On Friday night after work hours, I was driving home when I received a call from my friend who invited me to this last minute weekend camping trip to Orocopias Mountain. Seeing that I had no definite plans for the weekend, I opted to go. Normally, I have some time for an occasion like this to pack a few days in advance. Welps, I didn’t this time. When I arrived home I stuffed my weekend bag with warm clothes, prepped my food for the drive the next day and hit the bed by 10. I woke up the next day at 5 am and left for my friend’s house. Once I got there we organized the camper, put our bags in the car and everything else we needed. Folks, I always suggest that if you can organize your trip ahead of time, it’s so much better than rushing at the last minute. We didn’t arrive at our destination until mid-morning but, we did beat traffic 🙂

Anyhow, Orocopias Mountain is about 3 hours drive from Huntington Beach. It’s located in Riverside County very close to the Salton Sea. Navigating through the mountains I truthfully, cannot provide you a detailed explanation. My friend had been here before and knew all of the paths to take to get us in and out of the mountains. Anyway, I highly suggest that if you decide to come here, make sure you take a 4 wheeler that’s meant for off-road. A standard car will definitely not make it through these dirt paths.  Once we finally arrived and met some friends, we all decided to go hiking in Mecca Hills. This place is stunning! Normally, big boulders and mountains, in general, makes me feel uneasy because I get lost easily and my biggest fear is getting stuck on the mountain. However, that’s definitely changed over the years and places like this in Mecca Hills makes me appreciate nature a lot more.

This place gets busy especially when you go through the “ladder” mountain. There’s only so much space to get through and you literally have to go in 1 person at a time. Also, going up the ladders can be tricky. You want to make sure when you go up or down the ladders that first it’s sturdy, your shoes have a good grip and that you understand where your weight is as you move through it. Otherwise, a slip could be your last and you don’t want that to happen.

We roamed around the mountain for another hour before heading back to our car. This is probably one of the best hiking trails I’ve been to.
After our hike, we drove to a different area in the mountains and camped for the night.
To be continued…