Black Mountain #4
Peak Name
Elevation
feet
Status
Region
Range
Nearby peaks
Location
Description
Black Mountain #4 lies in the Bighorn Mountain Wilderness in the northeast corner of the San Bernardino National Forest, north of the quirky town of Pioneertown. The rocky desert-alpine terrain is studded with Joshua trees and pinyon pines. The peak has splendid views of the mountains to the south and west, and the desert to the east. Both routes start from high clearance vehicle roads from the west and travel over bumps and up gulleys to the final scramble to the peak. Black is sometimes hiked in conjunction with nearby Mineral Mountain.
Maps generated from CalTopo.com, reproduced with permission
Downloadable Maps, Files, and Guides
Driving route
Western approach:
From Big Bear City, drive northeast on SR 18 about 6 miles to 3N03 (dirt) on the right. Turn right. Note your odometer and go as follows:
At 1.3 miles, fork 3N07Y to the right. Keep straight.
At 3.3 miles and 3.6 miles, forks on the left to Smarts Ranch. Keep straight.
At 5.0 miles, you cross Arrastre Creek.
At 5.1 miles, fork. Go left.
At 5.2 miles, fork to the left. This is the turnoff for Granite Peaks. Keep straight on 3N03.
At 7.3 miles, fork in a saddle. 2N02 comes in from the west and becomes the main road going straight ahead (southeast). Keep straight on 2N02.
At 7.7 miles, fork to the left (north) 2N90. This is the turnoff for Tip Top Mountain. Keep straight.
At 9.3, parking area on the right. This is the parking spot for Mineral Mountain. Continue.
At 13.2 miles, junction with a sign “Yucca Valley Rimrock –>”. Turn right.
At 13.5 miles, fork. Go left.
At 14.5 miles, fork. Turn north.
Drive north about 1/2 mile. There is a road junction here. 2WD vehicles park here.
4WD vehicles can drive east up the road for about 0.4 mile. Do not drive farther or you will be in the wilderness area. Park here.
Eastern approach:
Take I-10 east through Banning to SR 62.
Go north and east on SR 62 to Pioneertown Road in Yucca Valley. Turn left (north). This is about 19.5 miles from the intersection of SR 62 and I-10.
Go 7.4 miles to the intersection with Pipes Canyon Road and Rimrock Road. This is the turnoff for Chaparrosa Peak. Keep straight on Rimrock.
Continue north 1.4 miles to Burns Canyon Road. Turn left.
Go 0.9 mile through Rimrock to where the road turns to dirt.
Continue up Burns Canyon 4.5 miles to a fork. Turn right (north).
Drive north about 1/2 mile. There is a road junction here. 2WD vehicles park here.
4WD vehicles can drive east up the road for about 0.4 mile. Do not drive farther or you will be in the wilderness area. Park here.
Hiking route
From the 2WD parking area hike up the road to the 4WD parking spot.
Continue up the road for another 1/4 mile.
Leave the road and hike up the slope to the bump that is southwest of bump 5990′. Be sure to note the terrain for your return. It is easy to miss your parking spot on your return trip.
Hike northeast to bump 5990′.
Hike east along the ridge to the bump that is directly east of bump 5990′.
Hike north from this bump down the slope until you reach a saddle.
From this saddle, hike east down the gully until it intersects the gully that runs north-south just west of the peak. Look for the gully intersection on your left side (north). It is easy to miss where the two gullies run together.
From this point, leave both gullies and hike about 1/4 mile to the summit.
Note: Pipes Canyon Road intersects SR 247, Old Woman Springs Road, 5.5 miles north of SR 62 in Yucca Valley. It can be used for the east approach to get to Rimrock Road.
Driving route
Western approach:
From Big Bear City, drive northeast on SR 18 about 6 miles to 3N03 (dirt) on the right. Turn right. Note your odometer and go as follows:
At 1.3 miles, fork 3N07Y to the right. Keep straight.
At 3.3 miles and 3.6 miles, forks on the left to Smarts Ranch. Keep straight.
At 5.0 miles, you cross Arrastre Creek.
At 5.1 miles, fork. Go left.
At 5.2 miles, fork to the left. This is the turnoff for Granite Peaks. Keep straight on 3N03.
At 7.3 miles, fork in a saddle. 2N02 comes in from the west and becomes the main road going straight ahead (southeast). Keep straight on 2N02.
At 7.7 miles, fork to the left (north) 2N90. This is the turnoff for Tip Top Mountain. Keep straight.
At 9.3, parking area on the right. This is the parking spot for Mineral Mountain. Continue.
At 13.2 miles, junction with a sign “Yucca Valley Rimrock –>”. Turn right.
At 13.5 miles, fork. Go left.
At 14.5 miles, fork. Turn north. This is the common point for all driving routes.
From the common point, drive north about 0.7 mile. There is a road junction here.
Go straight about 50 meters. You will see a large clearing on your left (west.) Park here.
Eastern approach:
Take I-10 east through Banning to SR 62.
Go north and east on SR 62 to Pioneertown Road in Yucca Valley. Turn left (north). This is about 19.5 miles from the intersection of SR 62 and I-10.
Go 7.4 miles to the intersection with Pipes Canyon Road and Rimrock Road. This is the turnoff for Chaparrosa Peak. Keep straight on Rimrock.
Continue north 1.4 miles to Burns Canyon Road. Turn left.
Go 0.9 mile through Rimrock to where the road turns to dirt.
Continue up Burns Canyon 4.5 miles to a fork. This is the common point described in the west approach instructions. Continue as described there.
Hiking route
From the parking area, hike east for about a mile generally following a small ridgeline, through some gullies, until you see a shallow saddle on the north side of and at the base of bump 5990′. Please note your way for the return as it is easy to miss your car on the return.
Hike through this saddle and then follow the gully east until you reach a major saddle at the ridge line. This saddle is directly north of the bump that is directly east of bump 5990′ (and about 1/4 mile south of bump 6042′.) From this saddle you can see Black Mountain to the east.
From this saddle, hike east down the gully until it intersects the gully that runs north-south just west of the peak. Look for the gully intersection on your left side (north). It is easy to miss where the two gullies run together.
From this point leave both gullies and hike about 1/4 mile to the summit.
Route Notes
Driving route
Take I-10 east through Banning to SR 62.
Go north and east on SR 62 to Pioneertown Road in Yucca Valley. Turn left (north). This is about 19.5 miles from the intersection of SR 62 and I-10.
Go 7.4 miles to the intersection with Pipes Canyon Road and Rimrock Road. This is the turnoff for Chaparrosa Peak. Keep straight on Rimrock.
Continue north 1.4 miles to Burns Canyon Road. Turn left.
Go 0.9 mile through Rimrock to where the road turns to dirt.
Continue up Burns Canyon 3.8 miles to an old road remnant on the right. Parking is limited; there are a few spots 100 yards south of the trailhead on the left.
Hiking route
Follow the old road as it starts NNE, then curves gradually until heading east along the edge of the canyon.
At 0.3 miles stay right at the junction. The trail then becomes fainter and ends into a gully heading east and down to Antelope Creek at 0.6 miles.
Continue down Antelope Creek. At 2.8 miles turn left and continue up a side canyon heading northwest.
At 3.5 miles turn right into another side canyon heading north.
Leave the canyon at 5500′ and continue northeast to the peak.
This is a proposed route and is under review
Additional Peak Information
Note: The old hiking route from the east in previous guides is no longer available because of private property concerns. It should be avoided. You can also hike this peak a much longer route by hiking east along Antelope Canyon for about two miles, then walking northwest and then north up another canyon until you are directly west of the peak and then following the normal routes to the top.
DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CROSS FROM BLACK #4 TO MEEKS. The route crosses private property, and the property owners emphatically request that this route not be used. Ascend Meeks ONLY via the route documented in the current Meeks peak guide.
External Links
Nearby Peaks
External Links
Peakbagger.com
Nearest ranger station
NOAA Forecast
Google Earth
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