This is Piece 1 of a series of 12 puzzle piece caches that I am hiding all across Southern California! Each cache contains a different piece and when you have obtained them all, you can assemble them into a custom-made puzzle. Please feel free to take one puzzle piece, and leave the rest for others! This particular piece is hidden in Angeles National Forest at the foothills of Mount Baldy along the scenic Icehouse Canyon Trail. To obtain this piece, you will need to be prepared for a 1.5mi roundtrip hike to the cache that ascends and decends about 500ft in elevation. I advise you to save the coordinates and instructions of this cache to your phone, or save the coordinates to your GPS and print out these instructions, as you will likely not have cell service until you come down from the mountain. It's not too strenuous of a hike, but make sure to bring adequate water, a snack if you like, and bugspray if you are easily bothered by flies or mosquitoes. A trekking pole or walking stick would also be great to bring along, if you have one. To begin this hike, first obtain a $5 National Forest Adventure Pass; you can search online to find a vendor near you. This will allow you to park at the Icehouse Canyon Trailhead, where your hike will begin. Follow the coordinates and the trail until what you can see matches with the picture below, and you will be at ground zero! It shouldn't be too tricky to find the cache; just watch where you are stepping so you don't slide down the side of the hill. (I have not hidden it anywhere near the river.) If you reach the fork in the trail where a sign indicates that Chapman Trail branches off from Icehouse Canyon Trail, you have hiked too far and need to turn back around to find the cache. Once you come down from the mountain, be sure to log your experience here; if the pieces are running low or the cache otherwise needs maintenance, let me know and I will address it as soon as possible. Happy trails and best of luck!
Below are the links to the other pieces of the puzzle.
GCAYWT2 - Piece 1 of 12: Icehouse Canyon Trail (you are here)
GCAYY96 - Piece 2 of 12: Mormon Battalion Peak
GCAZF47 - Piece 3 of 12: La Loma Hills
GCAZF64 - Piece 4 of 12: Lake Mathews
GCAZPN3 - Piece 5 of 12: Maple Springs Trailhead
GCAZPQ7 - Piece 6 of 12: Serrano Ridge Trail
GCAZYFB - Piece 7 of 12: Westminster Park
GCAZYFH - Piece 8 of 12: Caruthers Park
GCB087Y - Piece 9 of 12: Ascot Hills Park
GCB0EEE - Piece 10 of 12: Echo Mountain
GCB0FYR - Piece 11 of 12: West Fork, San Gabriel River
GCB0FZJ - Piece 12 of 12: Marshall Canyon Staging Area