Back in 2016, my friend Ira and hiked a loop near Cone Peak in Big Sur. We had a long weekend from school so we drove down highway 1 to Nacimiento Ferguson Road. On the first day we headed north, climbing Cone Peak and descending to Ojito Camp on the South Fork of Devil’s Canyon.
On day two, we had an ambitious plan to attempt a loop of both forks of Devils Canyon. The fact that we even thought this would be possible at this stage in our hiking careers is laughable in hindsight. Progress was very slow. We trudged through the creek and climbed through poison oak to bypass the waterfalls. At times we had to swim through the water. Unfortunately Ira took a swim with his phone, and it stopped working. Eventually as we neared the confluence with the middle fork, we decided to turn back. Although we did not finish the loop, we enjoyed our time in this beautiful and pristine area.
We got back to camp, and hiked a few miles up the trail to continue our loop.
On the third day, we continued up the Stone Ridge Trail to complete the loop. An incredible trip in an incredible place. My second trip with Ira, a launching pad for many to come.
Anthony Ottati 