Why Hike Whitewater Preserve to the San Gorgonio Overlook? Stunning PCT Views Await

Hike Distance: 10.48 miles

Elevation Gain: 1,344 feet

TrailsNH Hiking Difficulty Calculator: 168 – Strenuous

Click here to navigate to the TrailsNH website for a description of the hiking difficulty calculator

Why Hike Whitewater Preserve to San Gorgonio Overlook

The hike from Whitewater Preserve to the San Gorgonio Overlook is one of the best elevation for effort hikes in the Coachella Valley. In just a few miles you move from a lush desert river corridor to an desert scrub habitat with commanding view of San Gorgonio, the tallest summit in Southern California. Few hikes deliver such a dramatic shift in habitats.

Let's Start Hiking

The Whitewater Preserve is a special place to see and experience. It consists of 2,851 acres within the larger Sand to Snow National Monument. Surrounded by the San Gorgonio Wilderness managed by the BLM, the Whitewater Preserve includes the year-round Whitewater River

The river which starts on the southeastern slopes of Mount San Gorgonio in the San Bernardino Mountains and terminates at the Salton Sean at the southern end of the Coachella Valley.

Shannon, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Crossing the Whitewater River

Stream discharge varies significantly by season, driven by snowmelt and intense rainfall. Consequently, the Preserve is highly susceptible to flash flooding following thunderstorms

Inside the canyon, the wash widens to over half a mile, covered in a thick layer of flood-deposited boulders, gravel, and sand.

The water is bitingly cold but transparent as glass.

It serves as an important wildlife corridor between the San Bernardino pictured here and the San Jacinto Mountains across the valley. It also bridges the gap between the Mojave and Sonoran deserts, facilitating movement for various species.

Following the PCT to the San Gorgonio Overlook

After leaving the river and wash, we continued north on the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT).

Ahead, a short, steep climb led to the ridge, where we would continue on the PCT

Reaching the top of the ridge we had gained 730 feet from the canyon floor. What an incredible view of the trails leading to the canyon floor and the mountains rising quickly on either side of the canyon.

Beyond the ridge, the steep terrain gave way to a flat expanse.

We were soon walking on a broad plateau with hills and mountains rising on both sides.

The snow-draped San Gorgonio, right of center, was coming into full view.

After following the base of the hill to our left, the path took a sharp hairpin turn and climbed the hill to our right.

We gained elevation quickly and had a birds eye view of the trail below us.

Here's a view from the overlook looking west toward San Gorgonio and the San Bernadino Mountains. Time for a lunch break!

San Gorgonio Mountain, also known locally as Old Greyback, is the highest peak in Southern California and the Transverse Ranges at 11,503 feet. In contrast to its spectacular but lower neighbor, San Jacinto Peak, San Gorgonio is not particularly craggy, and from a distance, it appears to be an extremely high hill, earning it the name of greyback. The mountain is large and broad; the summit plateau itself is one square-mile in area.

Despite not being particularly striking in appearance during the summer, it is the only mountain in Southern California with a summit a significant distance above the tree line. As such its bright white winter snow cap, unobstructed by vegetation, makes the mountain noticeable from many miles away. The mountain hosts the longest recorded line of sight in the contiguous United States; it is plainly visible from the summit of Mount Whitney, 190 miles away.

I added San Gorgonio to my completed bucket list hikes a few years after completing this hike to the Overlook. Here is a link to the San Gorgonio blog.

The San Bernardino range extends southeastward for 55 miles from the Cajon Pass, which separates them from the San Gabriel Mountains, to the San Gorgonio Pass. The uplift of the San Bernardino Mountains and San Gorgonio began in two main phases, with the current, significant uplift of the range occurring roughly 2 to 3 million years ago during the Pleistocene epoch. While an earlier version of the range rose between 11 and 5 million years ago.

Heading Back to the Trailhead

After enjoying the scenery it was time to start our return journey back to the trailhead.

Unlike the vibrant, green environment surrounding the Whitewater River, this area was completely brown and arid.

At the ridge leading into the canyon, the sun was at the right angle to highlight the red-pink granite intrusion in the hillside.

Walking along the Whitewater River and the bend near the Red Dome rock formation.

On the home stretch.

Time for a last selfie in the lush green riparian zone along the river.

Here's the satellite view of the hike from the MapMyRun app.

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