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** Use at Your Own Risk **
13D |
Will Thrall Peak |
7845' |
Location: Los Angeles County, about 9 miles south of Pearblossom, 49 miles from Los Angeles
Maps
| Auto Club | Los Angeles and Vicinity |
| Forest Service | Angeles National Forest |
| USGS Topos | Juniper Hills 7½, Waterman Mountain 7½, Valyermo 7½ |
| Official HPS Maps | TPO file - Save to your computer then open with National Geographic TOPO! |
| Viewable JPG file - Approximately 1.5 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: Pleasant View Ridge, Pallett Mountain, Mount Williamson
ROUTE 1
(USFS Adventure Pass may be required)- Distance: 12.5 miles round trip on trail and steep use trail
- Gain: 3400' total, 2400' out plus 1000' on return
- Time: 6-7 hours round trip
- Rating: Class 1, strenuous
- Navigation: Moderate
Original: Bernie Petitjean, March 1969
DRIVING ROUTE 1
- From the intersection of I-210 and Angeles Crest Highway (SR 2), drive north on Angeles Crest Highway 33.5 miles to the entrance to Buckhorn Campground on the left. Turn left.
- Proceed down the entrance road and turn left at the next two forks, then follow the signs "Burkhart Trail" to a large parking area.
- If the campground entrance is locked, drive SR 2 another 0.8 mile to the campground exit road, which intersects SR 2 at a sharp angle to the left. Park beside the exit road and hike down through the campground to the signed trailhead. This adds 1 mile and 200' of gain to the round trip.
HIKING ROUTE 1
- From the parking area (6460'), hike north down the Burkhart Trail (10W02) about 2 miles to a junction with the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) near Cooper Canyon Falls.
- Turn right (east) on the PCT, crossing Little Rock Creek (5600') in about 0.3 mile, and then proceed 100' farther to a trail junction with the Rattlesnake Trail (signed). Turn left onto the Burkhart Trail.
- Follow this trail north over occasionally loose slopes for 3.2 miles to Burkhart Saddle (6959').
- Hike about 0.5 mile west up a steep use trail to the summit. (Pallett Mountain can be reached by turning east at Burkhart Saddle and climbing a steep use trail about 1/2 mile to the summit.)
ROUTE 2
- Distance: 15.5 miles round trip on trail and steep use trail
- Gain: 4700' total, 3900' out plus 800' on return
- Time: 7-9 hours round trip
- Rating: Class 1, strenuous
- Navigation: Moderate
Original: Charlie Knapke, September 1996
DRIVING ROUTE 2
- Take the Antelope Valley Freeway (SR 14) northeast toward Palmdale. Get off at the Angeles Forest Highway/Pearblossom Highway.
- Go 4.5 miles northeast and then east on Pearblossom Highway to the intersection with SR 138.
- Turn right and drive 9 miles to Longview Road (N6) (shown as 131st Street on the 7.5 minute topos) in the town of Pearblossom, where a sign "Devils Punchbowl" points to the right. Turn right (south) onto N6. Note your odometer and proceed as follows:
- At 2.0 miles, junction with Fort Tejon Road. Turn left.
- At 2.5 miles, junction with Longview Road (N6) (shown as 13st Street on the 7.5 minute topos). Turn right.
- At 4.5 miles, signed junction marked "Lewis Ranch" and "Devils Punchbowl" on the left. Turn left.
- Drive 3 miles farther to a parking lot at the end of the road at the Devil's Punchbowl Nature Center. Park in the parking lot. (At the time of this revision, there is no fee.)
HIKING ROUTE 2
- From your parking spot (4760'), walk to the signed beginning of the Burkhart Trail next to the portable toilet.
- Proceed onto the trail, which swings southwest past a large, green water tank to a trail junction at about 0.7 mile.
- Take the right (west) fork, which reads "Burkhart Saddle 6.2 miles".
- After 2 miles the trail descends steeply to a junction with a dirt road. Turn left (south) on this road, signed "Burkhart Saddle 3.7 miles".
- The road passes a windmill high above Cruthers Creek and then descends into the canyon, where you follow a wide trail alignment that heads uphill on the right immediately after crossing the creekbed (4600').
- Ascend the trail for 3.4 miles to Burkhart Saddle (6959').
- Hike about 0.7 mile west up a steep-use trail to the summit. (Pallett Mountain can be reached by turning east at Burkhart Saddle and climbing a steep use trail about 1/2 mile to the summit.)
PEAK COMBINATIONS
Will Thrall Peak, Pleasant View Ridge and Pallett Mountain are generally combined into one trip. The hike to Pleasant View Ridge will add 1.5 miles and 500' of gain to the statistics above. The hike to Pallett Mountain will add an additional increase to the statistics listed above of 1 mile and 800' of gain. The grand total for Route 1 would be 15 miles and 4700' of gain for the three peaks. The grand total for Route 2 would be 18 miles and 5600' of gain for the three peaks. Hiking time would be adjusted for the additional hiking.
History of Summit Signature
Climbing Archives
Please report any corrections or changes to the Mountain Records Chair.