Looking to buy some hiking shoes. I don’t really want to go the boot route since I also want to use them for light hikes. I do plan on hiking Mt. Baldy and eventually Mt. Whitney. Do I really need hiking boots or can I get away with hiking shoes? (Merrell Moab speed 2 gore tex) the low top version

Hello all, I’ll be visiting a friend down in San Diego next weekend. We are both experienced ultra-runners and are competent in up to class 4 climbing. We are happy to drive up to 4 hours away from San Diego. We’re looking for some epic routes that have the following criteria:

20-30 miles
Mostly single-track
Ideally some scrambling, but not necessary
As much elevation gain/descent as possible

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

san gorgonio my trail runners and Nike socks weren’t enough

I haven’t hiked a ton recently, but decided I wanted to give this one a try. It’s a route as opposed to a trail. Very, very straightforward in terms of direction, but just like any cross country pursuit, it’s full of micro navigation. Quite steep for the first couple thousand feet, then the ridge gets thin, widens out again, and you start doing the up and down for the rest of the day. At about 4k feet, the vegetation gets denser and it can be a shwack off and on from there. Nothing too vicious. But the steep parts are steep, and you dread losing elevation when you get to the top of a climb. But that’s what makes it really beautiful! It’s a massive undulating ridge and you get to climb it from the desert floor! That’s my type of thing though. Absolutely stunning views of San Jacinto’s north face when you get to the crest. I strongly believe it’s the coolest looking mountain in SoCal. The granite is vast and intricate, really more in line with a peak in the Sierra. Overall, it was an amazing day on a mountain doing what I love.

Pictures from Sunday and second time in less than a month, very relaxing at the top and there wasn't much wind at 10 AM. I found a rock and sat there to eat breakfast. Much of the snow is probably gone from the trail now and the wet ground felt grippier coming down. Pictures taken with Nikon Z30.

This day was Register Ridge -> Harwood -> Baldy Summit -> West Baldy -> Ski Hut back to the car. Brought microspikes but ended up not using them. Probably could have helped a little bit going up West Baldy but the snow itself was manageable so it didn't seem worth the effort. Register Ridge was completely dry so no need for microspikes there.

First time tagging West Baldy despite the many times I've summited Baldy. It was always something I've wanted to do since it's basically just right there (or relatively right there with a ~15 minute hike one way). Wish I would have done it sooner, it was nice to get a different perspective of the summit.

Good times. Was up there this year, it's coming back.

Photo taken this Sunday