The M Hike

yay

great trail

A great trek....Took the whole family on this one...youngest 2 years old and she walked the entire thing by herself. Those saying the trail is hard to follow must be beginners...it is very simple. Not confusing at all. Very little to no shade so be careful if you go when it is hot.

starting from Riverside off of blain great trail, I've been doing this hike for years there are a few different ways you can start this hike from Moreno Valley and in Riverside which is a little more challenging

Trail isn’t marked and hard to follow

Found this trail when I decided to try to catch the sunrise atop the infamous "M" on Box Springs Mountain. There wasnt alot of info out there for the M specifically, so i used the satellite setting on Google Maps and saw this short trail that seemed to lead from the neighborhodd to the M. I took my 12 year old son early on January 4, 2018 and hit the trail. We parked in the neighborhood east of Box Springs Mountain, off Hidden Springs and Pigeon Pass Rd, but there is a dirt parking lot you can park at during daylight, opens at 7am. The parking lot uses the honor system and asks you to drop $5 in a box. We initially took the wromg trail due to unfamiliarity and darkness, we started at 530am. We picked the trail that leads from to the right from the dirt lot because it had white painted arrows on the ground Lol. After 30 minutes I realized we were heading away from the M, which sits on the front (or south side) of the mountain. I used Google sattelite to backtrack to the parlking lot and chose the middle trail, which seemed to go in the exact direction of the M (Note you cant see the M from the start, but I know where it sits). The trail is not very clear in many places because people have cut the trail and created more direct trails, but pretty much all of them get you there once you get going. It is about 2 miles to the M and 2 miles back. The trail has some very steep portions that are slippery with sand and gravel and also has areas where you have to step onto boulders and its easier to use your hands. It is a bit tricky because you cannot see the M at all until you are literally right in front of it. After we completed the hike, we realized the landmark you can use is the radio antennas, which can be seen from every point of the hike and basically sit right above the M. On this trail, it will be the antennas that sit in second position from the most right antennas (there are many sets of antennas on top of this mountain). You can sit on the M, which is about 100 feet wide and 50 feet tall and made of rock and concrete and painted white. During christmas and New Years it is lit up at night with LED lights, also good for night hiking. My son made the hike with no issues, other than a little exhausted. it was about 1100 feet of elevation gain. It has amzing views of the sunset, sunrise, city of riverside, and city of Moreno Valley. Highly suggest this trail, but beware there are definately coyotes, snakes, donkeys, and at least one mountain lion. We only heard donkeys, did not see any others, but saw many fresh coyote paw prints and clear mountain lion prints. This should not deter you as this should be expected in any mountain setting, you are in their home. Just take a knife, a whistle, and be mindful.