Big Baldy South Ridge Loop

This was a nice strenuous spring hike up the south facing ridge of Big Baldy from Dry Canyon. Justin, Nutmeg and I left the trailhead parking lot just before 10:00am. The first mile is a warm-up on the normal Dry Canyon forest service trail. There is an unmarked side trail 1.0 miles up to the north.
The next section is a mile long and varies between quite steep and insanely steep. 2427 vertical feet in 1.3 miles, bring a ladder, there are no stairs. This unmaintained trail has it all; switch backs, steep washouts and reasonable sections. There are a few spots where the trail is a little hard to follow. There are a few juniper trees where you can stop and rest in the shade. We passed a group of three on the way up, Justin stopped to take a photo for them. This trail tends to be hot and dry once the snow is melted, so bring plenty of water.
There was snow around the flag pole at the front (lower) peak. Nutmeg enjoyed laying on and eating the snow, Justin and I had a bite to eat. After a short rest we moved on to the true peak before the other group arrived. We skirted a deep snow bank (3-6 ft high) on the way to the summit. We had a little bit more to eat and drink before heading down the popular trail towards the saddle.
The trip down to the saddle was mostly on the snow bank. The snow was soft enough to sink your heals for footing but not so soft that you sing in up to your knee. There were a few muddy spots between the snow banks but nothing too messy.
We met an older man at the saddle wearing a full backpack. He said he had come up Battle Creek and that only the last 500 feet was snowy. There was more snow to cross on the way down from the saddle on the Dry Canyon side.
I never been a big fan of the Dry Creek trail especially going down, I normally recommend going down Battle Creek, it is a much nicer trail to descend. I took a nice panorama of the snow on the CCC terraces, stay tuned to the blog for a link to the picture. We chatted and greeted several other hikers coming up Dry Canyon. We made it back to the truck about 3:00pm.

Distance: 5.8 miles (2.33 mile up)
Moving Time: 3:20 (1.7 mph)
Vertical: 3365 ft

GPS Tracks: kml gpx
GMaps: Terrain Satellite