Since our last trip to
Glenn Trail Camp back in December last year, I've had the urge to visit this place again. Glenn Trail Camp is one of those hardly visited campgrounds in the San Gabriel range due to the distance from the trailhead. Most people that visit the West Fork tend to stay within the first 2 miles of the trail - this is a good thing in my opinion, because it is almost guaranteed that you could enjoy a nice quiet weekend.
Despite this weekend being a holiday, the campground was quiet, peaceful, and the ride up to camp was absolutely amazing. Same as my other trips, I was joined by my friends who wanted a quick sub-24 hour overnight (S24O) to relax and unwind. We met at the West Fork parking lot by 8:00AM Saturday and headed down the trail at 8:30AM.
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| My bike of choice this weekend. |
Prior to leaving to start our walk/bike ride, the West Fork parking lot was fairly empty. Only a few people were at the parking lot which was a good sign...I already took that as a sign that there weren't many, if that, people on the trail or at camp.
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| Sunny but cool - a good start |
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| My friends enjoying the walk to camp. |
Compared to our trip last year, the vegetation and wildlife was in full bloom. We came across snakes, deer, and the butterflies were out in full force.
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| A small waterfall along the trail |
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| A deer in the middle of the trail |
Arrived at camp at 9:30AM after few stops along the trail to enjoy the sites. One at camp, there were only two campers that has spent the night...they stayed but we never even noticed they were there. As I mentioned, this is a great place to visit that's easily accessible and you can expect it to be quiet.
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| Due to the dry season, the water pipe near camp was dry. |
After roaming the grounds, talking to a few day hikers and bikers, my friends arrived and we selected our home for the evening and started setting up our shelters.
Compared to other trips, I was very pleased to see so many Cottage Industry made shelters this weekend in our group. With the exception of one, everyone had a non-REI purchased shelter...it was great to see.
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| Alps Mountaineering Chaos 2 |
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| Six Moon Design Wild Oasis |
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| Lightheart Gear Solong 6 (Cuben, 22oz.) |
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| Mountain Laurel Design Big Bivy (a.k.a the "Baby Shelter") |
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| Integral Design Nestor Bivy |
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| Tarptent Contrail |
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| My shelter, Six Moon Design Skyscape Scout |
It was really a great sight to see that Cottage Manufacturer products were fully represented on this trip. My buddy said it best, "Wow...this is the first backpacking trip I've been in that there where less REI bought items!".
After having a leisure lunch at camp, we took a short walk to Cogswell Dam to complete our day.
The Dam definitely had more water this time around. We also saw more water at the stream near our camp. However, it would have been nice to have the water flowing from the pipe.
We arrived back at camp around 3PM later that day. We gathered some firewood, had wonderful conversation, and had popcorn :)
The sun didn't set till past 8PM so we were all up past our normal camping bedtime. We enjoyed a nice warm campfire till 11PM before hitting the sack. I almost don't enjoy going to bed sometimes when it comes to these short trips...it's just that much closer to the trip being over. Time does fly when you're having fun.
I must say though, this is the first trip where I actually slept straight through the morning. I hope this is a sign that I have found a sleep setup that I am finally happy with :)
After having a quick breakfast, everyone packs up and gets ready to leave. We all left at around 9AM to start our walk/bike ride back to the trailhead.
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| Saying our last "goodbyes"...till the next trip. |
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| Back at the car, about to take off the tires on my bike to store in the trunk. |
Another successful overnight adventure in our local woods. Till the next adventure...
If any of my readers (the proud and few) are interested in joining me on any trip, please feel free to contact me and let's plan something.
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