This Palm Springs area hike is listed as one of the hardest Day Hikes in the Country. Our route was a 1-day 11,000 ft gain and 23.6 miles
Starting at Ramon Road at 1 am on October 8th, 2006, my sister Teresa and I headed up the dirt road a short ways and then onto the single-track switchbacks straight up the hillside. Both trails have various "use trails" that go in different directions, which can be a little confusing until you reach the trailhead for Skyline. The irony is that Skyline is not even a designated trail, it's just a route, but the desert section is easier to follow than the Museum and North Lykken trails. The Skyline "trail" actually starts near the painted rocks. The first 3,000 feet of climbing is rather quick, mostly uphill. Once you reach the top of the "shady slope," you're almost a third of the way (timewise) to the Mountain Station. The high desert section covers a lot of distance but only a moderate elevation gain. The first part briefly nears the edge of Tahquitz Canyon and continues on with moderate inclines, some flat sections, a few steep sections, and occasional downhills with switchbacks. Before you reach "flat rock," there are a couple scenic overlooks where you can see down into Chino Canyon.
Flat rock"is a dry stream bed at ~6,000 feet that rarely flows and should never be considered a reliable water source. The climb above 6,000 feet is rather notorious to all the Skyline hikers, as this is where the fun begins... Steady inclines and steep sections until the fluted ridges... This traverse section begins at 7,800 feet, heads to the right (west) crossing several creek beds, and ends at 8,000 feet near the edge of a cliff by Coffman's Crag (see photos to the right). The peak, while being the easiest of the two parts, is still an 11-mile round trip from Long Valley which adds another 2,400 feet of climbing and 2,400 feet of downhill.. Devil's
Devil's Slide Trail (3EO5): (Our descent route) begins at Humber Park. Devil's Slide Trail climbs the head of Strawberry Valley, with good views of Suicide Rock to the west, to the five-way Saddle Junction. From there, take the Pacific Crest Trail northward, following the sign to San Jacinto Peak. At Wellsman Divide it joins the trail coming up from the tram station. The rest is the same as for the Palm Springs Tramway route, as described above. The distance from the trailhead to the summit is 8.1 miles, and the elevation gain is 4200 ft. (Alt description: - This
moderate trail ascends from Humber Park to Saddle Junction with many switchbacks and far-reaching views. Starting at 6280 ft. the gain in elevation is 1700 ft. From Saddle Junction, trails lead to San Jacinto Peak (10,804 ft.), the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway (8516 ft.), and Tahquitz Peak Lookout (8828 ft.). The Pacific Crest Trail passes through Saddle Junction.)
April 29, 2011 I'll be hiking the skyline trail from the Palms Springs museum to the top of the Palm Springs Tram (about 8,000ft elevation gain.) Joining me will be Mike Weinberg. We are leaving at 3:30 am from the museum (being dropped off by Teresa Gaulin) we aren't leaving a car in the lot.
