climbed over rock and under low hanging trees that last bit, all of which took less than 10 minutes.
The summit of Wilson is centered on a broad ridge so we couldn’t see down to the desert floor, but could see all the way to the Salton Sea and to Grapevine Mountain just across the canyon to the west. The high point seemed to be a 6 foot tall boulder and it did have a summit register. We signed in and started back down to the trail, stumbling across a few cairns that marked an easier path.
Heading back towards Pinyon Ridge, it’s high point was much more obvious from this direction. We stayed on the jeep trail until we were at an apex just north of Pinyon Ridge, simple enough to reach the summit boulder from there. The summit block was a couple of fun and easy class 2-3 moves. We found the typical reddish-brown two-can summit register, something we were becoming familiar with.
After getting back to the trailhead we decided to try to return to the S22 via another route, for the sake of my truck’s paint. We continued west from the parking area, the road rough and tilty, but with less brush than the way we’d come in. Once back on the highway, we dropped down into Borrego Springs and started heading for the Santa Rosas, looking to squeeze in another peak before dark.
Travelers (Fail)
I hadn’t been able to find any information on hiking Travelers Peak (aka Palm BM), but after studying the maps it looked like the road to the calcite mine got fairly close. I figured that would be a good place to start.
Anna and I drove down the steep dirt road heading toward the calcite mine, following behind a caravan of jeeps. We parked at a large flat area before the road got really rough and walked the last mile to the mine. The terrain was impressive, with slot canyons and rugged cut up earth all around. Once we reached the mine there was calcite littering the ground and a few horizontal shafts that had been cut into the ground. We found what seemed to be a use trail leading north from the mine and I assumed that this would lead us to Travelers. It would be our only chance since the daylight was going to fade soon.
Once cresting a bump on the ridge leading north from the mine, I saw two possible routes; a direct but crumbly looking ridge, and what looked to be an easier but slightly longer route, which was our preference. We dropped down a hundred feet into a wide wash and started heading up the heavily cactused slope. Thirty minutes of slogging up kitty litter brought us to a point at 2400 feet and we stared a few hundred feet down to a saddle that connected us to Travelers. It was at this point that I realized that we’d have to turn back. The remainder of what would have been our route was more than we had time for.
By the time we we got back to the calcite mine it was dark and we had to get our headlamps out for the walk back to the truck. Once back, we tossed on clean clothes and drove into Borrego Springs for a couple of burgers at Carlee’s. We watched some karaoke before driving back down the S22 and setting up our sleeping bags in the bed of the truck near the start of tomorrow’s hike.
Note: The green line *might* be a better route, though it looked loose.
I reached the summit at a later date via another route.
*-The Wilson/Pinyon Ridge driving directions get you to a turnoff heading east towards the trailhead. Please see the terrain view on Google Maps to get an idea of where you need to go as this approach can be confusing. Alternatively, see Schad’s book for a different driving approach, though my way had much less brush to scratch up your vehicle as of Nov 2010.