Trail Stats
Mileage	4.6
Trailhead	5640'
Mt. Hillyer	6162'
Total gain/loss	702'
Gain/loss per mi.	305'

Hikes to Mt. Hillyer are well covered in the literature, for good reason: it's a pleasant area to hike and to experience some fine forest. John Robinson describes the area nicely: "The Chilao-Horse Flats country is a gentle region of rounded ridgetops, shallow draws, and small flats set deep in the heart of the San Gabriels. The forest here is open and parklike; tall Jeffrey pines and incense cedars cluster in sheltered recesses and dot the rolling hillsides. The chaparral is rich and green and the sky a deep blue, with seldom a trace of the brown murkiness that so often invades the south slope of the range."

Jerry Schad describes Hillyer summit: "The view is only fair; the main attractions are the peace and quiet, and the pine-scented air." I found that if you stroll about Hillyer's broad, sprawling summits, from the various places, you find splendid views in all directions -- just not all at once.

Actually, as one who enjoys climbing peaks, I found pleasure not so much in climbing Hillyer (6162'), but in achieving a vantage point in which to view surrounding summits which summoned me higher: Mount Pacifico (7124') looming to the north; Granite Mountain (6600'+) and Roundtop (6316') to the west; Mount Watherman (8038') and Twin Peaks (7596"/7761') to the east. Even viewing the lower peaks silhouetted on the western horizon—Fox Peak, Condor Peak, Iron Mountain—stirred my desire to hike them. Due south, there's a view of Vetter Mountain and the historic fire lookout, and beyond, historic Mount Wilson and the array of her neighboring front-range summits.

There are several routes and combinations of routes ranging from 3 miles to 6 miles. The route described here is a pleasent 4-mile out-and-back hike via Horse Flats. Originally I was planning to hike the 6-mile round trip from Chilao, but since I don't particularly like hiking to places where I can drive, I opted to drive up to Horse Flats and start the hike there.

Season: All year

I hiked it on a hot day in August (late afternoon to sunset) and it was fine. There's a lot of open space along the route, so I would not recommend hiking it during the mid-day heat of a summer day. In the winter this area gets snow.

Getting to the Trailhead:

From the Foothill Freeway (I-210) in La Canada, take Angeles Crest Highway (Hwy 2) north and east 27.5 miles to Three Points (2.2 miles past the junction to the Chilao Visitor Center). The sign for the road says Santa Clara Division Camps, Sulphur Springs, and PCT parking. The closer sign says Bandido campground, and Horse Flats campground. Follow the road for 2.5 miles to the Horse Flats Campground turn-off . Turn left (south) and follow the loop road through the campground about 0.7 mile. The trailhead is on the left at south end of the campground as the road begins to loop back near campsite 10. There is a sign, "Silver Moccasin Trail, 11W03" pointing south to where the trail comes up from the Chilao campground. Another sign reads "Mt. Hillyer Trail / Mt. Hillyer 2 / Santa Clara Divide 3." I parked in the clear space next to the trailhead. A National Forest Adventure Pass is required for parking.

Trail Description:

From the trailhead at the south end of Horse Flats campground, start from the sign designating "Mt. Hillyer Trail." After a minute the trail reaches an unmarked junction. Go left. Follow the trail as it winds southwest, west and northwest up the southeastern slope of Mt. Hillyer. You'll ascend through an open forest of Jeffery and coulter pine, incense cedar, scrub oak, manzanita, and mountain mahogany. Huge granite boulders dot the landscape.

When you reach the summit ridge, the trail proceeds north along the top. John Robinson states, "You can't see much from the forested top, but if you walk several hundred feet southwest onto the firebreak, you are rewarded with a fine panorama of the rolling bandido country to the south and southeast, and the broad trench of Alder Creek dropping off to the west." This is true, and worth the walk. However, it seems to indicate that the summit is the large rock outcropping along that section of ridge. Other trail guides also seem to indicate this locale as the summit. But, the ridge curves around in a crescent shape, and according to the topo map, the 6162-foot Mt. Hillyer is on the northeast section.

The Sierra Club 100 Peaks Section describes it this way: "The summit is the southernmost of the two 6200' contours on the topo despite the fact that elevation 6162', 0.3 mile to the northeast, is shown on the topo as the summit."

To get to the 6162' summit, continue north along the main ridge past two high points (6200+') and follow the trail as it curves eastward. After a little descent, you'll reach the point at which an old firebreak heads down the north slope to Santa Clara Divide Road. Nice views to the north. Veer off to the right and follow the ridge east and southeast over several knobs and outcroppings. Quite honestly, I couldn't tell which one is 6162-foot summit. So I climbed atop all the boulders along the ridge, enjoying varying views in different directions. It is puzzling to me that even though the route along ridge is easy to follow, there is no trail or even a clear use path. This leads me to believe that the 6200-foot high points on the other ridge are commonly accepted to be the official Mount Hillyer summit.

Return the way you came. (See below for alternate routes.)

Trail Notes:

• Trail conditions: 8-9-03 - The trail follows a nice route, but much of the trail is deep ruts. No tread maintenance has been done in a long time. There were lots of bike tracks, which may be a significant contributor to the poor trail condition. In some places, bike riders rode up on the banks, eroding them. Trail crews have done some work in recent months in brush trimming—manzanita and mountain mahogany had been cut back from the trail. But the trimmings have been just left on the trail edge (normal trail maintenance practice would be to make an effort to move the trimmings to a less conspicuous location, preferably out of sight from the trail).
• Permits: A National Forest Adventure Pass is required for parking.
• Topo map note: The USGS map topo (Chilao Flat Quadrangle, 1959 / minor revision 1994) does not show the trail. The trail shown on the topo map posted at LocalHikes.com (see below) is NOT the trail described here or in the other trail guides. Perhaps it's a different route.
• Elevations: The trailhead at Horse Flats is 5640'. The highpoint of the Mt. Hillyer main ridge is 6200'+. A difference of 560'. My number of 702 is taken from Tom Chester's elevation analysis, which is based on the up and down of trail: 612 gain; 90' loss, then gain, thus a total gain of 702.
• Mileage: The trailhead sign reads 2 miles to Mt. Hillyer. It is not clear if this is the mileage to the 6200'+ knob on the main ridge or for the 6162' summit indicated on the topo. I suspect the first since there is no formal trail to the second. The distance between the two summits is only about 3 or 4 tenths of a mile. So don't be concerned whether you've hiked 4.0 or 4.8 miles. Just enjoy the mountain.
• Alternate routes: An optional route from Mt. Hillyer is to follow the trail down the north ridge to Santa Clara Divide Road (which I have not hiked). Then turn right (east) and walk the paved road 0.5 mile to the entrance to Horse Flat campground. Turn right and walk through the campground 0.7 miles to your car. If you want to add another 2 miles to your trip, several of the guides describe the trip starting from the Chilao campground just west of the visitor's center, using a portion of the Silver Moccasin Trail.
• People traffic: 8-9-03 - There were no cars either at the Chilao trailhead or the Horse Flats campground trailhead. We encountered only one party of two hikers; they were coming down as we were going up. Total: 2 people in 1 party. I'm amazed that on a beautiful summer weekend, in fine hiking country such as Mt. Hillyer, I had the mountain virtually to myself. I was also surprised that Horse Flats campground was maybe a third to half full. Twenty million people in Los Angeles basin and still there are lots of nice campsites available in the local mountains. Hmmm.
• Bugs: 8-9-03 - There were a lot of pesky gnats. Had no problems with mosquitoes until we arrived back at the trailhead at sunset. But we jumped into the car and avoided bites.

Hike Log Mt. Hillyer via Horse Flats 8-9-03 4:30 PM A: Trailhead (5640') 5:35/6:05 B: Boulders on main ridge (6200'+) 6:13/6:43 C: North End Exploring the northeastern ridgeline and the 6162' summit. 6:51 B: Passing boulders on main ridge 6:53/7:07 Exploring southwest ridge 7:47 PM A: Trailhead (5640')

View Large Topo Map

Trail Links:

• Angles National Forest website Recreational Activities: "Chilao to Mount Hillyer via Horse Flats." Good trail description. (Notice their misspelling: "Chialo" rather than "Chilao." Oops!)

• LocalHikes.com - "Mt. Hillyer Trail - from Horse Flats" - by Allen Riedel. Brief summery. Good directions to Horse Flats trailhead. The trail shown on his topo map is NOT the trail described here by me or in the other trail guides. Perhaps it's a different route. However, he neglects to describe the actual trail route, and the route on the map is not the one from the trailhead he describes (although the 3 miles distance he cites more closely reflects his topo map's trail. The actual Mt. Hillyer Trail as indicated at the trailhead sign is 4 miles round trip). He also rates the trail as "Well Maintained," which certainly does not apply to the trail I hiked. (See Trail Conditions above.) Allen shares some nice photos (which appear to be from 6200+ outcropping on the main ridge and not from the actual 6162-foot Mt. Hillyer summit he flags on the topo map.)

• Hundred Peaks Section, Angeles Chapter, Sierra Club "Mt. Hillyer" - Brief driving directions and route descriptions. Nice historical background.

• Hikes #57, 57-2 and 58 in the San Gabriel Mountains "Chilao to Horse Flats, Mt. Hillyer" - by Tom Chester. Discussions of mileage and elevations. Links.

• Plant Guide to Mt. Hillyer Trail - by Tom Chester.

Books:

• Trails of the Angeles: 100 Hikes in the San Gabriels - by John Robinson (Wilderness Press: Berkley). Hike 58: "Chilao to Horse Flats, Mt. Hillyer." Good trail descriptions with historical background. Gives alternate routes and trailheads, including Horse Flats

• Afoot and Afield in Los Angeles County - by Jerry Schad (Wilderness Press: Berkley). Area A-7, Trip 4: "Mount Hillyer." Brief trail description from trailhead at Chilao. Gives alternate north route.

• Walking Southern California: A Day Hiker's Guide - by John McKinney (HarperCollinsWest: New York, 1994). Hike 51, "Silver Moccasin Trail." Good trail descriptions with historical background. Does not give directions to the 6162-foot summit point. Trailhead is Chilao.

• California Hiking: The Complete Guide to 1,000 of the Best Hikes in the Golden State - by Tom Stienstra and Ann Marie Brown (Foghorn Press: San Francisco. Third Edition, April 1997). Map 15, Hike 13, "Silver Moccasin Trail to Mount Hillyer." Good trail description, but brief. Trailhead is Chilao.

Last Hiked: August 9, 2003