SB Sun: Remote peak worth the long journey up

We’ve not been up this trail, but it sounds like a great hike — I always like a bit of history mixed in to my adventuring. ;) The peak is not quite 5 miles (as the raven flies) northwest of Cal State San Berdoo; the Palm Avenue they’re referring to is over by the Little League baseball park and soccer fields next to the 215 freeway. I created a KML file you can use in Google Earth: San_Berdoo_Monument_Peak.kmz

San Bernardino Sun: Remote peak worth the long journey up

The monument commemorates the arrival of the Rev. Francisco Garces - the first known missionary explorer to cross the San Bernardino Mountains (in 1776) and Jedediah Smith, the first Anglo to reach California overland (in 1826).

The route these men followed was the ancient Mohave Indian Trail, which climbed from the west fork of the Mojave River up Sawpit Canyon to the crest (where the monument is), then descended the ridge between Cable and Devil canyons to the San Bernardino Valley.

In order to find Monument Peak, you need to drive north on Palm Avenue in the Verdemont section of San Bernardino until the pavement becomes a dirt U.S. Forest Service road.

Now for the hard part. You can either hike or four-wheel it for the next six miles. Granted, not everyone would opt to hike this 3,000-foot elevation gain. But for those hardy recreation enthusiasts, this scenic trek is a sojourn into the past on one of the first logging roads in the San Bernardino Mountains….