We used to head out to Eaton Canyon after every major winter storm just to see the water flowing down the riverbed into the reservoir. When we lived at the house on Harding Avenue, the park entrance was a half mile away and taking into account the 1.5 mile hike, we effectively enjoyed a great 30-foot waterfall about 2 miles away! That was a benefit I didn't really realize until we moved to Rancho Cucamonga. As soon as the kids could walk on their own, we would explore the canyon and spend several hours just hanging out.
In the photo above, taken in Nov 2004 shows just how clear the skies over the San Gabriel Mountains could be in the fall.
Last weekend, we decided to hike up to Eaton Canyon, our first hike since moving to Rancho Cucamonga in 2009. We got a late start and I knew it was going to be crowded but it was worse than I expected. When we got there, entire families were making the trek on that hot June Sunday afternoon. Babies, grandmas, kids, dogs, strollers, coolers, bags of potato chips, burgers, etc. We saw it on the way up, at the destination, and on the way back. At the waterfall, there must have been over 150 people alone, which surprisingly enough kept the area relatively free of debris and other signs of human presence.
My best memory of Eaton was our hike in Jan 2008 when Maura and I decided to enjoy the winter's day outdoors. We ran into less than 5 people the entire time and we each picked up these walking sticks along the way. We must have crossed the water over 20 times as the water level typically rises during the rainy months. The photo above was taken using my camera on a timer sitting on top of a boulder.
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