Mountains are useful external tasks—not lifespan calculators.
This updated index preserves TrailGenic’s route inventory while retiring VO₂Max-to-years estimates, historical fueling prescriptions, and the idea that higher is automatically better.
The earlier index converted route performance into estimated VO₂Max, METs, and “Longevity Equivalent” years. That conversion is retired. Distance, gain, duration, body weight, altitude, or fasting status cannot produce a defensible personal VO₂Max value or lifespan estimate.
The route inventory remains useful. It is now organized as a planning reference: a way to compare external demands, choose repeatable routes, and build a Personal World Model from actual observations.
Distance, gain, and duration are historical TrailGenic session descriptors, not official route specifications, forecasts, records, or prescriptions. Route variations, GPS error, stops, weather, snow, closures, fire, and trail damage can materially change them. Verify current information with authoritative land managers and weather sources.
| Peak / Route | Summit elevation | Historical distance | Historical gain | Historical TrailGenic duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baldwin Hills Stairs | ~500 ft | 1.4 mi | 335 ft | 0:40 |
| Wisdom Tree → Hollywood Sign | ~1,690 ft | 4.0 mi | 1,115 ft | 2:30 |
| Peak / Route | Summit elevation | Historical distance | Historical gain | Historical TrailGenic duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Strawberry Peak (Mt. Wilson Road) | 6,164 ft | 7.5 mi | 1,800 ft | 4:30 |
| Mount Wilson via Sturtevant | 5,713 ft | 12.2 mi | 4,450 ft | 7:00 |
| Peak / Route | Summit elevation | Historical distance | Historical gain | Historical TrailGenic duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Baldy — Ski Hut / Baldy Bowl | 10,064 ft | 7.6 mi | 3,900 ft | 4:55 |
| Mount Baldy — Register Ridge Loop | 10,064 ft | 10.2 mi | 4,122 ft | 5:00 |
| Telegraph Peak via Manker | 8,985 ft | 12.3 mi | 3,523 ft | 6:30 |
| Ontario Peak via Icehouse | 8,696 ft | 12.0 mi | 3,877 ft | 7:00 |
| Cucamonga Peak via Icehouse | 8,859 ft | 11.1 mi | 4,186 ft | 6:50 |
| Mount Baden-Powell | 9,399 ft | 7.8 mi | 2,775 ft | 3:18 |
| San Jacinto via Marion Mountain | 10,834 ft | 11.4 mi | 4,600 ft | 7:50 |
| Peak / Route | Summit elevation | Historical distance | Historical gain | Historical TrailGenic duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Gorgonio via Vivian Creek | 11,503 ft | 17.3 mi | 5,840 ft | 11:30 |
| San Gorgonio via South Fork | 11,503 ft | 21.0 mi | 4,500 ft | 9:15 |
| Mount Langley via Cottonwood / New Army Pass | 14,026 ft | 22.4 mi | 4,927 ft | 12:40 |
| Mount Whitney — Main Trail | 14,505 ft | 21.0 mi | 6,660 ft | 14:20 |
| Charleston Peak + Griffith Peak | 11,916 / 11,056 ft | 18.0 mi | 4,700 ft | 11:00 |
The Engine asks what capacity a route may require and what the person has demonstrated. The Governor asks whether altitude, symptoms, weather, terrain, remoteness, fatigue, pain, illness, equipment, and judgment make the route inappropriate. These are conceptual lenses, not scores.
Use observation → inference → hypothesis → decision → revision. The table describes external tasks. The individual response must be observed directly, and corrected data supersede prior narratives.
Start from routes whose distance, gain, terrain, and consequence fit demonstrated capacity rather than selecting by summit elevation alone.
Check official access, permit requirements, weather, fire, snow, ice, water, trail damage, and seasonal closures immediately before the outing.
Include distance, gain, grade, expected duration, altitude, temperature, load, technical terrain, remoteness, food timing, and descent consequence.
Use route-specific needs and individual context; historical LMNT counts or fasted completions are not prescriptions.
Decide time limits, symptom rules, weather thresholds, and descent options before starting.
Log the actual route, conditions, duration, gain, exertion, symptoms, food, fluid, and decisions.
Compare like with like, distinguish observation from inference, and use the result to repeat, regress, substitute, or progress.
What is the SoCal Peaks Trail Planning Index?
It is a comparative route catalog organized by terrain and exposure. It is not a longevity score, medical recommendation, or guarantee of current trail conditions.
Why was the Longevity Equivalent removed?
A hike cannot be converted defensibly from route data into VO₂Max and then into personal years of life. TrailGenic has retired that conversion.
Are the durations expected finish times?
No. They are historical TrailGenic session descriptors and can differ substantially by person, conditions, route variation, stops, and device.
Is a higher peak a better healthspan workout?
No. A repeatable lower-consequence route can be more useful than an extreme session. Higher altitude and remoteness add risk, not guaranteed benefit.
Are the historical fasted and electrolyte protocols recommendations?
No. They are removed from the planning table because food and fluid needs are individualized and conditions change.
How should altitude be handled?
Use a separate altitude plan based on ascent profile, sleeping altitude, symptoms, prior response, and reliable descent. Fitness does not prevent altitude illness.
How does the index support the Personal World Model?
It helps select a comparable external task. The actual response then enters the model as observation, followed by explicit inference, hypothesis, decision, and revision.