{"id":3884,"date":"2025-03-25T09:00:17","date_gmt":"2025-03-25T09:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/friscotimes.org\/?p=3884"},"modified":"2025-03-25T09:00:17","modified_gmt":"2025-03-25T09:00:17","slug":"hiking-the-cactus-to-clouds-route-in-palm-springs-calif","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/friscotimes.org\/?p=3884","title":{"rendered":"Hiking the Cactus to Clouds Route in Palm Springs, Calif."},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-0\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The steep trail near the top of the <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/pstramway.com\/\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Palm Springs Aerial Tramway<\/a> was covered in inches of spongy fallen needles and peppered with ankle-twisting pine cones. It was also shady, which felt remarkable after the first seven miles of the grueling <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.alltrails.com\/trail\/us\/california\/skyline-trail-cactus-to-clouds\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Cactus to Clouds hike<\/a> offered little more than a <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.desertmuseum.org\/kids\/facts\/?animal=Brittlebush\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">brittlebush<\/a> leaf\u2019s worth of relief.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">I had already hiked up 7,549 vertical feet and still had about 3,000 to go to the top of Mount San Jacinto, a granite crag towering just west of Palm Springs, Calif.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">For this, my third Cactus to Clouds hike, I had chosen a mid-November day, and the conditions were perfect. The 22-mile hike slopes continuously, relentlessly uphill for its first 16 miles, rising from the desert floor to the 10,834-foot summit, then six miles and 2,400 vertical feet down to the top of the tram, culminating in a ride back down that\u2019s well worth the $14 ticket.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-1\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">I started my trek near the Palm Springs Art Museum at an elevation of 482 feet<strong class=\"css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10\"> <\/strong>just after sunrise<strong class=\"css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10\"> <\/strong>at 6:41 a.m., carrying enough water to last until the first water source, a ranger station at 8,400 feet, and I had packed several jackets to deal with the wild temperature swings from bottom to top.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-2\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">People have a variety of reasons to attempt Cactus to Clouds: It\u2019s one of the most biodiverse day hikes in the country. It\u2019s an unusual wilderness experience on the edge of an urban area. But maybe above all, there\u2019s the sheer audacity of the hike. In my previous ascents, each following a significant emotional or physical trauma \u2014 diagnosis of multiple sclerosis, divorce, completion of treatment for Stage 3 breast cancer \u2014 I was motivated by the idea that committing myself to this challenge would leave me with little energy to feel sorry for myself. And if I made it? Well, that was proof I could handle anything.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-3\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">This time, my M.S. was in remission, my marriage was fulfilling, and I had been cancer-free for almost nine years. More than 15 years after my first Cactus to Clouds, it was finally about the landscape instead of about me. I had stashed a pocket guide to the plants of the San Jacinto Mountains, and planned to take time to stop and smell the cedar.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">While the full Cactus to Clouds route is only for the supremely fit, you can also hike sections of it. Walk the bottom mile from the trailhead to a picnic area, then turn around. Or ride the tram to its top station and then climb to Mount San Jacinto\u2019s summit and back. You can even trek to the top of the tram then ride it down, saving the summit for the next day, as I did this time because of sudden foot pain. Each offers payoffs like forever views of the Coachella Valley and a chance to spot cactus wrens, Cooper\u2019s hawks and golden eagles.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-4\">\n<p><h2 class=\"css-1u37br4 eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-69d1652b\">Mind-boggling shapes and smells<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-5\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">While Mount San Jacinto\u2019s elevation is not remarkable, the difference in altitude from the base to the summit is. The mountain rises about 10,400 vertical feet in approximately six horizontal miles. This steep incline, aside from being almost the equivalent of climbing Mount Everest, accounts for the unusual variety of plant life as it passes through four life zones.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The trail begins among desert species like barrel cactus and creosote, followed by <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/californiachaparral.org\/chaparral\/\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">chaparral<\/a>, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.grassrootsecology.org\/from-the-field\/2024\/1\/11\/native-plant-of-the-month-scruboak-y35rm-teft5-s3jhk\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">scrub oak<\/a> and <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cnps.org\/gardening\/the-manzanita-5559\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">manzanita<\/a>. Then comes a mixed pine forest. At the summit, the trees grow shorter, gnarled by the altitude and the elements, and include <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/lpfw.org\/our-region\/wildlife\/limber-pine\/\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">limber pine<\/a>, which flourishes where little else can.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cThe environment and life look very different down in the Colorado-Sonoran Desert than at the top of Mount San Jacinto,\u201d said Melanie Davis, a lead field botanist with the <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/ccb.ucr.edu\/\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Center for Conservation Biology<\/a> at the University of California, Riverside, a few days before I hiked. But it\u2019s the in-between zones that are the most interesting, she said. \u201cThat\u2019s where there will be the most biodiversity.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Ms. Davis was right. Between 7,000 and 8,000 feet, the color green came in a mind-boggling array of shapes, textures, hues and sizes and with a range of unexpected smells. It was like hiking through a bowl of mixed salad greens: cedar, manzanita, oak and agave, with <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/trees.stanford.edu\/ENCYC\/PINjeff.htm\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Jeffrey pines<\/a> adding just a hint of butterscotch to the air.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-6\">\n<p><h2 class=\"css-1u37br4 eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-a14be02\">Scorching below, frigid above<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-7\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The conditions that make Cactus to Clouds remarkable also make it dangerous. Hikers on the trail have died from dehydration and exposure. \u201cWe get about one fatality a year,\u201d said Eric Holden, a volunteer for <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/rmru.org\/\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Riverside Mountain Rescue<\/a>, one of four search-and-rescue teams that respond to hikers in distress on the route.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">To protect both hikers and rescuers, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.parks.ca.gov\/?page_id=636\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Mount San Jacinto State Park<\/a> has closed part of the route under its authority in the summer (triple-digit temperatures at the bottom) and winter (snow and freezing conditions at the top). In 2024, the trail closed in early July and reopened on Nov. 4.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">There is little shade for the first 7,000 vertical feet and no water for 10 miles. \u201cOne of the biggest killers is hikers who started up realizing they don\u2019t have the physical fitness and turn around,\u201d Mr. Holden said. \u201cIt might have been cooler when they started at 3 in the morning, but now they\u2019re not feeling good and hiking down into temperatures that could easily be over 100 degrees.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In the winter, snow can make the trail hard to follow, especially in the 1,000 feet below the top of the tram, and hikers have gotten stranded among the cliffs. I stayed on the path in this section by following a GPS track from a previous Cactus to Clouds hike.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-8\">\n<p><h2 class=\"css-1u37br4 eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-16190fc4\">A challenging \u2018super-day hike\u2019<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-9\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\"><a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.backpacker.com\/trips\/trips-by-state\/california-trails\/america-s-hardest-dayhikes\/\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Backpacker magazine<\/a> calls Cactus to Clouds the fifth-hardest day hike in America. It takes most hikers between 12 and 16 hours. I tried to entertain myself from the unrelenting climb by identifying exactly which species of manzanita was scratching my legs, but that did only so much to distract me. I sat down to rest on a flat boulder 6,000 feet above the trailhead, next to what was either a pink-bracted or green-leaf manzanita.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">At least I was hiking uphill. Most seasoned hikers understand that while ascending is hard work, going downhill is downright punishing. In fact, Cactus to Clouds came to exist only because much of the descent takes place on the tram.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cWe were dedicated hikers and always looking for a challenge,\u201d said Sue Birnbaum, one of six members of the <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/cvhikingclub.net\/\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Coachella Valley Hiking Club<\/a> who first completed the annual Cactus to Clouds Challenge in 1993. \u201cBut it wouldn\u2019t have happened if it required hiking all the way down.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-10\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">That challenge, an \u201cextraordinary super-day hike,\u201d linked three existing trails \u2014 the Museum, Skyline and the Mount San Jacinto Peak Trails, crossing a mixture of local, state and federal lands and property owned by the Agua Caliente Indian Reservation \u2014 with the tram, which has been operating since 1963. The mountain is part of the traditional homeland of the Cahuilla Nation.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"css-1u37br4 eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-23784201\">On top of the world<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-11\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">One paradox of Cactus to Clouds: It\u2019s better when there are no clouds. They obscure the views and, sometimes, the trail itself. This ascent also held a different kind of paradox for me. It was the first time I had ever hiked the summit trail separately, yet I felt a surge of pride, because I had listened to my body and spared my sore foot.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Against a panorama of the Pacific Ocean, the shimmering Salton Sea, and the snaggly, sacred Tahquitz Peak, magnificent cauliflower-shaped clouds floated thousands of feet below. With sunset about 90 minutes away, they caught and reflected shades that you would ordinarily see in a scoop of mango ice cream.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Despite the warm oranges radiating across the sky, the summit was freezing, with buffeting wind gusts. I was bundled up in three jackets, including a hooded down puffy coat, and would have gladly accepted another. So as much as I wanted to linger, I wanted even more to avoid frostbite.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div data-testid=\"companionColumn-12\">\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">I hopped back through the boulders to the trail and pointed myself downhill to the tram, crossing through a cluster of what I identified as <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.msjnha.org\/bush-chinquapin\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">bush chinquapin<\/a>. My pocket guide said its fruits taste like chestnuts. Next time I do Cactus to Clouds, I\u2019ll be sure to stop and give them a try.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"css-15h6bi9 e1gnsphs0\" id=\"link-4b145b5f\"><span><strong class=\"css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10\">If You Go<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The trail begins just north of the Palm Springs Art Museum, about six and a half miles from the base of the tram. After the hike, you can use ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft to get back to the parking lot at the trailhead.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The steep trail near the top of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway was covered in inches of spongy fallen needles and peppered with ankle-twisting pine cones. It was also shady,&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":560,"featured_media":3885,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[5087,5083,5082,597,5086,4,5085,5088,5089,5084,527],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Hiking the Cactus to Clouds Route in Palm Springs, Calif. - Frisco Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/friscotimes.org\/?p=3884\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Hiking the Cactus to Clouds Route in Palm Springs, Calif. - Frisco Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The steep trail near the top of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway was covered in inches of spongy fallen needles and peppered with ankle-twisting pine cones. 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