People Of Diverse Faiths Pursue a Lofty Goal In a Peace Hike Up Mt. Baldy

July 31, 2010

Author: Mitchell Landsberg

Source: The Los Angeles Times

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-beliefs-baldy-20100731,0,6497230.story

The mountain was supposed to impart energy to its pilgrims, but as he neared the top, Ashraf Carrim wasn't feeling it.

Slumped on a boulder not far from the peak of Mt. Baldy, the Muslim imam from Torrance laughed when asked how he was faring on his hike. "Badly," he replied. A few feet away, the Rev. Jeffrey Utter of the United Church of Christ was girding himself for the final push. "I was naive about what was involved," he admitted.

The two men were among about 100 people of various faiths who set out last Saturday on a hike for peace, with the goal of reaching the top of Mt. Baldy, the tallest peak in the San Gabriel Mountains. Those who made it all the way — not everyone did — participated in an event as eclectic as Southern California itself, played out on its very rooftop.