By Julie Pendray
IDYLLWILD, Calif. — Spring is here and some of us “on the Hill” can’t wait to get in the sun and shed the extra pounds we accumulated during the snow. Ernie Maxwell Trail is a good choice for an easy-to-moderate walk here in the San Jacinto Mountain Range above Palm Springs. You can enjoy awe inspiring views of Suicide Rock — looking across Strawberry Valley — or look straight up to Tahquitz Rock.
Check out wildflowers and water in the streams, along with cooler temperatures, before summer hits.
Tahquitz is where the Yosemite Decimal System of climbing ratings originated in the 1950s, according to a variety of sources. The system was developed by climbers in the Angeles Chapter of the Sierra Club . It classifies the difficulty of routes and is now used throughout the United States and around the world. People can ascend Tahquitz via Ernie Maxwell Trail, by connecting with Climber’s Trail. That path to the foot of Tahquitz is steep and sprinkled with loose shale. Not for the casual hiker.
However, a 5.2-mile, round-trip hike of Ernie Maxwell Trail itself, is a journey that can be done in 2 hours, including time to take photos or stop for a snack. As the weather heats up, expect the walk to take a little longer, especially if you’re not used to the elevation. The trail starts at Humber Park at 6,420 feet. Hikers descend to 5,720 feet to the other end of this route, which intersects an unpaved road in a neighborhood. The lower level is not the best place to start Ernie Maxwell because there’s no assigned parking and the narrow, sloped road can be muddy for several days after rain.
Instead, join the trail at Humber Park, where you’ll find parking and rest rooms. Access to the park is at the top of Fern Valley Road, and the trail head is in the lower part of the park. The National Forest Service requires an Adventure Pass, which you can get at the ranger station on Highway 243 at Pinecrest, in the center of Idyllwild. The pass costs $5 a day or $30 for a year and it grants you access to other recreation areas within San Bernardino Forest. You can get maps and other information there too.
Dogs are allowed on the trail, if they’re leashed. Your hike will enter into San Jacinto Wilderness, which means no bicyclists are permitted.
Here are a few images taken during a hike of Ernie Maxwell Trail this week. To view the gallery, click on the first image, then click on the right arrow to see other photos.
Ernie Maxwell Trail is named after the founder of Idyllwild Town Crier, the town’s newspaper. Maxwell and his wife, Betty, owned the paper from 1946 to 1972. Maxwell formerly wrote and/or illustrated for The New Yorker, Los Angeles Times, Copley News Service and Esquire Magazine, according to a profile of him in the paper. He was a painter and sculptor who served on the Idyllwild Arts Foundation board and taught summer classes at Idyllwild School of Music and the Arts (ISOMATA), as it was called in the 1950s. The residential high school is now known as Idyllwild Arts Academy.
The annual Ernie Maxwell Community Spirit Award is given to people who have shown commitment to this unincorporated village through volunteerism or achievements. The Town Crier is accepting nominations for this year’s award until May 13. Previous awardees are: Mountain Communities Fire Safe Council in 2011; Dawn Sonnier in 2012; Robert Priefer in 2013; Annamarie Padula in 2014; and Wendy Read in 2015, according to the newspaper. Nominations can be mailed to: Idyllwild Town Crier, P. O. Box 157, Idyllwild, CA 92549, or drop it by the newspaper’s office at 54405 N. Circle Drive or email it to the editor: becky@towncrier.com .
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