Mount San Jacinto is the second largest peak in Southern California at 10.834 feet with San Gorgonio being the first. I took the Palm Springs tram early in the morning and did the 11 mile hike to the top. The tram was interesting, it's the first time I have been on something like that. It goes up about 6000 feet from Palm Springs and the desert floor to a nice forest area at around 8000 feet. It runs for about 10 minutes and the tram rotates so people inside can see the view from all angles. It's just a nice perk for a hike I was going to do anyway. It does cost about 26 dollars along with another 8 for parking, but it's worth doing at least once if you have not. The actual hike was nice. I was the first one to start hiking the trail when we arrived and the first one to the top that came up the tram that day (there were others on the top when I made it there but they would have camped there or came from some other direction). The trails are very well marked and maintained as they are well used. There are other trails as well besides just the peak of San Jacinto, so even if you aren't interested in hiking 11 miles, there are other shorter loop trails you can hike on, or just enjoy the tram ride, the views, and the restaurant at the top. I didn't really get many pictures from the top, it actually started raining on the way down and the entire valley floor was not visible because of low clouds or fog. Great hiking weather but unfortunately not great picture taking weather. I'll consider doing this again, maybe a smaller loop trail with the family next time I am here and hopefully on a clear day.
Mount San Jacinto
