17-Jul-2007 -- After having successfully visited 34N/116W and 34N/117W the previous day we were very motivated to conclude our plan for this short stay in the L.A. area by visiting 34N/118W. Since this CP was only a 30 mile drive from our hotel, there was plenty of time before our flight back home to Switzerland in the evening. We knew that we could drive to within 100 meters of the spot. We parked the car on Athel Drive with the GPS indicating a horizontal distance to go of only 50 meters. So technically we had already succeeded but of course our goal was to get a zero reading on the GPS. From reports of previous visits we had expected difficult terrain with near impenetrable vegetation up to the CP. It turned out that the biggest problem wasn’t the vegetation but the loose and hence slippery soil on the steep grade. That didn’t keep us from scrambling up since we were adequately equipped with hiking boots. What we could have used were thick garden gloves because some of the branches we used to pull ourselves up were rather prickly. The terrain flattened out as we got closer to the CP and we had no problem locating the spot. Since it is situated in rather dense underbrush, I had to walk up a few meters to take the pictures of the four cardinal compass directions. We drove back to Long Beach via East Oak Canyon Drive and Turnbull Canyon Road enjoying the beautiful scenery and spectacular views.