Mount Marie Louise and Constance Peak June 11 & 14

The trip to the cabin this month was planned mostly a work trip to take care of some of the damage incurred during this last severe winter. But taking some time out, I did get to bag Mount Marie Louise and Constance Peak. This now gives me 44 of the 61 peaks in the San Bernardino’s that are part of the Sierra Club 100 Peaks Section. There are 281 peaks on the Sierra List, and I can’t figure out why it’s called the 100 Peaks section.
Mount Marie Louise was near lake Arrowhead and finding the trail head was almost as perplexing as when Dorie and I hiked The Pinnacles in that area last month. We made at least 6 wrong turns on that trip and I still made 3 wrong turns this time. Glad there are no more peaks on the list in that area. This hike was an easy out and back but bushwhacking in minor brush. At almost mid-June, there was still snow to be seen atop Mt Wilson in the San Gabriel’s.
Constance Peak was another trail-less out and back, very steep but short hike. I found a lot of the “Widow maker” pine cones. These cones are from the Coulter Pine and are the largest pine cones in the world. They are found only in SoCal and parts of northern Baja. They weigh 3-4 pounds and if one conked you on the head, I can understand the nickname. The hike was uneventful except for the biting horse flies and the tear sucking gnats that swarmed my eyes. Forgot my bug juice.