8/31/17 A quick trip out to Icehouse Canyon and part way up to Cucamonga Peak. A great trip with an unexpected thunderstorm that added to the fun but ruined two cameras!
1 The weather was just a little overcast to start but then quickly turned into a torrential downpour. Neither of us was fully prepared for the weather. Dad didn't even have a jacket! We both had our cameras in our pocket. I had mine in my waterproof rain shell. Yet both our (expensive) cameras died from the moisture. I had got mine much wetter than that before with no lasting issues. Bizarre. At least Dad's is still under warranty. I'm out of luck.
2 But the storm blew through fairly quick and then left beautiful, wet colors behind. Fortunately, I still had my phone with me to take a few more pictures.
3 The rain also scared most of the people away. This trail can get really crowded, but not today.
4 Starting to climb up out of the canyon towards the saddle.
5 Almost to the saddle.
6 After a quick lunch at the saddle, we continue on towards Cucamonga Peak. The terrain gets more rugged and we don't see a single person.
7 Great views down the canyon.
8 Some nice narrow traverses.
9 Lots of loose rock to streghten the ankles.
10 Just getting ready to start the last section of switchbacks to the peak when we hit our turnaround time. Our backup plan to pick the kids up from daycare didn't quite work out, so we ended-up having to turnaround just short of the summit. But some heavy clouds were starting to roll-in anyway, and this was not the place to get caught in a lightning storm.
11 Heading back down as the clouds roll-in.
12 Awesome trail up here.
13 I have almost this exact shot from a few years ago in the snow. Always a great spot.
14 Swarms of lady bugs here for some reason. Thousands of them all around these bushes.
15 Beautiful afternoon weather as we get back down into Icehouse Canyon.
16 Trail to ourselves at this point.
17 Still some decent water flow in the creek, probably with a little extra from the morning rain.
18 And then just before getting back to the trailhead, the skies opened-up again. The mountain clearly didn't want us to forget how hard it had rained earlier, or how unprepared we were for it!
19 A short video trying to capture the rain. Despite losing two cameras today, it was a great day on the trail. And I made it back in time to get the kids with 2 minutes to spare!