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San Gorgonio Mountain in 3D: real relief (Copernicus DEM) and satellite image (Sentinel-2)

Mountain·United StatesUnited States

San Gorgonio Mountain

3,506m

San Bernardino Mountains

Summit weather

3D view drawn from Copernicus WorldDEM-30 (© DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA) and Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX IT Services GmbH, CC BY 4.0

Elevation
3,506m
Prominence
2,528m
Relief
1,625mabove the lowest point within 5 km
Steepest slope
43°within 1 km of the summit
Snow at the summit
Jan–AprSee month by month ↓
Summit
34.0992°N, 116.8247°W

Mountain in United States of America

San Gorgonio Mountain is a mountain in the San Bernardino Mountains (United States). Its summit stands 3,506 m above sea level. Its prominence — how far it rises above the highest saddle linking it to a taller summit — is 2,528 m.

From the lowest point within 5 km (1,881 m), it rises 1,625 m. The steepest side is the north-east face: 28° on average over the first kilometre. In places the ground near the top reaches 43° — terrain for climbers, not walkers.

The nearest town is Big Bear Lake, 18 km away at 2,058 m: 1,448 m below the summit.

Read more on Wikipedia

Scores

San Gorgonio Mountain for skiers and climbers

Two scores out of 10, built only from open data — every part is shown. They describe what the mountain offers, not how safe it is.

Hiking & mountaineering

5.4/10

Difficulty to the top

Hike

Most path sections around the top are T2 on the SAC hiking scale.

Indicative only — never a safety assessment. Conditions change: ask local guides and check the forecast.

  • 1.0/2.52 waymarked routes and 8 path sections nearby
  • 0.0/1.50 huts and shelters
  • 1.4/21,448 m of ascent from the valley
  • 1.5/1.52,528 m of prominence
  • 1.5/1.512 months with summit afternoons above −5 °C
  • 0.0/1via ferratas, climbing and glaciers

Ski score

—

No ski runs within 12 km in OpenStreetMap.

How these scores are made

Ski (where OpenStreetMap has skiing within 12 km): up to 4 points for the length of downhill runs (300 km or more = 4), 1.5 for the number of lifts (40+), 1.5 for the vertical between lift stations (1,500 m) and 3 for the snow season — a month counts when the estimated mean temperature at the height of the ski area is −1 °C or lower and snow falls or lies there (NASA POWER, 2001–2020). Hiking & mountaineering: up to 2.5 for waymarked routes and paths, 1.5 for huts, 2 for the ascent from the valley (2,000 m), 1.5 for prominence (3,000 m), 1.5 for the season (months with summit afternoons above −5 °C) and 1 for via ferratas, climbing and glaciers. OpenStreetMap is built by volunteers: where few things are mapped, a score can be lower than reality.

Plan your visit

Stay, climb and get there

Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.

Snow

When there is snow on San Gorgonio Mountain

At the summit, snow from January to April (some years from November to May). Month by month below, at different heights on the way up.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Summit3,506 msnow from January to April (some years from November to May)
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow some of the timeNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowSnow some of the timeSnow some of the time
Halfway up2,782 msnow from January to March (some years from December to April)
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow some of the timeNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowSnow some of the time
Big Bear Lake2,058 moccasional snow in December
No snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowSnow some of the time
  • Snow on the ground all month
  • Snow some of the time
  • No snow
  • This month

Estimate for a normal year: average temperature and precipitation from NASA POWER, carried to each height, in a simple model of snow building up and melting. In a given year snow can come earlier or stay longer. It does not replace the local snow and avalanche bulletin.

Summit weather

San Gorgonio Mountain, month by month

Not a forecast: long-term averages (1991–2020), carried up to the summit. The orange line is where an average afternoon reaches 0 °C; above the dashed blue line it freezes even at dawn.

On an average July afternoon the summit reaches about 19 °C; on December nights it falls to about -14 °C. In 3 months of the year it stays below freezing at the top even in the afternoon. In July the 0 °C line climbs to about 6,380 m, above the summit: the top thaws on an average afternoon. Across the region, June is the driest month (0 mm) and February the wettest (36 mm).

1,000 m2,000 m3,000 m4,000 m5,000 m6,000 mSUMMIT · 3,506 mBIG BEAR LAKE · 2,058 mJanuary: 3,240 mFebruary: 3,370 mMarch: 3,910 mApril: 4,340 mMay: 5,040 mJune: 5,910 mJuly: 6,380 mAugust: 6,340 mSeptember: 5,860 mOctober: 4,890 mNovember: 3,920 mDecember: 3,120 mJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
0 °C on an average afternoon 0 °C at dawn the summit
MonthSummit high °CSummit low °CBig Bear Lake high °C0 °C line (m)Rain & snow (mm)Wet daysSun h/day
January-2-1483,2403557.9
February-1-1483,3703668.9
March3-12123,91018510.4
April5-10154,34010312.0
May10-7195,0404113.1
June16-3255,9100014.1
July192286,3808212.4
August182286,3408212.1
September15-1255,8606211.4
October9-6184,89010210.2
November3-10123,9201528.7
December-2-1473,1203447.5

Estimate: the NASA POWER climate of a ~55 km cell (average height 983 m), adjusted to the summit by −6.5 °C per 1,000 m. Rain, wet days and sunshine are those of the region. Mountain weather changes fast — always check a local forecast. ★ = mildest months at the top.

Relief

The mountain in profile

Two cuts through the summit, 16 km long, from the 30 m Copernicus elevation model. Heights drawn 2× taller than lengths, so the shape can be seen.

West – east
3,506 m2,059 m0 km2 km4 km6 km8 km10 km12 km14 km16 kmWE
South – north
3,506 m1,929 m0 km2 km4 km6 km8 km10 km12 km14 km16 kmSN
Steepness by direction
30°N: 21°NNE: 28°NEE: 22°ESE: 19°SES: 15°SSW: 16°SWW: 8°WNW: 16°NW

Average slope of the first kilometre from the summit. The orange petal is the steepest side.

Around the mountain

Huts, lifts and trails around San Gorgonio Mountain

Counted around the summit in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. The satellite plate shows 14 × 14 km.

San Gorgonio Mountain seen from above (Sentinel-2) N 5 km

Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 14 × 14 km, north up. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.

  • —mountain huts and shelters
  • —cable cars, gondolas, chairlifts and rack railways
  • —ski areas
  • 2waymarked hiking routes

    PCT - California Section C, Santa Ana River Trail

  • —via ferratas
  • —climbing crags and routes
  • —named glaciers
  • —viewpoints
  • 47campsites

    Heart Bar Campground, East Flats, South Fork Campground, Mission Springs and 43 more

  • 13hotels, B&Bs and chalets

    Seven Oaks Mountain Resort, Camp Metoche, Camp Wasewagan, Seven Oaks Mountain Cabins and 9 more

  • 3restaurants and cafés

How hard are the paths?

8 path sections within 5 km, by SAC hiking scale (T1 easy walk … T6 difficult alpine).

T1T2
  • T1 hiking
  • T2 mountain hiking

Towns at the foot

  • Big Bear Lake18 km · 2,058 m
  • Big Bear City18 km · 2,064 m
  • Banning20 km · 716 m
  • Cherry Valley20 km · 860 m
  • Cabazon20 km · 559 m
  • Yucaipa21 km · 798 m
  • Morongo Valley23 km · 787 m
  • Beaumont24 km · 796 m

OpenStreetMap is built by volunteers: a low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. Places © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).

Photos

Seen by climbers and visitors

Recent years

How each month compared at the summit

Afternoon high at the summit (estimate). The first row is the reference, the 1991–2020 average in °C; the years show only the difference.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
1991–2020 average-2-135101619181593-2
2020+0.9+1.7−3.8−1.2+1.3−1.5+0.1+1.7+2.9+3.0+1.0+1.4
2021+0.1+1.1−2.4+1.8+1.1+2.9+0.8+0.4+0.6−2.4+4.1−0.2
2022+0.6+0.5+1.5+2.1+1.2+2.2+0.1+0.6+0.5+1.1−3.0−0.3
2023−3.6−3.6−6.0+0.8−3.2−5.4+1.6−0.6−3.0+1.0+0.2+2.9
2024−0.4−1.9−4.0−0.7−1.1+1.3+3.2+1.0+1.1+3.7−0.9+5.0
2025−0.1+2.7−1.6−0.4+0.3+0.4−1.2+0.9−1.8+0.2+1.3+5.1

+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual

About these numbers

Names, elevation, prominenceWikidata (Q3364408) · CC0
Relief, 3D view, profilesCopernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA
ClimateNASA POWER, 1991–2020 · CC BY 4.0
Around the mountain© OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL
ImagesEOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons

Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.

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