22.12.10 Peak 1602

     Peak 1602 is a P300 only a few miles from my house that I thought I could squeeze in after sleeping into 1pm. The hike starts at an AM PM just of the I-15. This is actually a pretty fitting hike because the I-15 on-ramp right next to said AM PM is where every great journey had started, and was once the 395 when it ran continuously from Tahoe to San Diego.

    There was a great amount of trash at the beginning, despite the "No Trespassing / Private Property" signs. The trash soon thinned out as the grade increased. Surprisingly the road seemed to be once paved but was now deeply rutted and mostly dirt. 

    This hike would only be two miles round trip, so I can't say a lot about the experience getting to the top -  it wasn't a very long one. I got to see San Marcos from a completely new angle which was fun, and seeing the 15 from so high up was cool. I could see the park and ride where I would meet up with Samir before our day journeys to San Jacinto and Mt. Baldy. 

Peak 1602 from a distance

The summit has an impressive granite boulder, completely featureless and thus unclimbable. I was able to get a little higher than eye level with this boulder spire but I'm still not sure if this truly counts as I didn't touch the highpoint. 

The granite boulder

North toward Merriam Mountains

SE with Cuyumaca peak on the horizon 

NE to San Gorgonio

Other summit 

I left a summit register on the highest reasonably accessible boulder. I also checked out the boulders to the north but once on them it was apparent they were not any higher. While hanging out at the summit I noticed a quite an impressive mountain biking track with some serious jumps, it appears this is a popular place to trespass. 

The first true ascent probably awaits! 

The summit block