Welcome to another episode of my continuing search for good warmup trips to do before the main PCT / CDT / AT long distance summer hiking season. This year since I was tied to Orange County until early March due to volunteer commitments I started looking at one of the lesser known wilderness areas: San Mateo.

San Mateo Wilderness is basically the area south of Ortega Highway bounded in by various bits of private property and then the military base to the south. I've most commonly visited it to hike Sitton Peak from the Bear Canyon / Candy Store trailhead off Ortega but I did do an overnight Sierra Club trip backpack out there years ago to Fisherman's Camp which is actually a lot nicer than you'd expect considering the area. There are even swimming holes back there.

I set out to come up with the biggest multi-day loop that made sense. While overnight camping is legal the area is bounded on the north by a large no over night camping zone and to the south with a no entry allowed military base. I picked the San Juan / Hot Springs Trailhead to start at a short distance from Caspers Park because it was the easiest to access. 

This turned out to be my new favorite local conditioning trip. At least when fire closures don't get in the way.