With one of the coolest summits in the San Gabriel Mountains, the Cucamonga Peak hike is a favorite. Cucamonga Peak, at 8,862 feet, has spectacular views of the LA sprawl, the desert, and surrounding peaks. The climb is tough but not brutal, the scenery and views are awesome, and the crowds aren’t as bad as Mount Baldy. You might even see some bighorn sheep!
There is a big parking lot, but it fills up early, and you need a parking pass. I use the affordable National Parks Pass, which gets me in every park, monument, and national forest. You can also use an (Southern California only) Adventure Pass, or buy a $5 day permit from the ranger’s office.
You need a permit to hike in the Cucamonga Wilderness, and it’s easy and free. A box at the trailhead has permit forms for you to fill out. Bring a pen. If there are no forms, fill out your info on a piece of paper and leave it. More on the permit below in the directions.
Gear for the Hike
This is a long and challenging hike. Make sure you pack plenty of water, snacks, and layers. In the winter, there can be snow and ice. Check the summit weather and call the ranger office for the latest conditions and don’t take any risks.
The Cucamonga Peak Trail is in an avalanche zone.
This is not one to “just try and see how it goes” if there are snowy winter conditions.
You can also camp on the summit of Cucamonga Peak, there are primitive campsites. Just make sure you fill out your permit appropriately and don’t start any open fires.
Here’s the gear that I personally use, have tested, and recommend for this hike*.
* No company pays me to promote or push a product, all the gear you see here is gear I use and recommend. If you click an REI link and buy gear, I get a small commission that helps offset website expenses. There is no cost to you.
Cucamonga Peak Trail Maps
The hike to Cucamonga Peak starts on Icehouse Canyon Trail, which can get crowded. After Icehouse Saddle, the crowd thins out.
Gaia GPS is a planning and navigation tool that you can use on your phone, tablet, and the web. I use it on my phone when I need to interact with the map and know where my position is on it. I use it at home on the computer to plan routes. You can overlay maps such as public lands to find out free places to camp. It’s a powerful tool.
This thing does everything: maps, GPX tracks, compass, barometer, altitude, heart rate, blood oxygen, fitness tracking, sleep tracking, and the list goes on. I keep a GPX route on the watch so I can quickly glance down and make sure I’m in the right place.
Don’t just rely on a cell phone, especially if you are hiking in the backcountry.
It’s a long, gradual climb up from Icehouse Canyon. Then a final push to Cucamonga Peak. You can see the peak’s position gives you great 360 views of the surrounding.The hike is steadily uphill on the Icehouse Canyon Trail. After Icehouse Saddle the hike is level and you get a breather, and then you go up. And up.
Cucamonga Peak Hike Directions
Video Directions
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The Cucamonga Peak hike starts at the Icehouse Canyon trailhead, at the far end of the parking lot.Hiking permits are in the box in front of the trailhead sign.Fill the hiking permit out, take the yellow copy with you, and drop the white copy in the slot on the side of the box. If there’s no permits left, fill out your info on a blank piece of paper and leave it in the box.Start hiking up the developed Icehouse Canyon trail, passing some cabins along the way.The trail gets really beautiful as it winds up along Icehouse Creek.Shortly after starting, there’s a tree stump with SCE on it. Hike to the left and continue on the Icehouse Canyon trail.There are cool ruins along this part of the hike.After hiking about a mile, there’s a junction, hike straight through.You’re next destination is the Icehouse Saddle, 2.6 miles down the trail.After hiking about 1.7 miles, you officially enter the Cucamonga Wilderness area.As the trail gently starts to angle upward, there are a lot of really cool rocks and geological formations.There are some rocky sections of the trail here. Look for the cairns if you get lost.As you climb, the views back into the canyon are beautiful.The trail steepens and traverses several switchbacks.At about 3.2 miles you reach a junction. Hike to the right to continue towards Icehouse Saddle.At around 3.6 miles, you approach Icehouse Saddle.Icehouse Saddle is a great place to stop for a snack. There are five trails that intersect here. You want to hike on the Cucamonga Peak trail, which is straight through the saddle area from where you came.This is the Cucamonga Peak trail (from Icehouse Saddle).Shortly after hiking on the Cucamonga Peak trail, another trail splits off left. Keep hiking right on the Cucamonga Peak trail.The trail follows the side of Bighorn Peak. The hike here is level with some downhill sections.There’s lots of great views to the left.The trail skirts the side of the mountain. There are some narrow and washed out areas, but it’s all safe and doable.At around 4.5 miles, you’ll see an abandoned mine shaft. If you want to see what it’s like inside, check this out.Shortly after the mine, the trail crosses a small saddle and starts climbing.As you hike up, take time to stop, turn around, and look around. There are great views of the surrounding peaks, Mt Baldy and the Baldy Bowl.LA and the inland empire come into view. Keep your eyes open, there’s a point where you can see the skyscrapers of downtown LA from here.At about 6.2 miles, after some serious climbing, the trail to Cucamonga Peak splits off to the right. Someone stole the sign on this day, so keep your eye open for the wooden post.You did it! The actual peak is to the left. There’s an American flag to the right.The summit has tons of cool rock formations to take pictures on. The views are incredible.The area with the flag has views toward the west.From here, you just hike back the way you came up. Happy hiking!
Did something change on this hike? If so, please contact me and let me know. I'll update the guide.
