Gold Mountain, Bertha Peak, Delamar Mountain, Little Bear Peak

16 June 1990

By: Bob Thompson

Leaders Bob Thompson, Joe Young

Our Great Adventure began on Saturday at 6am. in beautiful downtown Fawnskin on the NW edge of Big Bear Lake. We had 3 cars and 5 hikers, so we left Joe Young's truck at Hanna Flat Campground on the South slopes of Little Bear Peak where the hike-a-thon would end. The other 2 cars were driven Eastward past Baldwin Lake to a point where the Pacific Crest Trail crosses Hwy 18, where we started hiking up the PCT at 7:30am through pinyon pines, junipers and numerous late-spring flowers. Continuing on the PCT to a saddle on the NE ridge of Gold Mtn, we took a "Pathfinder" route up Gold Mtn, passing an abandoned "War Wagon" near the top and gaining the summit and a great view of Big Bear Lake.

For the next leg of our trip, we headed down to the West ridge of Gold, back to the PCT, then across Van Deusen Cyn and up to a gully on the NW Slopes of Bertha Pk. We left the trail at this point and ascended this "Pathfinder" route steeply to Bertha Pk by 1pm. After a half hour of "R & R" on top Big Bertha, enjoying the great views over the Lake, we descended the traditional W. Ridge of Bertha, back to our PCT and followed it across Holcomb Valley Rd and up to the Eastern slopes of Delamar Mtn where Joe Young led part of the group up Delamar by another "Pathfinder" route and rejoined the rest of us at the traditional trailhead for Delamar by 3 p.m. Now, we were racing the Sun westward so we hurriedly continued Westward Ho on the PCT, climbing Peak 774, (Nicknamed "Big" Bear Peak) in a short cut attempt, and then having to return down 300' of loss back to the PCT for another 3 miles until we started up the steepest and most tiring part of our Hike-a-Thon up a "Pathfinder" Route on the N. slopes of Little Bear Pk. Reaching the summit of Little Bear by 8pm just in time to see the sun set, we scurried down the South slopes to Joe Young's truck at Hanna Flat Campground at 8:30 p.m. Total distance hiked - 25 miles in 13 hours through some of the most beautiful and dramatic terrain of the San Bernardino Mountains. After shuttling everyone back to the start of the hike at Baldwin Lake, we all drove to Big Bear City for a great dinner at Sizzlers. The salad bar was great. My thanks to Joe Young for volunteering to assist when Stag couldn't make it, and to the other participant/survivors Jeanne Lefevre, Mike Baldwin and Rick Fewell.