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Apr 10, 2023 — My first hike on a six-day peakbagging bender, Thomas Mountain got me immediately excited about a trip almost exclusively on trails after a winter of desert gnarliness. As it turns out, hiking doesn't always need to be miserable! I decided to hike Thomas Mountain using the well-maintained Ramona Trail #3E26. It's shared by mountain bikers, so the switchbacks are numerous and the ascent grade very relaxed. The Ramona Trail made its way up the west slope of the mountain, the foothills progressively shifting from shrubby stuff to coniferous forest. I could see snow-capped Mount San Jacinto just to the north for the majority of the hike.
After a bunch of miles I reached a trail junction with the Thomas Mountain Bike Trail #3E27. This trail is unmarked on most maps, so I was concerned it wouldn't be in existence anymore. The standard route to reach Thomas Mountain seems to be to ignore this deviation and just ascend past Tool Box Spring and onto Thomas Mountain Road above. However, knowing I'd be returning via Tool Box Spring later, I thought it would be fun to check this alternative trail out. I'm happy I did, since the Thomas Mountain Bike Trail was in good shape and had some really pleasant highlights. Plus, I always prefer hiking on a trail rather than a forest road. The Thomas Mountain Bike Trail gained elevation slowly as it made an arc and regained Thomas Mountain Road on its north side. The trail added a small amount of mileage, but it also gave me some excellent views and landscape variety.
Once I reached Thomas Mountain Road, a couple of switchbacks brought me up to the summit radio towers. I timed my trip with the snowmelt nearly perfectly, but I did have to contend with a small amount of that dreaded cold substance. Apparently the high point is just north of the radio towers by about a quarter mile, the road leading nearly up to it. I made a semi-loop by taking Thomas Mountain Road down to Tool Box Springs Campground and then met back up with the Ramona Trail.
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