Wrightwood Day Trip San Gabriel Mountains California

With its proximity to Los Angeles and Orange County, Wrightwood is the perfect place for a day trip or weekend adventure. There is always something to do: camping, fishing, hiking, or playing in the snow. Wrightwood is the perfect place to relax and enjoy life. Also known as the land of four seasons, the Serrano Indians originally inhabited southern California. As settlers moved in, Wrightwood evolved into a cattle ranch, apple orchard, and finally into a popular mountain resort community.

Wrightwood Hiking To The Bighorn Mine

For the more adventurous hiker, numerous trailheads lead to various points of interest and features, such as Mt. Baden-Powell, the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail, and many other secret wonders that make up the Angeles National Forest, including places like the Bighorn Mine. Visitors can see the remains of the old wagon road, mine shafts, and an old stamp mill; the Big Horn Mine is a fantastic place to check out. The main trail offers panoramic views of the surrounding mountains. The mine is worth a look, and the hike is an easy 4-mile round trip. The trailhead for Big Horn Mine is located at the Vincent Gap along with Angeles Crest Highway.

History of the Big Horn Mine

In the late 1880s, Charles “Tom” discovered a few specks of gold in a surface quartz vein while hunting for Big Horn Sheep. A tunnel was dug into the mountain, and more gold was discovered. The Big Horn Mine was operational for about ten years, but it was too difficult to transport the ore from this remote location. In 1898, the mine was closed. In 1902, the Lowell and California Mining Company took control of the mine, built a wagon road up to the mine, and installed an onsite stamp mill. The mine operated from 1903 till 1908, employing up to 50 workers at its peak. By the time the mine was closed, tunnels had been dug into the mountainside, and a little over $100,000 worth of gold had been mined.

Ziplines At Pacific Crest

Located next to Mountain High Resort, Ziplines At Pacific Crest is open during summer. They offer two zipline adventures, the Canopy and Mountain View tours. Both zip lines let you dangle high above a pine tree-covered forest. The more advanced line features nearly 300 feet above the ground. 6014 Park Dr, Wrightwood, California. Note: The ziplines are only open during the Summer season. Check with the Zipline website before visiting. https://ziplinespc.com/

Wrightwood Village

Wrightwood’s economy largely revolves around tourism, especially in winter, but it also has a quaint downtown area with local shops and restaurants. The Grizzly Cafe, Blue Ridge Inn, Evergreen Cafe, and Cinnamon Bakery are popular places to eat. Many visitors opt for vacation homes or cabins, especially during peak seasons like winter for skiing or summer for hiking.

Mountain High Resort

Tucked away 6,000 feet up in the San Gabriel mountains among the giant pines of the Angeles National Forest, Mountain High Wrightwood comprises three separate parks. East, west, and north. West is the open primary park, especially when it hasn’t snowed much. It is also a skills park with plenty of jumps, jibs, rails, and boxes suitable for the more advanced snowboarder. Surprising for its low elevation, Mountain High does get plenty of snow, but snowmaking still happens, mainly due to the warmer Southern California temperatures. But they do have night riding on the west side, which is good, although the snow tends to be slushier by then. https://www.mthigh.com/

Wrightwood Historical Museum

Wrightwood Historical Museum is open Saturdays, 10 to 4 p.m. This small museum is an excellent place for people to visit in Wrightwood. Lots of information on the local history and origins of Wrightwood. And interesting people who lived there- from early mountain men and miners to settlers and historical buildings. The museum was an early volunteer fire department. There is a restored model of an earlier fire hose truck (hand-pulled to the fires) used by the volunteer firefighters of the 1930s and 40s. https://wwhistory.org/

If you plan camping on this trip, Table Mountain Campground features 43 campsites.

Getting There

For most of the year, this small mountain town is relatively quiet. During the snow season, it can be crowded. Wrightwood is just 90 minutes from L.A. and Orange County. With its many activities, Wrightwood can be visited year-round and is reachable via Interstate 15 from Orange County or Highway 14 from the Los Angeles area.

---

Southern California Adventures

Angeles Crest Highway Road Trip

Skull Canyon Zip Line

---