The forecast was for a beautiful day, so why not spend it all outside? I had had my eye on this peak for a while but was waiting for a nice day before attempting it. Poverty Ridge is about nine miles from the nearest trailhead, and the approach is all on a ridge, so cold or rain or wind would make it a miserable hike.
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| Heading down the trail. |
The standard route seems to start at the Twin Gates trailhead in Joe Grant park, so this is where I started. I got to the lot shortly after it opened at 8, but wasn't the first car. Once I was ready, I headed up the hill and north.
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| Looking back towards Mt Hamilton. |
There is a steep initial climb, then lots of ridge. My first destination was Antler Point, a peak on the Nifty Ninety list. There is a trail that leads to one of the summits, but maps show the other one is higher.
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| View from near Antler Point of Day Mountain and Black Mountain. |
Antler Point was quite nice, and is worth the hike out. The trail-less slope down from the point is very steep. Not one you'd want to go up. I crossed the marshy ground at the bottom and followed an old road through a broken gate to the next trail, a well traveled dirt road.
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| The fanciest gate on the way. |
This middle section is relatively flat, with lots of short and gentle ups and downs. I saw a hawk of some sort sitting on the ground a short distance off the trail, which I was not expecting. Usually I see them flying around or perched on something higher up. Maybe I interrupted its lunch.
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| Tree at the summit, looking west. |
The last climb to the summit is the biggest, but it is not steep. Just before the summit there is another gate, this one with a mailbox. I tagged the summit then went back to the fence to set up the radio. I figured it was a good spot, close to a steep dropoff to the east.
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| Looking south at Day Mountain and Mt Hamilton. |
I did work France on 20m, so it may have helped. I did not have good cell service on top, so I relied on RBNHole to spot me. Before leaving I called a few times on 2m and 70cm, but didn't hear anyone.
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| Antler Point in the foreground, on the way back. |
I mostly retraced my steps to get back. I didn't, however, see a reason to go over Antler Point again, so I took the trail around the west side. The valley it went through, by the Pala Seca cabin, was quite nice. There were also a lot more people in this section. Must be about as far as normal people want to go on a day hike.
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| A nice rock in the Canada de Pala. |
The trail goes by peak 2844, a P300, so I decided to climb over it on my way back. It is not too far above the trail, and an easy side trip. The views on top were excellent, especially of the Mt Hamilton area.
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| Copernicus Peak is on the left, with the small tower. |
Back at the car I was pretty tired after running and hiking over 18 miles. But I was satisfied, I couldn't have asked for a better day to be out in the Diablo Range.
Trailhead: Twin Gates Trailhead, Joe Grant Park
Website: SOTA Site.
Maps: AA6XA SOTA Hikes map.
Route: Take the Canada de Pala trail along the ridge. You can either take the Pala Seca trail over Antler Point or go around. Cross the marshy area on the old road to the well maintained one, and follow it and the ridge north until you get to the summit.
Red Tape: None. No signs or indications of private property.
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