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** Use at Your Own Risk **
07M |
Cobblestone Mountain |
6733' |
Location: Ventura County, about 15 miles south of Gorman, 85 miles from Los Angeles
Maps
| Auto Club | Ventura County |
| Forest Service | Los Padres National Forest: Mt Pinos, Ojai and Santa Barbara Ranger Districts |
| USGS Topos | Cobblestone Mtn 7½, Black Mountain 7½, Alamo Mountain 7½ |
| Official HPS Maps | TPO file - Save to your computer then open with National Geographic TOPO! |
| Viewable PDF file - Approximately 3.6 megs | |
| GPX file or Google Earth KML file to download to GPS units and other map software (How to use GPX and KML files) | |
| Routes as shown on CalTopo using the above files (How to use CalTopo) |
Nearby Peaks: Alamo Mountain, McDonald Peak, Sewart Mountain, Snowy Peak, Black Mountain #2, White Mountain #2
ROUTE 1
(USFS Adventure Pass may be required)- Distance: 14 miles round trip on road, trail, and steep loose cross-country
- Gain: 5200' total, 2700' out plus 2500' on return
- Time: 8-10 hours round trip
- Rating: Class 2, very strenuous
- Navigation: Difficult
- Leader Rating: "I", normal conditions
Original: Warren E. von Pertz, January 1974
DRIVING ROUTE 1
- Go north on I-5 to the town of Gorman. Get off on the signed Gorman exit.
- Turn left at the bottom of the off-ramp and go under the freeway.
- Go 0.1 mile to Peace Valley Road. Turn right.
- Go 1 mile to the entrance to Hungry Valley Recreation Area on your left (paved). Turn left. Note your odometer and go as follows:
- At 0.2 miles, entrance station. If manned, you can avoid payment of the fee by telling the State Park employee that you are passing through to Alamo Mountain.
- At 5.2 miles, intersection. Turn right (west) toward "Piru Creek", signed.
- At 11.2 miles, improved car camping area on right, with toilets. Often used as a meeting point.
- At 11.4 miles, Piru Creek crossing. There is a seasonal gate just before this stream crossing.
- At 13.4 miles, the pavement ends.
- At 17.8 miles, fork to the left. Keep right.
- At 17.9 miles, junction with the Alamo Mountain Road. Go straight. Note your odometer again and go as follows:
- At 3.3 miles, fork immediately beyond a small road cut through the ridge. To the right leads to Alamo Mountain Route 1. Turn left.
- At 4.0 miles, the road forks at the Little Mutau trailhead. Turn left. Past this point the road can sometimes be poor but is usually passable.
- At 6.3 miles, the parking spot for McDonald Peak.
- At 7.2 miles, a dirt berm, a sign indicating no further motor vehicle traffic, and a large parking area, suitable for car camping. Park here.
HIKING ROUTE 1
- From the parking area (6500'), pass the gate and hike east on the old road for 1 mile to the obvious high point of the road. This is the summit area of Sewart Mountain.
- Continue downhill on the old road for about 0.5 mile to a fork with an obscure road on the right, signed "Sespe Wilderness". Turn right onto this road (continuing straight leads to Snowy Peak and Black Mountain #2).
- Follow this overgrown road as it first descends steeply south to a saddle, turns east over bump 6043', then proceeds downhill in roller-coaster fashion.
- After about 2.5 miles the overgrown road turns to trail. Follow the trail eastward onto the northern slopes of a forested ridge, looking for a side trail coming steeply in from the right, possibly signed "Cobblestone Trail".
- Turn right on this side trail, which is very deteriorated and should be considered cross-country travel.
- Take this old trail as it goes southeast up a ridge. After a long 1/2 mile it comes to a fork in a shallow saddle with the remains of a sign (5840'+). Continuing straight along the ridge goes to White Mountain #2. Cobblestone Mountain can be seen directly to the south.
- Take the right fork and follow an overgrown, rough trail down through a saddle (5300'). Beyond the saddle the trail is primitive, with occasional ducks, and is essentially cross-country. It passes first through a break in the large buttress south of the saddle, then ascends steeply to and then through a series of loose steps composed of conglomerate rocks that give the peak its name, and finally exits onto forested slopes near the summit. The summit has a very fancy register box.
NOTES
Cobblestone Mountain is often combined with White Mountain #2. This hike is 16 miles round trip and has 6500' gain.
The peak is in the Sespe Wilderness, but permits are not required at this time.
Contact the USFS at (661) 245-3731 for information about the status of the seasonal gate at the Piru Creek crossing.
History of Summit Signature
Climbing Archives
Please report any corrections or changes to the Mountain Records Chair.