I bet y’all are wondering: where’d the surfer girl go? What’s with the land adventures? What gives?
There comes a time where…nah, I’m not gonna go into this lecture–I honestly got tricked into taking on this challenge after a series of life-changing/stressful events. I needed peace and escape and I gotta credit my best nature-loving junkie pal Sean Jansen with this adventure.
Sean—you started it! You’ve turned me into a land lubber.

And, now I’m forever grateful.

As I was saying…I needed escape from the norm. As the summer crept into air vents and AC bills across Riverside and other sweltering inland counties and states, I knew anything that resembled a beach would be a ZOO. And grumpy territorial locals combined with those touting soft tops, frosted tips and sweet ignorance, (PLUS traffic), had me reeling for an alternative nature-bound escape.

Enter the mountains, which have semi-eluded my interest until now. Hiking is fully a part of my outdoor geekiness. After getting tricked into hiking up one peak, a fellow hiker asked if I was doing the “SoCal Six Peak Challenge,” which I had no idea what that was, but could guess given the context clues.

And so it was ingrained in my brain: hike six peaks in Southern California

Technically there are 12 peaks within this challenge, but the most common one is the “SoCal Six,” which you can find here.
Follow me on my adventure to hike six of Southern California’s noteworthy peaks! Who knows…maybe I’ll do 12? No promises.

Stay tuned to my blog and Instagram. I’ll give ya my skinny on some of Southern California’s not-so-skinny mountain peaks.

Two hard and fast recommends if you decide to attempt:

Purchase an annual Adventure Pass for $30 or a National Parks Pass for $80. They are available at any REI store or any ranger station.

Be sure to bring more water than you think you need. I recommend 2 liters at the very least. On a hot day with a long hike and lots of elevation in front of you, I recommend at least 4.5-5 liters. Water weighs two pounds per liter, but trust me—it is worth every pound.

And…don’t worry—there will be ocean waves, too.

Disclaimer: My estimated time to complete each trail is based on my personal pace, which I have averaged at around 2 miles an hour. Your results and experiences may vary depending on the weather, stamina, water supply, mental sanity, etc.

*All photos and videos are my own