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42 FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | MARCH 2015 In January the Hearty Hikers took another long walk on the beach. Technically, the beach is yet to be established but seismologists assure us that sometime in the future the San Andreas Fault will create one there. Just west of the Cajon Pass is an eye-catching sandstone uplift formation known as Mormon Rocks. The candy-like boulders are a striking group of pink sandstone rocks that served as shelter and an overnight campsite for a group of approximately 500 Mormon pioneers who traveled through the region by wagon in 1851 on their journey west to California, where they later founded the city of San Bernardino. The large sandstone formations contain a number of small holes and caves inhabited by animals such as lizards, owls and pack rats. Our 17 hikers rendezvoused at the Mormon Rocks fire station on the south side of Highway 138 and started up the switchback trail that offers a panoramic view of the eastern end of Horseshoe Canyon. Pausing for a snack break several members of the group discovered the perils of purchasing look-alike fanny packs at Walmart. It was a game of Winners and Losers as joy and disappointment followed discoveries of what was in their packs. The trail climbs several hundred feet and then splits. A lower trail parallels the elevation and then drops back down to the fire station while the upper trail follow the ridge back over several observation points before returning. The trails are only one to two miles in length. The group then auto caravanned across the highway to the base of the formation. A walking tour up close and personal of the sandstones was taken in the river bed. While the Cajon Pass is infamous for windy conditions between the Mojave Desert and the San Bernardino flatlands, this January day was remarkably benign. Temperatures were in the fifties with bright sunlight and a slight breeze. After a council-of-the-hungry, the hikers drove to the top of the pass and descended on the Summit Pass Café. Here a startled young waitress accustomed to a lunch crowd of three to four locals bravely greeted this horde of starving strangers. She proved to be up for the task and with the help of her usual locals served five star meals in a timely fashion. To find out where else we are hiking, call or email Lynette at (951) 377-0392 or lynette.simonson@gmail.com. ~ Len Tavernetti Hearty Hikers Above: Getting started at the Mormon Rocks fire station Right: L-R: Tony Ramu, Lana Gundermann, Fred Hofer, Bob Gundermann, Martha Franck, Chris Ingram, Frieda Hofer, Geoff and Susan Wilson, Denise Featherstone, Ruth Tavernetti, Alexandria Vanhoose, Jim Sein, Lynette Simonsen, Patti Bushnell and Christine Stephens at the fire station On the trail opening fanny packs Horseshoe Valley with Mormon Rocks and San Andreas Fault

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