Start from Bear Canyon trailhead and finish at Ice House Canyon trailhead. It's best to park at Ice House Canyon parking lot but those fill up real quick. You can easily find dirt parking along Mt. Baldy Rd between the start and finish- just make sure you park inside the white line to avoid getting ticketed. It does not matter where you park since you'll be doing a loop. Warm up and run down Mt. Baldy Rd to Mt. Baldy Lodge, find the church across the street. Head up Bear Canyon Drive to the trailhead as you admire some pretty cool homes built in this area. Once you hit the dirt, this is where the route begins! Bear Canyon trail is 6 miles, gaining 5564 ft with average 18% grade, and some amazing views! Trailhead is at 4500 ft and you'll end up at Mt. Baldy summit at 10064! Once at the summit, head down Devil's Backbone trail down to Top of the Notch restaurant, this is about half way. You can refill water, go to the bathroom, even get snacks or beer if you wish. With the toughest climb out of the way, get back on the trail toward Thunder Mountain, this is where 3Ts trail begins. You have the option to hit the summits of Telegraph and Timber on 3Ts trail which will add about 1-2 miles, just follow the signs. 3Ts trail connect to Ice House trail and you continue your descent for another 3.5 miles. This section is quite busy and very technical in some places so take it easy, maybe take a cold dip and enjoy the flowing water stream along the way. When you hit the Ice House Canyon parking lot, just continue down Mt. Baldy Rd to where you parked.
