All the outdoor folks say Cactus to Clouds is one of the hardest day hikes in the lower 48, and after looking at the specs before this first go I was inclined to believe them.
Cactus to Clouds (aka the Skyline Trail) starts from the parking lot of the Palm Springs Art Museum and ascends roughly 11,000 feet to the summit of San Jacinto Peak. It’s about 15 miles from the parking lot (cactus) to the summit (clouds) and then 5 miles back down to the tram that takes you down into town. It’s a big day.
ABOVE: Stargazing in nearby Joshua Tree National Park
I drove out Friday evening to Palm Springs to spend the night before an early start the following morning.
I’m not sure if this is encouraged or allowed but I slept in my car on the side of the road right near the museum and didn't have any issues. (You can’t park in the museum lot) There are also no bathrooms at the trailhead so I had to make that emergency run to a gas station around the corner.
I met Matt at the trailhead (this was his eighth time doing Cactus to Clouds or something wild like that) and we were on our way just before 5am. We had an hour or so of darkness and zipped through the first 3,000 feet or so pretty quickly without any breaks. I was grateful to Matt for pushing the pace. At about 3,000 we reached a clearing on the ridgeline just in time to watch the sunrise on the horizon. We ditched the headlamps and heavier layers and proceeded up.
We took a quick break at 5,500 feet and at 7,500 for some water and calories before the steepest and most demanding section of the day. There was just a bit of frost on the ground where the trees had protected it from the sunlight. There were a couple steep drop offs (that could be fairly consequential on slick ice) but nothing concerning in the warmer weather.
ABOVE: The view from the summit of La Plata Peak
The Ranger station sits just under 8,500 feet in the middle of a very flat portion of the trail. You are required to check in for a permit before proceeding up the remaining 2,000 feet / 5 miles to the summit. I had my PB&J and we started up the last section.
The alpine terrain above the Ranger station was a thick forest of massive conifer trees and was covered in soft snow (we didn’t need spikes at any point). It was beautiful and such a departure from the dry, rocky terrain we traversed earlier in the day.
I started bonking a bit around 10,000 feet into the hike as Matt continued to fly up the mountain. I’ve experienced this a few times before and I really need to up my hydration and calorie intake while I’m constantly moving on a big day like this. I put down my last Gu about a mile from the summit and quickly shot up the last section.
I made it to the top in just over seven and a half hours. The summit was crowded and we towered over Palm Springs and its surrounding wind turbines on the flat desert floor.
We took in the view and then hurried back down to the tram and I reached the door to the building in 9 hours 43 minutes (excluding the breaks I mentioned). In total my watch read 11,431 feet over 19.5 miles. I carried about 13lbs in my pack (no camera, warm clothing, 3.5L of water, snacks) and I drank about 2.75L of water on the day.
While this was a super tough day I’m not sure it was more physically demanding than the full day Presidential Traverse in NH (roughly 8,200 feet) or a 7,000 foot day in CO due to the flat and steady terrain on C2C. There’s really no significant scrambles or any boulder hopping on C2C. It’s always hard making a direct comparison though.
The tram station has a cafe, gift shop, and is full of tourists. It’s super easy to buy the $16 ticket at the station and the tram runs every ~20 minutes until 9:30pm. The tram is only a 10 minute ride down the mountain (much faster than the 5 hours it took to climb up it) and you can grab an Uber back to the trailhead from the station.
Palm Springs was overrun with their Christmas parade. I quickly got a beer at Las Palmas Brewing, a burrito down the street, and got the hell out of there. I ventured out to Joshua Tree to enjoy the clear night skies before camping at a BLM site just north of the park.
