From just about anywhere in the LA Basin, the highest summits of the San Gabriel Range loom high. Mt Baldy is the most obvious and recognizable mountain of the horizon. Just to it's east lie the lesser known but equally magnificent summits of Telegraph Peak, Thunder Mountain and Timber Mountain. The Three T's trail connects them in an arduous but wonderful alpine hike. Here's my December 2025 trip report
Three T's Trail Overview
This is a 15.5-mile loop hike near Mt Baldy Village, California. Most people park at the Icehouse Canyon Trailhead and complete a counter-clockwise loop. This method involves some unpleasant road-walking of Mt Baldy road unless you do a car spot at Manker Flat. Its a challenging route and involves about 5,000' of gain and loss. It takes roughly 8-10 hours for most fit hikers.
Here's a map:
Icehouse Canyon requires an adventure pass permit that's $5 for the day or $30 for the year. Vendors abound in the nearby cities. No permits are required otherwise.
Trip Report
Icehouse Canyon Trailhead to Timber Mountain
I completed this loop in December 2025 prior to the onset of real winter weather. Snow was mostly patchy though was far deeper on the north facing slopes. Traction would have been helpful.
The 3.6-mile hike from Icehouse Canyon Trailhead (~5,000') to the saddle (~7,550') is characteristically grueling but the environment is interesting. I passed by all the small houses for the first mile and wondered how people keep such places maintained. After the junction with the Chapman Trail, it was all wilderness. Views open up dramatically near the top.
Once at the saddle, I took a left and followed the Three T's Trail. It was another 0.6-miles and 500' of gain from the saddle to the marked side trail for Timber Peak. Just another 0.25-miles and 300' of gain got me to the first catch of the day.
Timber Peak was mostly wooded though some lovely views extended West. The peak was 4.2 miles from the trailhead and involved 3,300' of gain (about 3/5ths of the total gain).
Timber Mountain to Telegraph Peak
The Three T's Trail between Timber Mountain and Telegraph Peak is somewhat of a crux. I descended the trail 0.8 miles to Japanese Saddle at 7,740'. From there, it was a relentless 1,200' gain over 1.6-miles over a steep trail. Patches of snow and ice made the climb that much more difficult. I regretted not packing some snow tracks.
I gathered that people don't complete the Three T's Trail nearly as often as nearby Cucamonga Peak or Timber Peak done as a single outing. The trail was faint and ambiguous in some sections. Fortunately, pathfinding wasn't difficult - I just needed to climb the highest mountain in my view.
Finally I gained the junction with the side trail for Telegraph Peak. Another 0.3-miles of scrambling and I stood on the highest summit of this trip and the entire Cucamonga Wilderness. I'd climbed 6.3 miles of from the trailhead and put most of the altitude gain behind me.
It was a profoundly clear and relatively still day. I saw Telescope Peak, 135-miles northeast, from the summit of Telegraph Peak.
Telegraph Peak to Thunder Mountain and down to the Trailhead
Telegraph Peak is roughly 2/5ths of the total distance of the Three T's Trail. Though plenty of miles lay ahead, I felt like 80% of effort was done. However, the descent to the saddle between Telegraph Peak and Thunder Mountain was also the snowiest. I hit some intense ice and deep post-holing on that section, slowing my pace considerably.
After dropping the 1 mile from summit to saddle, I began the last significant climb to Thunder Mountain. By this point, the 300' climb over 0.4-miles felt easy. Thunder Mountain was the final summit on the Three T's Trail and somewhat underwhelming compared to the others. Basically its the top of a ski lift.
From there, it was a long though relatively gentle descent via ski runs. I dropped down a mile and a half on "Easy Road" and "Mullin's Mile" as they're labeled on the trail map. At the notch, I took Baldy Road 2-miles back down to Manker Flats. Finally I walked another 2.4 miles along Mt Baldy Road back to Icehouse Canyon Trailhead. People often just hitchhike down this section as its unpleasant to walk a winding mountain road.
Not a bad day! The hiking was challenging but bagged several outstanding summits of the Sierra Peaks Section. Next up will hopefully be Ontario Peak and Bighorn Peak.
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