When in flow, Last Chance Falls is arguably the most dramatic waterfall in the Ventana Wilderness. The falls flows over an overhanging precipice with a 120 foot free fall with a large cavern behind the falls. A natural amphitheater of cliffs surrounds the falls. The ephemeral nature of Last Chance Falls perhaps makes it more special…
Category: Trail Running
Carmel River Gorge
The headwaters of the Carmel River drains the northeast side of the Ventana Wilderness in some of the most rugged and remote terrain in the Santa Lucia Mountains. I have greatly enjoyed exploring some of this terrain recently and look forward to returning for more adventures in this stunning region of the Ventana. Deep in the Carmel…
Cone Peak Climbs
Another phenomenal day on the mountain I call the King of Big Sur! Cone Peak rises 5,155 ft above the Pacific Ocean in less than three miles as the crow flies, making it one of the steepest gradients from ocean to summit in the contiguous United States. It’s nearly a vertical mile above the glimmering…
Mocho Loop Featuring Mocho Falls
The Mocho Loop is another Big Sur Classic combining spectacular coastal views, a magical walk through a lush river canyon, and a rarely seen waterfall on the main stem of the South Fork Big Sur River. I started the loop with an always-inspiring hike up Boronda Ridge and then ran down the Coast Ridge Road…
Ventana (single) Cone Adventure
After carefully analyzing topographic maps and satellite imagery I saw potential for an aesthetic route from the depths of the Carmel River Canyon directly to Ventana (single) Cone, arguably the most remote major summit in the Ventana Wilderness. Only an average of one party a year visits Ventana Cone and all appear to access via…
Coast Ridge: Stone to Boronda
The Coast Ridge point-to-point was one of my favorite routes of the 2013-2014 Ventana season. I love point-to-points since I feel they are the best way to maximize viewing as much terrain as possible. The second annual Coast Ridge route was largely the same as the first with a few important variations that enhanced the route…
Big Sur Condor Loop
The Big Sur condor loop is an awesome coastal loop at the heart of the Big Sur coast. The route starts with a direct route up Anderson Peak (aka “Anderson Direct”) from McWay Falls, gaining 4,000 feet in less than 3 miles by following an old firebreak/underground utilities line up the prominent ridge between McWay…
Marble Peak 50k+
The Marble Peak 50k+ is another Ventana Wilderness classic. The Marble Peak Trail always looked like an intriguing way to go from the depths of the Arroyo Seco Gorge to Coast Ridge at Marble Peak. However, until recently an important section of the trail had been extremely difficult with heavy brush and copious blowdowns. Thanks…
Dutra Loop & “Soda Peak”
The South Coast of Big Sur has some of the best scenery of the entire Big Sur coast. The majority of the region is protected by the Silver Peak Wilderness, a 31,555 acre wilderness established in 1992. While only a fraction of the size of the better known Ventana Wilderness to the north, there are…
2014 Adventure Recap
From Big Sur to the High Sierra, 2014 was another tremendous year of adventures. As I did in 2013 and past years (links to past year’s recaps located on right sidebar of homepage), this post lists all of the adventures for 2014 in chronological order with a link to the blog post, where available, or photo album….
Leor Pantilat's Adventures