The beautiful Pacifico Mountain stands at 7,124’. It’s located in the central San Gabriels and the climb up on the PCT offers expansive views that sweep across the Antelope Valley and the Mojave Desert. This hike is about 6 miles one way. We’ve done it in its entirety in the past, but today our goal was to reach the PCT mile marker, break for lunch and then turn around and head back. With the shorter days, we wanted to make sure we were back down the mountain before darkness fell. We began the hike from Mill Creek Summit heading up the PCT. The aroma of chaparral was comforting and familiar and there was plenty of Manzanita on the trail. The charred trees burned in the Station Fire still held fast. As the trail hugged the north face of Mt. Pacifico, we passed large Spanish Bayonet. The trail is easy graded, but it is narrow and parts have now eroded since we were last here in 2019. We stopped to watch a group of ravens call and croak to one another as they danced and dived on the wind in tandem before landing on the precipitous ledges. I’ve always loved this hike because of those birds. The views to the PCT marker did not disappoint. The clouds decorated the blue sky only adding to the dramatic scenery of this incredible hike. After our break, we began making our way back. It was a nice way to end our time in the Angeles, until we return again next year.
Click “Read More” below for more photos from this hike.
I’m always looking to escape weekend crowds and find new trails to explore. This Sunday our hike was to the top of Mount Pacifico in the northern part of Angeles National Forest. We planned to start the hike at Mill Creek and follow the PCT which runs through this area. It looked like the trek would be around 12 to 14 miles depending on whether or not we did an out and back on the PCT or did a loop. The day was going to be hot, but I figured since we were heading up to a higher elevation, it might not be so bad on the ascent. If it got too hot, we would descend and save it for another time. The trail was very beautiful. There were many wildflowers and so much ceanothus (California lilac) which made for a very pleasant fragrance along the way. There was lots of wildlife activity too; squirrels, chipmunks, songbirds, bees, insects and butterflies. As we climbed higher, we started to see beautiful, tall pine trees. Much of the area was burned in the 2009 Station Fire, and we could see the effects of that as we hiked this route. But the area looks as though it’s been recovering nicely. Eventually, we reached a junction where we left the PCT and headed southeast to a jeep road that took us up to the summit. There are outstanding views of the surrounding mountain ranges along the way making the road more interesting. After about a mile or so we reached the summit. Mount Pacifico Campground is also here. There are picnic tables, a fire ring and vault toilets. That’s quite a luxury to have up on a summit! There are also a lot of very interesting rock formations to explore. There wasn’t anyone here today, so we took a good long rest and relaxed and enjoyed the peace and quiet. Soon it was time to head back and get ready for the heat as we descended to a lower elevation. We opted to come back the way we came on the PCT for a more scenic and enjoyable route. Both of us had been keeping well hydrated throughout the trip and we had no problems with it being so warm. We were even gifted with an occasional breeze as we hiked back down the mountain. I found this trail to be very nicely graded so although it was long, it was very pleasant. A very enjoyable hike!
