Mount Baldy (San Gabriel Mountains)

Mount Baldy (San Gabriel Mountains)

Mount San Antonio, commonly referred to as Mount Baldy or Old Baldy, is a 10,066 feet (3,068 m) summit in the San Gabriel Mountains in Los Angeles, California, formed around the San Andreas Fault system. Lying within the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument and Angeles National Forest, it is the high point of the range, the county, and the Los Angeles metropolitan area. Mount San Antonio’s sometimes snow-capped peaks are visible on clear days and dominate the view of the Los Angeles Basin skyline. The mountain is almost always referred to as "Mount Baldy" by locals, to the point where many may not recognize the name "Mount San Antonio." The mountain was named by a local rancher after Saint Anthony of Padua. When American settlers arrived and surveyed the land, "Baldy" – a reference to the bare fell-field of Baldy Bowl that dominates the south face visible from Los Angeles – became the predominant name, and it has stuck. Nonetheless, "Mount San Antonio" is the official name according to the GNIS. For road cyclists, the climb through Mt. Baldy Village to the base of the ski lifts is popular. It has been used as the finish of the penultimate stage of the 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2019 Amgen Tour of California. It was also featured in the 2017 Tour of California as the fifth stage of the race.