Hiking closures in the Mount Baldy area are now extended through Friday, March 20, due to the winter storm that subsided on Feb. 20.
The recent storm left a healthy residue of snow and ice, which started as low as the 6,500-foot trailhead on Sunday, March 1, despite Southern California’s current bout of 80-degree weather.
Quick changes in winter weather sound the alarm for search-and-rescue teams, as this is a prime window for avalanches and landslides.
The U.S. Forest Service is taking precautions by closing “Los Angeles’s favorite mountain” long enough for the snow to melt off the Baldy Bowl and hopefully the Devil’s Backbone, two of the most treacherous passes on the mountain.
Closures include all hiking trails to the summit of Mount Baldy, notoriously ranked the sixth most dangerous mountain in the U.S. in terms of fatalities by USA by Numbers. These include the Ski Hut, Backbone, Register Ridge, and Bear Canyon trails, as well as neighboring Ontario and Cucamonga peaks and the Three T’s Trail.
Hikers are only allowed access to the San Antonio Falls and the ski lifts at this time. Violations are punishable by a fine of up to $5,000 for an individual or $10,000 for an organization.
“Mount Baldy in winter is often not a hike — it’s mountaineering terrain,” Acting Forest Supervisor Scott Tangenberg said. “Conditions can change quickly, ice can form even after small storms, and that creates real fall hazards.”
The closure comes shortly after the bodies of three separate individuals were identified on the Devil’s Backbone this winter season, who have been identified as Marcus Alexander Muench Casanova, 19, Juan Sarat Lopez, 37, and Bayron Pedro Ramos Garcia, 36, all from Los Angeles County.
Rescue efforts are at an all-time high at Mount Baldy
The margin for error on the Backbone is always slim, even in moderate conditions. Consult any online hiking forum, REI employee, or West Valley Search and Rescue member, and the answer will ring the same: stay away from the Backbone in the winter.
Similar to the treachery of the “final 400” on Mount Whitney’s Mountaineer Route, the infamous Backbone and the steep, rocky Bowl are regarded as professional-grade climbs in the hiking community and should only be attempted by seasoned crampon users.
Why, then, are rescue efforts at an all-time high?
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s office reported 233 rescue missions and eight fatalities between 2017 and 2022 on Mount Baldy, and at least 10 deaths between 2020 and 2023.
Daily Press reporters have encountered individuals attempting to hike down the Backbone in the winter without climbing gear, and others watching instructional videos on how to cinch their crampons unscathed before climbing the Baldy Bowl.
Many credit the rise in popularity to social media platforms and geotagging. Others, like area hiker Kristianna Garcia, are sure Netflix documentaries about the outdoors, like “Free Solo” and “The Alpinist,” are behind the surge in hikers, or that hiking was one of the only activities available during the pandemic. Since 2020, Southern California residents have refused to be cooped up again.
Hikers divided over Mount Baldy closures
Hikers are divided on whether the mountain should be closed, a mandate they say unjustly affects those who recreate responsibly.
Ron Schiratis commented online that closing Mount Baldy in the winter is comparable to closing the beach because someone might drown in the ocean.
Similarly, hiker Dan Esmond says he “highly disagrees” with the closure, stating “it’s not fair to the people who actually put in the work [and] training, and have the right equipment to summit this time of the year.” He says he understands why the Forest Service issued the closure, but believes a better system can be implemented instead.
Juan Max, on the other hand, says the closures not only protect hikers but also search and rescue members, alluding to West Valley rescuer Timothy Staples, who died in 2019 while searching for a missing hiker.
Organizers from the Venture Forward outdoor organization echo the sentiment, stating that the closure was needed to help protect trails and encourage safety. “Baldy takes so many lives, and it’s important to be sure we continue to look out for ourselves and the conditions.”
Information is circulating online for the hiking community to voice concerns about closures to the Forest Service. If interested, contact the Angeles National Forest Supervisor’s Office at 626-574-1613 or email keila.vizcarra@usda.gov.
McKenna is a reporter for the Daily Press. She can be reached at mmobley@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Why Mount Baldy is closed until March 20 — and why hikers are divided
Reporting by McKenna Mobley, Victorville Daily Press / Victorville Daily Press
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