Love Valley Meadow

We spent Jan. 2, 2009 roaming around Palomar Mountain and took on two hikes. In the early afternoon we walked around Doane Pond and a pet-friendly road in Palomar Mountain State Park. After lunch, we headed down the mountain and stopped off at Love Valley Meadow in Cleveland National Forest for a quick hike before sunset.

• Trail: Love Valley Meadow
  
• Location: on Palomar Mountain, in Cleveland National Forest
  
• Length: 2 miles out and 2 miles back
  
• Hike time: 1.5 hours
  
• Terrain: nice, rambling country road
  
• Path visibility: very clearly marked road
  
• Difficulty: easy
  
• Cost: free
  
• Highlight destination: walking through the meadow
  
• Beware: there is not a formal parking lot, just a pull-off spot on highway 76
  

We had already had a great day hiking on Palomar Mountain in the state park, but after lunch we looked at the clock & though we might be able to get one more hike in before sunset.

We decided on picturesque Love Valley Meadow, on the fringe of Cleveland National Forest, as our departing hike on our way down the mountain back to the city.

The trail was really just a rambling country road, taking you a bit down the mountain into one of many of the higher (relatively speaking!) valleys.

Along the way we had plenty of spectacular views of Lake Henshaw in the valley below. Coincidentally, when we actually drove next to the lake after leaving Palomar Mountain we remarked how much bigger it looked close up.

There were plenty of sights to take in on this light hike. Looking over the ridge into the valley, you could see boulders standing out like headstones surrounded by greenery. The rocks themselves were just amazing, and I for one was happy to not have to scale rocks for once this week!

There seems to be a good deal of animal life in the valley. The official inhabitants were the cattle grazing in the meadow, but we also spotted what we decided were elk prints in the dirt.

After rounding Lake Henshaw, the road comes to a fork. Heading right will take you to a barn & grazing that livestock I just mentioned. We went left, to continue along in the meadow. This was by far my favorite part of the hike.

It was a nice rolling meadow, which inspired lots of conversation about the "olden days" before there were roads & malls everywhere. I might have made a little joke that Love Valley was far from Fashion Valley (my personal favorite mall in San Diego), but I'm not going to admit that here. It is easy to imagine what life was like 100 or more years ago when you are walking around this meadow.

The many trees, all shaped in such a way that just invites you to either sit on the elephant trunk like branches that swoop down or have a picnic beneath one of the many tall oaks, were also notable. Coming to our own personal turnaround point, a crest where the lake beneath was once again revealed, we had a nice view as the last bits of sunlight streamed through the trees.

Love Valley makes me think of of summer, but in reading up on it I get the impression that it might be too hot and too many bugs to really enjoy it during those months. Everything I've read said Love Valley is to be enjoyed best during the spring - when the meadow is green, the lake is full after a winter of rain and snow, & the flowers are just starting to bloom. There was also a note about the cool evenings keeping away the crawly things in there somewhere.

After our short hike there, though, I can't help but feel that whenever you go to Love Valley Meadow, you will have a wonderful time. Take your time, a book, a picnic, whatever - but definitely take a friend.


Tipped off: Schad's Afoot & Afield San Diego County.

Doane Pond in Palomar Mountain State Park

After the new year, we wanted to continue our holiday ritual of tackling more difficult hikes outside of the city. We searched what is now simply known as "the book" & decided we'd head out to Palomar Mountain for a nice mountain hike. It turned out to be a beautiful day full of lots of surprises (some good, some not!) and two separate hikes (see Love Valley Meadow hike here).

• Trail: Doane Pond and fire access road
  
• Location: Palomar Mountain State Park
  
• Length: 1 mile out and 1 mile back
  
• Hike time: 1.5 hours
  
• Terrain: snowy!
  
• Path visibility: very clearly marked road
  
• Difficulty: easy
  
• Cost: $6 to enter the park for the day
  
• Highlight destination: seeing snow in San Diego, followed by the view from the mountains
  
• Beware: dogs are NOT allowed on any of the formal trails in Palomar Mountain State Park, and snow greatly reduces visibility or normally well-marked trails
  

We headed out to the mountains late in the morning on Jan. 2, 2009, amidst a heavy fog in San Diego. We had thought it would burn off by 11 a.m., but by noon we still saw patches of it. The drive to Palomar Mountain is a long one, but it got more & more gorgeous with every mile. We say this all the time when we go out on our little adventures, but we couldn't help ourselves yet again: We can't believe this is still San Diego!

Palomar Mountain State Park is nestled in high atop the Palomar Mountains, at more than 5,000 feet above sea level (possibly more but I lost count). To get there, we took highway 76 to S6 (also called South Grade Road), then following signs to Palomar Mountain State Park.

We were so surprised to see patches of snow along the drive up the mountain, then even more happily surprised once in the park to find most of the land was still blanketed with it. The roads were winding, but very easy to travel in any type of vehicle.

A not-so-fun surprise was the park's dog policy. After a long drive we were very surprised to get up to the gate & hear a park ranger tell us that dogs were not allowed on any of the trails. Luckily, they did have "legal" areas for dogs, such as walking around Doane Pond and a nearby fire access road up the mountain, but we would have been quite disappointed had we not been allowed to enter the park or take the dog out of the car at all. They gave us a special flier explaining where dogs were allowed (with map), and rational for their pet policy. Bottom line with Palomar Mountain is to just leave the pets at home so you can explore anything that you want to.

Because of the dog policy, we had to postpone our plan to hike on several of the formal trails mentioned by Schad in his book. In the end, we were happy with that decision anyway since the trails were covered in snow & it would have been very easy for us to get off course.

We walked around the beautifully frozen Doane Pond. Have I mentioned it was near 60 degrees that afternoon? After walking around the pond, we headed about 50 yards up from the pond's parking lot to a fire access road. Pets were allowed on that road, which went up the mountain with spectacular views for about 1 mile before reaching the turnaround point of the park boundary.

When we started up the snow-covered road, I was feeling pretty negative about the entire excursion and mad at myself for not calling ahead to ask about dogs. That frustration easily wore off with every step through the (sometimes as much as) 7 inches of undisturbed snow and beautiful lookout points into the valley below.

Whether I talked myself into it, I really think we had a much better hike experience up the fire access road then we would have trying to follow a formal trail in the snow.

And the views! Oh. The views.

So in the end, we had a hike full of surprises - some good like snow in San Diego, some bad like not knowing the park's dog policy - but it was an amazing & refreshing hike.

After the hike, we went down the mountain a few miles to an outpost where we had lunch at Mother's Kitchen, a quaint vegetarian restaurant.


Tipped off: Read about Palomar hikes in Schad's Afoot & Afield San Diego County, but had to forge a different trail because of their dog on the trails policy.

Three Sisters Waterfalls

Around Christmas we like to do a really challenging hike a bit further out than our normal "everyday hikes." Last year we tackled Tecate Peak, and much to our surprise this year, we found one even more challenging - but just as rewarding - with the Three Sisters Waterfalls hike. Three Sisters Waterfalls is near the upper part of the San Diego River, so it was quite a drive for us - but by far one of the most fun trips we've had to date.

• Trail: Three Sisters Waterfalls
  
• Location: upper San Diego River, near Descanso off Cedar Creek Road
  
• Length: 2 miles out and 2 miles back
  
• Hike time: 2 hours (we went quickly & didn't spend a lot of time at the falls)
  
• Terrain: be ready to mountain climb as you face extremely steep cliffs for access to the falls. Also, the drive to the trail head is a windy, unpaved & very rough mountain road - 4 wheel drive vehicle recommended!
  
• Path visibility: Dirt path relatively easy to make out on the way down to the falls, less so on the way back
  
• Difficulty: very difficult, but worth it!
  
• Cost: free!
  
• Highlight destination: the waterfalls, though the surrounding mountains weren't bad themselves either
  
• Beware: the steep descents down to the waterfalls are no joke with slippery rocks
  

This was probably one of our most difficult hikes. As you drive up the winding, tight country unpaved mountain road to the trail head remember that for as much as you climb in the vehicle you will descend on foot. (Note, follow these directions to get to the trail head.) The drive to the trail head took about 1.5 hours from southern San Diego. Even so, after all that time you're still in San Diego county which gives you a real appreciation for how big the county is.

Every real hiker review of this hike has talked about how strenuous this trek is - don't take that lightly. We did this hike in late December & from everyone else's experience it seems best to avoid doing this in the spring or later when it is really too hot to safely tackle this hike. In preparing, also plan to get there in enough time to allow you the 2 hours of hiking plus lots of extra time to enjoy the waterfalls all before sunset. This is not the place you want to be caught after dusk. Take plenty of water, some food & a camera.

It could not have been better weather the day we went on the hike. It was about 65 degrees at the coast & a bit warmer inland. There had been record levels of rain the preceding week (so we knew we'd have a great show with the waterfall), but waited enough days after the last rain so we wouldn't be tramping through mud the whole way. Even then, there was still some flooding on the mountain roads.

The information we'd read about the hike said that dogs were allowed, so we took my little 2 lb. dog who likes to jump rocks & climb. There were parts where the small dog had to be carried & frankly I couldn't see how a larger dog could have even of made it - so I would recommend that if you can't scale a nearly vertical cliff while carrying your dog then don't bring it.

There were 3 cars parked at the trail head when we arrived. We met all 3 groups as we made our way down the mountain and they back up. Each had varying pieces of advice for us ranging from "drink lots of water" (and the dog too!) to "use your hands when scaling the cliffs." No one thought the little 2 lb dog would make it, but she did!

The biggest difference on this mountain hike is that it occurs in reverse of what you're normally used to for a mountain. You climb down into the mountain to get to the waterfalls, which means that all the hard work is on your way back after you've been at it for awhile & are likely tired. Budget your energy accordingly.

It was very nice going down, especially seeing all the peaks of the mountain range surround you. There was no shortage of amazing views. About 10 minutes in on the trail you can actually see Three Sisters Waterfalls, albeit from very far away. If you listen closely, you can hear the rushing water as well. The first 30 or so minutes is a steady, winding decline down toward the waterfalls.

The closer you get, the steeper the decline. That is when you really start rock climbing. Be careful of loose rocks & dirt on your way down. At one point, previous hikers actually hung a little rope to make it easier to get down and up.

There aren't strong enough words to describe the fact that these descents, closer to the falls, are just about as vertical as you can get without falling off the side of the mountain.

It only took about 45 minutes until we got to the bottom & could see the waterfalls. Gorgeous! Breathtaking! Worth it all.

The hike back up actually seemed to go quicker than the hike down (that's a first), but it was certainly more difficult to manage to get up those rocks we basically slid down on the first part of the hike. The dog tackled a lot of the moderate parts herself, doing better than the humans at time, but she did get carried for the most vertical parts.

We'll definitely do this hike again - though only in the winter to avoid the horror stories of this hike we've read from others, and giving ourselves more time to explore the waterfalls & climb up to see more of them. Some people have reported even swimming in the pools, which does sound like fun.

Tipped off: Schad's Afoot & Afield San Diego County, also written about on the San Diego Reader site.

tecate peak

Can you think of anything better to do on Christmas day than take a 9-mile hike up a mountain? We couldn't. After a delish meal, we made the drive out to the border to take on what turned out to be our toughest hike yet.

• Trail: Tecate Peak (map)
• Location: Tecate Mountain on CA side of US/Mexico border
  
• Length: around 9 miles (up & down)
  
• Hike time: 1.5 hours up, just over an hour down
  
• Terrain: gravel road with some steep incline/decline and loose rocks at places
  
• Path visibility: Very clearly marked
  
• Difficulty: difficult
  
• Cost: free
  
• Highlight destination: summit: you did it!
  
• Beware: we have lots of tips about timing of hike & what to bring so check it out below
  

For Christmas, we wanted a longer hike & a great adventure. We could not have picked a more appropriate trail. After a relatively early Christmas feast, we set out for the US/Mexico border to take on 3880+ feet high Tecate Peak (on the California side).

According to our hike book, there is a lot of history associated with this location. Indian tribes used to climb to the summit for peace conferences. The Kumeyaay Indians also believed that the granitic boulders emanated holy powers.

The drive out to the peak took about 45 minutes, in Christmas traffic (that means no one was on the road). The drive itself was worth the journey. As we got further and further away from downtown San Diego, the terrain started looking closer to something out of sci-fi than urban SD! The boulders lining the roads and sitting atop burned out hills from the recent fires reminded both of us of Hollywood's version of another planet.

The directions from Schad on getting to the hike were great, so consult his before making this drive. About 1.6 miles after turning on to Highway 188, you will see an unpaved road on the right - it is just in front of the "International Border 15,000 feet" sign. Take that right. Then, be prepared for some serious off-roading for 2.8 miles. We're not talking smooth, often-traveled gravel roads here. There are patches of road with lots of big loose rocks on the thin one-car-at-a-time road.

If you feel like you are exceptionally close to Mexico it is because you are! You drive right along the border fence for sometime, pass several industrial lights they turn on toward the border at night & we saw border patrol as well.

You feel like you're almost driving up the mountain, because well, you are - until you get to the gate blocking the road. The gate was open when we went & even though Schad said to park beneath it there was a nice extra bit of road that looked good for parking right inside the gate so we did that with no problem (gate was still unlocked after dark when we got back to the car).

Next we looked for the trailhead. Trailhead? There is no official trailhead! You park at the gate & go. The entire journey is along this inclined mountain road that was constructed in 1958, which has restricted traffic. We didn't see one person or another car the entire hike. Save a few ATV engines humming in the distance, you would think we were the only ones out there.

It was about 4.5 miles up, and took us 1.5 hours to to top. There are way too many details for a single blog post, so I'll just try to cover the highlights.

The boulder and rock formations were the most amazing sites. Some were granite, some with red splashed on the side, and almost all were the most remarkable shapes and perched in the most peculiar positions along the mountain side. These are true landmarks & I was surprised how well I was able to remember them on the way down.

Sadly, the fires this fall had definitely been here (pdf of Harris Fire), as we saw several burned out areas and could almost trace the path of the blaze.

We noticed animal footprints along the road. Comparing what we saw to pictures of tracks online, I think they might have been from a coyote. We saw traces of our little friend all the way up, but never actually encountered anything.

Not far into the hike, you really get a great view of the twin cities of Tecate. On the California side it is much more rural than the Baja California side in Mexico. We were able to see the famous brewery on the Mexican side, & spotted a lake further off in the distance. Once at the top of the peak & on the other side of the mountain, we even swear we saw past Imperial Beach to the ocean. It was simply breathtaking!

At this point, the winds were pretty strong. We took a moment to enjoy the setting sun & look out over the surroundings, but knew we needed to get down as quickly as possible to make the most of the remaining light. This was our biggest mistake with this hike: we started too late in the day for such a long hike.

We ran about a mile down from the summit because the path was pretty solid with very little loose gravel to cause any falls. What fun! After that, it started getting a little dark so we slowed it down to stay safe.

Going down was almost as amazing as going up. Looking at the path before us, I was struck by how long & sharp the incline of some of the sections were. I did that? Wow! It was a remarkable chance to review your hike & a great moment to reveal in the pride of having made it to the top.

Even though it was challenging & we made a few poor decisions on this hike, it was worth it. If you know you can handle a hike of this caliber, put this one at the top of your list!

Based on our hike, there a lot of little tips we would give to anyone else trying this hike out:

• use a truck or other 4-wheel drive vehicle to get out there because the road leading up to the trail is not pleasant
  
• go in the morning, we went in the late afternoon & had the sun in our eyes the entire way up
• wear lots of layers because it was a gorgeous 70 or so in San Diego but much cooler at the trailhead then very windy in spots along the sides of the mountain
  
• give yourself enough time to get up - probably budget 4 hours for the hike itself
• don't be caught on the mountain after dark. We started down the mountain right at sunset (we just really wanted to make it to the top against better judgment!) and we ended up walking in pitch darkness for more than 40 minutes - resulting in me taking several spills & I was lucky enough not to really get anything more than a scrape
  
• don't go after heavy rains because there was a good deal of mud along the roads without having seen much rain, it would only be worse after a big rainfall
• this is better as a hike than a mountain bike excursion - I've seen pictures of people on the mountain on their bikes & after doing it I just don't know how that is possible. The inclines were a nice 15 degrees up in most places, but going up in long sections especially near the top. Also, the thought of riding a bike down this uneven, loosely graveled road seems dangerous too.
  
• take your cell phone - about 1/3 or the way up you might switch to a Mexican cell tower, but I still had great reception if something went wrong
  

Tipped off: We found this one in our trusty hiking book, new edition (May 2007) of Jerry Schad's Afoot & Afield in San Diego County. Schad has another, very similar write-up online we found after the hike.

cowles mountain

This post has been a long time coming, because we hiked this trail during summertime. We had decided we wanted to see the sunset from the highest point in the city of San Diego, and getting our hike on was part of the bargain.

• Trail: Cowles Mountain from Golfcrest Drive (map)
• Location: Mission Trails Regional Park
  
• Length: 3 miles (out & back)
  
• Hike/run time: 45 minutes up, 20 minutes back down
  
• Terrain: Dirt path, some rocks, some stairs
  
• Path visibility: Clearly marked
  
• Difficulty: Moderately steep -- it is a mountain, after all
  
• Cost: free parking at corner of Navajo and Golfcrest
  
• Highlight destination: The top! Can't beat the view!
  
• Beware: Lots of traffic on the path, and coming down can be tricky
  

After parking in the street (the lot was full) we started making our way up. We knew we had pushed our luck by getting there only about 35 minutes before sunset, so we tried to limit our sightseeing as we headed up. Still, after only 10 minutes or so you can't help but notice how beautiful the view of the city below is from the mountainside.

There were lots of other people already heading up the mountain ahead of us. They had obviously planned a little better to reach the summit in time for the sunset. But we were undaunted. We set a pretty good pace up the trail, which was fairly steep and full of switchbacks. We didn't have as good a pace as some of the runners on the trail, though - it was pretty impressive to see them tackling the hill at speed, and it even looked kind of fun in a masochistic way. Kind of a natural, rugged version of Rocky running up the steps in Philadelphia.

The trail itself actually heads up to a shoulder on the southeast side of the mountain, and then levels out and slightly descends before heading up the main summit where some radio towers and various antennas are perched. We had not had much verticality in our hikes before this, so we felt pretty good about really climbing a mountain ... well, the kids running up and down the path beside us kept us from being too proud of our feat, but still, there was no arguing that we were gaining some altitude.

Our diligence and urgency paid off. The sun set a little bit later atop the 1,591 ft peak than scheduled at sea level, so we arrived at the top just in time to see a the sun touching the top of the Pacific beyond what must have been La Jolla, and then slowly sliding down into the sea. It was a gorgeously clear day, and looking down at the little houses spreading out towards the city skyline, all the way to the Coronado bridge, we felt very lucky to be enjoying the panorama of America's Finest City as the sky turned colors from a deep blue behind us to a bright gold in front of us.

We stayed for a little while at the top. Drank some water. Took photos. Basked in our success. Then decided we better head down before it got too dark. The path isn't exactly treacherous, but I certainly wouldn't want to descend it blindfolded. Short of a full moon, it would be a less than pleasant trek down at night.

As we reached the bottom it was just getting uncomfortably dark, so we were glad we didn't stay too long on top. But this was one of our favorite hikes, and we're hoping to repeat it early in the morning on the Winter Solstice, which local native Americans used to mark on this mountain annually.

We're probably not ready to run up the mountain yet, but the view alone definitely makes it a goal worth working towards.



Tipped off: We first saw this hike in the entertainment section of the Union-Tribune's Web site, in the Best Of San Diego section, where San Diegans vote on their favorite things around the city.

william heise desert view trail

After an afternoon of apple picking in Julian, Calif. yesterday, we decided to check out a hike in the Cuyamaca mountains which promised a great walk in the pine woods and spectacular views of the Cuyamaca and Lunguna mountains, Anza-Borrego Desert & Salton Sea.

• Trail: Desert View Trail (map)
• Location: Julian, Calif. - just over an hour northeast of San Diego
• Length: 2.25 miles
• Hike time: 45 minutes up, 40 minutes down
  
• Terrain: steep incline. Seriously - how was it that it felt like 85% of the entire hike was going straight uphill?
• Path visibility: Mostly clearly marked - but we took a wrong turn on what we thought was part of the trail on the way down but that didn't delay us much.
• Difficulty: moderately difficult - probably not for kids (but other trails in the park would probably be fine)
• Cost: $3 to park
• Highlight destination: Glen's View in the northeast corner of the trail
• Beware: poison oak overgrown into path & sometimes hard to pass ... and SNAKES!

This was a great hike that I'm glad we did. It was a gorgeous warm autumn day (around 70 degrees) & even a little chilly in the shade. Heh. That didn't last long once we made our way from the car to the trail.

We went up the trail taking the eastern approach. Let me tell you, that was smart because it meant we went up the short route & down the long. Trust me, this is not cheating. Five minutes into the hike we were taking on some of the steepest inclines I've ever done.

There is no way to escape the sun, so bring water & any cover you might need (sunscreen, hat).

It took us about 45 minutes to get to the promised vista at the top of the mountain - Glen's View. It was gorgeous. In one direction you could see mountains & enjoy what you had just climbed then to the other you could make out the desert in the distance. It wasn't clear enough to see the Coronado Bridge, but they had a neat contraption up there pointing out what was where. It was a much different experience than the San Diego urban hikes because much of the surrounding areas have been left alone & are undeveloped.

The hike was a good mix of walking through the shaded woods & exploring an exposed mountainside. It is hard to believe that 70% of the park was destroyed by the big Cedar Fire in 2003. That was more than 700 acres of the park. Even now, 4 years later, there is evidence all around of the fire. It didn't get everything though, we actually saw a tree still growing leaves that was charred on the outside but was still healthy once you scraped into the bark.

There is a lot of regrowth all around - sage, oak, pine trees, poison oak, lizards jumping ... and yes, snakes!

Even though some people think I am over-reacting .... well, YOU try being the one that a snake lunges and hisses at. This is what happened: I was following my sandal-wearing hiking partner and looked down at the path. A little baby snake! So I yelled ahead, "snake! Watch out!" Then I realized the only way to safety was to PASS the snake. At that moment, the little harasser lunged at me (just like on the Discovery Channel) and hissed. I swear I saw little fangs. My fearless parter plots a way to get me out of this position as the snake slithered sideways back into the brush, letting me safely pass to freedom. We looked him up online later & think it might have been a western yellow-bellied racer. Only mine had fangs. I know, that doesn't sound dangerous but you try being the one under attack then get back to me.

Tipped off: We first saw this hike online & then bought the new edition (May 2007) of Jerry Schad's Afoot & Afield in San Diego County at a local bookstore which got us motivated to actually do the hike after a day of eating apple pie & caramel apples.