Hiked Tuesday, Mar 30. 6 miles RT.
A trail description I read said only that the Skyline trail started "near the entrance." Turns out the Skyline/Schabarum Trail includes, not only the main east-west trail, but also a loop that encircles Schabarum Park. That makes things a little confusing, because then you have several signs saying "Schabarum Trail" pointing in three different directions!
As it is, I parked near the entrance. and walked east, soon seeing my first "Schabarum trail" sign, with arrows pointing both east and west. Since I wanted to head west, I went that way. At this point, the trail rises behind a business and not far from Colima Road. It was very noisy and not an auspicious start to a relaxing hike.
Fortunately, the trail curves to the south, away from the street. Purple and white flowers dotted the hillside.
As the trail climbs, you get a bird's eye view of the park, which is to your left. In various parts, homes or private hillsides are to your left. Around this area, I came to my first three-way intersection of the Schabarum Trail. I took the direction that "felt" like it was heading south and possibly a little west. By contrast, the trail heading to the north seemed like it would just run right back to Colima Road. And, of course, I was coming from the third direction (the part also marked as "Wildcat Loop."
The trail I chose did head mostly south, switchbacking up a hillside. But at the crest, it then started heading east. Oh, well.
There was a nice patch of bush sunflowers to look at on this trail. Also, once I climbed a bit, there were nice views to the east, north and west.
Once heading east, the trail began descending. It was a generally broad and general slope, which seemed good for mountain bikers (several passed me on the way back). As the trail neared what I later learned was Fullerton Road, it split at several points. The route I took stayed slightly to the north of the other routes, and hit Fullerton Road just north of Pathfinder. There, one could either walk along the sidewalk and cross Fullerton, or continue south on the trail and take a tunnel that runs under Fullerton.
On this day, there was a shopping cart and mountain bike laying down near the tunnel entrance. That seemed kind of weird, so I turned around and headed back. Either way, the maps I have did not indicate if the trail continued much further beyond Fullerton Road.
I returned the way I came. Not sure about the total mileage. I'm guessing at least five miles, probably six. Not especially scenic, but some nice wildflowers and some nice views of the San Gabriel Valley.
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