The South Coast of Big Sur has some of the best scenery of the entire Big Sur coast. The majority of the region is protected by the Silver Peak Wilderness, a 31,555 acre wilderness established in 1992. While only a fraction of the size of the better known Ventana Wilderness to the north, there are several awesome trails and great opportunities for exploration in the Silver Peak Wilderness. The region has great biodiversity of vegetation including redwoods, chaparral, oak woodland, pine forest, and even some groves of the rare Santa Lucia Fir. This post contains photos from several destinations in the wilderness, including: (1) Pt. 2,866 or “Soda Peak“; (2) the wilderness’s namesake summit, 3,520 ft Silver Peak; and (3) Cinnamon Falls along Alder Creek.   Our first destination was Pt. 2,866, a vista I had seen last fall and was eager to see again. This point has no official name but “Soda Peak” makes geographical sense since it sits at the head of the Soda Creek drainage. Soda Peak is on the WSW ridge coming off Silver Peak. The ridge contains several high points but the last one and most dramatic is Point 2866. Since Soda Peak is the last point of prominence along the ridge it has a commanding view of the south Big Sur coast. The rocky limestone summit is also mostly free of brush enabling an excellent 360 degree panorama including San Martin Top, Silver Peak, Cone Peak and Mount Mars. The easiest way to reach Soda Peak is via the Soda Creek Trailhead and then the Buckeye Trail. At about 2,100 ft along the Buckeye Trail take a use trail that starts near a bent lone pine tree on the southern of two spur ridges coming off Soda Peak. The use path is fairly easy to follow and in about 750 vertical feet you’re on top and gazing across the Soda Creek drainage to Mount Mars and beyond, a truly spectacular vantage. It’s only about 3 miles each way to Soda Peak, but the few miles pack around 2,500 ft of elevation gain. I have been around Silver Peak many times but never summited until now. The Cruickshank Trail is beautiful as it traverses the hillside above Villa Canyon passing through numerous different plant and forest communities. It’s a nice trek from the Villa-Salmon Saddle to the peak passing through young forests of Sargeant’s Cypress and Coulter Pine with excellent views in both directions. Silver Peak contains an entertaining summit register placed by Boon Hughey who has accounted for many of the summit entries over the years. Erica and I were the 14th and 15th visitors this year so there is not too much traffic to this fairly remote summit. We enjoyed a unique view as a 2,500 ft marine layer filled the canyons and crested over Mount Mars and County Line Ridge into a fog bank cascade. Silver Peak also has a very nice view to Cone Peak.After enjoying the descent down Villa Canyon with its rugged reddish canyon rocks, I took the Buckeye Trail and then went off trail to check out a falls I had identified on the topographic map and satellite. It turns out this multi-step falls is one of the tallest on a main stem creek in the entire Big Sur region. The falls includes two main segments and a couple smaller ones totaling over 150 ft (a conservative estimate based on my watch altimeter). The rocks surrounding the falls are reddish brown, hence I have called the falls “Cinnamon Falls.” The descent down to the base of the falls was precarious on loose rock and very steep hardpan but I enjoyed the lowest two pools and imagined how tremendous this falls would be in high flow after winter rains. I will definitely put Cinnamon Falls on my calendar for next winter. With a strong El Nino developing for winter 2015-2016 there are some decent odds that this falls and other waterfalls in Big Sur will have some big flows next winter. Upon exiting the base of the falls, I found a better route which was still steep but had some oak trees to hang on to and reasonably solid rock to climb. This will be my route into the base of Cinnamon Falls in the future. Perhaps the best view of Cinnamon Falls is along the spine of this rocky sub-ridge where you can get a good overview of the falls and see most of it at once. From the bottom it is impossible to see the entire falls. 

The loop starts with switchbacks on the Cruikshank Trail on a south facing chaparral slope that can be hot even in the morning. However, the trail soon rounds a corner and enters the lovely Villa Creek Canyon and begins one of the best sections of single track in all of Big Sur. From top to bottom, the Cruikshank Trail packs an incredible amount of biodiversity in its six miles, including redwoods, various pine species, Douglas fir, Santa Lucia Firs, Sargent’s cypress, various oak species, and madrone. Note that there is also plenty of poison oak alongside the trail in its  upper portion.  The trail also has excellent views to the ocean and a rugged section of Villa Creek canyon with reddish rocks characteristic of this region. About 5.75 miles from the start, the Cruikshank Trail crosses a saddle with a young Sargent’s cypress forest where a spur path heads west to Silver Peak while the main trail heads down to the beautiful Lion Den camp.  This camp has to be one of the best in Big Sur, complete with a spring, ample shade under the pines, and a commanding view overlooking Salmon Creek canyon, Silver Peak and the Pacific Ocean. Beyond Lion Den Camp, the Cruickshank heads uphill a short distance to meet the South Coast Ridge Road. A short ways south along the road is an optional side trip to Lion Peak. While the road comes close to the summit, a small bushwhack is still necessary to reach the top. Most of the unpleasantness can be avoided by leaving the road at a small saddle near the peak and entering a dense thicket. While not entirely devoid of bushwhacking, travel is reasonable and the distance is short so it only takes 10-15 minutes. It is well worth the troubles with an excellent 360 degree panorama from the exposed reddish summit block. The vista includes Cone Peak and Junipero Serra Peak to the north, Silver Peak and Lion Den camp, Three Peaks, the Salmon Creek canyon, and interior views to Burro Mountain.

After Lion Peak, more quick running along South Coast Ridge Road leads to the Three Peaks Trail, which is an old firebreak along the ridge with vegetation that has filled in to make it a single track. Overall, the trail is in fairly good condition and largely brush-free save for a couple spots.  It’s an efficient way to go from the South Coast Ridge Road to the Dutra Flats area. The land is mainly covered in chaparral and exposed to sunlight, but there are some pretty stands of coulter pine and gray pine along the way with nice views back to Lion Peak and terrain to the south. Most of the way to Dutra Flats, the Three Peaks trail crosses a prominent ridge and on the other side are awesome views of the meadows in Dutra Flat and County Line Ridge. Dutra Flat is a peaceful meadow area with heritage oaks and pines. A camp is located at the flats under cypress trees and it appears this area is used for cattle grazing. From Dutra Flat, the Murray Mine Track which leads down to Dutra Creek and then steeply up to County Line Ridge. This is a pretty section with straightforward navigation and nice views of Mount Mars and the surrounding region. 

From County Line ridge, take the Mount Mars use path up and over a couple false summits to the summit of Mount Mars, with nice views of Salmon Creek canyon, Lion Peak and Silver Peak. Descend through the vegetation tunnel on Mount Mars and emerge onto the grassy ridge with an outstanding view down the ridge to the Pacific Ocean and Salmon cone. From Kozy Kove meadows at the bottom of the very steep ridge, take the use path to the Salmon Creek Trail which quickly descends to the trailhead along Hwy 1. The Buckeye trail is a short distance away and climbs steeply at first (can be hot) but becomes more reasonable as it enters oak woodland beyond the junction with the Soda Springs Trail. There is typically water in Soda Spring Creek about halfway to Buckeye Camp.  The Buckeye Trail features marvelous coastal vistas back to Mount Mars and Piedras Blancas, and is one of the best coastal trails in Big Sur.  Buckeye Camp is always a treat with its cool fresh spring water and shady heritage oaks in the meadow. Beyond Buckeye Camp, the Buckeye Trail makes one final climb to Buckeye Vista before entering a pine forest that switchbacks down to upper Cruikshank camp. The final downhill portion along the lower Cruikshank Trail bring  you back to the Cruikshank trailhead. 

Our route began with a steep climb up the Buckeye Trail to gain a small saddle. From the saddle, the trail traverses a coastal chaparral hillside to the Soda Springs Trail junction with great views of the Pacific Ocean and Mount Mars. The Soda Springs Trail descends through oak woodland back to Highway 1. A fire crew has recently brushed out the stretch from Salmon Cove to the Soda Springs turnout on Highway 1 so this section of trail is in great shape. From Soda Springs trailhead we ran along Hwy 1 which began with a slight ascent, but was largely downhill for a couple miles to the Cruickshank Trailhead. This stretch of Highway 1 is narrow in spots, but we found minimal traffic in the morning. The Cruickshank Trail ascends an exposed hillside (note: hot in summer) in coastal chaparral with numerous switchbacks. Eventually, the trail rounds a corner into Villa Creek Canyon, thereby entering a new forested ecosystem with a pleasant mix of oak woodland, pines and redwoods. Lower and Upper Cruickshank camps are situated in pretty spots within this forest. Beyond these camps, the Buckeye Trail branches off the Cruickshank Trail and heads uphill through more oak and pine forest.

Unlike the Ventana Wilderness, which was largely burned in the 2008 Basin Complex Fire, the Silver Peak Wilderness has been spared major fires for a couple decades. The result is a mature forest of oaks and pines. After ~1,000 ft of climbing on the Buckeye Trail, the path reaches a pass. A short diversion from the pass leads to a magnificent viewpoint spanning a good chunk of the Southern Big Sur Coast. We enjoyed a snack here with a great view above the fog. Back on the Buckeye Trail, it begins a traverse across steep slopes and multiple small drainages. The tread is often in poor condition with a lot of erosion along the trail but there are excellent views down Redwood Creek to distract from the relatively slow progress. We next reached lovely Buckeye Camp which is at the south side of expansive meadows and near a natural spring with cool, pure and refreshing waters. On a very dry year, the spring was still flowing nicely. A few heritage coastal live oaks of colossal proportions play host to the camp making this a great place for a shady break. Beyond Buckeye Camp, we found some forested sections that were in reasonably good condition while some other spots were quite eroded and needing re-alignment. Ending up at the Soda Creek Junction, we were back on familiar ground for the last mile back to Salmon Cove. Overall, the entire Buckeye Trail from Cuickshank to Soda Springs is in decent shape and and an excellent choice for coastal views.  The trail has minimal encroaching brush, but there are sections that traverse steep slopes that are badly eroded which will slow you down. My impression of the Silver Peak Wilderness after my first visit was very positive. This is extremely beautiful terrain and well deserving of its wilderness designation. I look forward to future explorations on the Southern Big Sur Coast!  Strava route here.