By With a mountain name like that, we had to go! The trailhead is off Mt Baldy Road in Claremont, CA where it meets Palmer Evey Mtwy. There is no official sign for the trailhead but there are dirt strips on both sides of the road for parking so it wasn’t hard to find. GPS information can be found at the bottom.
We arrived little after 7:30 AM and there were plenty of spaces. Walkthrough this yellow gate. This is where Palmer Evey Mtwy begins.
The trail was wide and had easy terrain. Good for a group. Tall trees hovered over the path providing some shade and we were greeted by birds. The sun was still rising so there were gentle sun rays through the branches which felt nice in 50 degrees F.
I let a couple groups of trekkers pass us so we can just hear the birds. Once we were alone, I heard the sound of a little creek. So we made a short detour and went down to the creek. It was tiny but clear water was flowing through. How lovely! ♡
After the little detour, we got back on the trail and continued on. There are no side trails until you come to this junction. You see the shaded trail in the picture below? That’s where we came from. Make a sharp left here and start climbing.
You are still on Palmer Evey Mtwy and it will take you to the summit of Potato Mountain. This second part of the trail was more challenging than it had been but the views…W-o-w. The view of the San Gabriel mountains made it totally worth it!
I could have kept going with views like these but after about 3/4 miles, we reached the summit at 3,360 feet. And guess what we found? MR POTATO HEAD!! So cool, right? Some people are so creative! 🙂
We walked around and took more photos and enjoyed the view from the top.
On our way down, we met another hiker with her dog. We hiked together for a while and talked about hiking and our fur babies. Such a nice lady. I think her name was Shannon. I hope she reads this. 🙂 Even though it’s a popular trail, this was one of our favorite hikes from this year. If you start early (before 7:30 am), you can avoid most of the crowd and enjoy nature without disruptions.
Good to Know:
- Hike Date: 2.6.16
- Distance: 4.4 miles RT
- Elevation Gain: 1,150 ft.
- Time: 2.5 hours
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Trailhead Coordinates: 34.163129, -117.682106 (copy and paste to your GPS app)
- Permit/Fee: None
- No restroom
Hiking Girl with Dog 
That looks so awesome!!! Happy pup too! Check out that smile!!
Ha ha, thanks! This was one of our favorites! She couldn’t hide her excitement. 😊
That is so cool that there was actual potato heads at the top! Looks beautiful!! Your Blog is lovely!
Thanks for your kind words, Kerri! It was such a cool hike in many ways! 😊
Wow, those views really do make the challenge worth it. Gorgeous! The “secret” creek was a nice bonus too. 🙂
Ha ha, it sure was! Exploring is so much more fun when we can do it on our pace. Half of the fun is making up the route (referring to the short detours, not really getting lost..that’s not fun) as we go. And enjoy the fresh air and freedom while doing it. 🙂
This might be a good one for a future dog meet up!
Yes! 😊 Only during cooler months though as the most part of the trail is exposed.
Beautiful views and love the potato heads!
Yes, we enjoyed the potato heads! Some people are so creative!! 😊