Sycamore Canyon – Martha’s Grove Trail

After completing my longest hike to date, I decided to keep today’s hike a bit more on the low-key side. Since I was also craving a good croissant, something out near O’Brien’s Bakery would meet both requirements. I opted to hike Martha’s Grove Trail in Sycamore Canyon. They made the trail one way a few years back, so when I was last out there I wasn’t able to do it.

I also thought this would be a good hike to bring my dog, Rocky, along. The trail is immediately to the left past the parking lot. We meandered along the trail, taking in the views as we worked our way toward Martha’s Grove. Signs cautioned us to be alert for toads on the trail. In fact, a good portion of the trail past the grove had fencing to help contain them. However, I never saw any.

We reached the junction near the Goodan Ranch, but I could tell Rocky wasn’t up for the additional mile, so we made our way back up the access road to our starting point. Rocky enjoyed his outing and I got some croissants for myself on the way home.

I am an avid peak bagger, sometimes backpacker, and former sea kayaker living in San Diego. In 2019, I became the third person to complete the San Diego 100 Peak Challenge. Not stopping with that accomplishment, I set my sights on the harder San Diego Sierra Club 100 Peak list, which I completed in 2021. In addition, I have conquered several Six-Pack of Peaks challenges (SoCal, San Diego, Central Coast, and Arizona-Winter). Beyond attempting the San Diego Sierra Club 100 Peak list a second time, I am looking forward to exploring new summits and new adventures across the southwest.

Frank’s Peak & Mt. Whitney

With the long holiday weekend ahead of me, I decided to try to test my foot a bit more. In case I did overreach, I had some time to let it recover. I reached out to Rick and Andrea Sarpolus to see if they might be up for something. We had chatted a few times online, sharing trail beta, but had never hiked together in real life. Rick suggested we try the hike up Frank’s Peak and then over to Mt. Whitney. I had never done these, so I had to do some research to see if it was within my current capabilities. It was a little more gain than I wanted, but I knew that if after the first peak I needed to bail, I could.

We met at Ridgeline Park, and low clouds still hung in the air, obscuring the peaks to our south. We introduced ourselves and quickly set off. The route took us along a semi-private road before turning onto an abandoned dirt road. We chatted away, swapping stories and plans for upcoming adventures.

We reached the saddle between the two peaks and opted to do Frank’s Peak first. The clouds were beginning to burn off. We found ourselves at the summit, and an American flag hung from a pole with a register box placed beside it. We signed in and grabbed a few photos. Mt. Whitney stood just to the east of us. I commented that was what Sawtooth was like from atop Red Top. The big difference was we will be at its summit in about 20 minutes and it took us over 3 hours for Sawtooth.

Our route continued along an old road until it reached a fence. We passed to the side and made a U-turn onto the paved road that goes to the summit. A very nice home was just on the other side. Their view must be something amazing. The day was warming and asphalt was certainly not helping, but soon we were at the summit. This peak has a large tower and support equipment, which gave us some nice shade while we had a short break and a snack.

After snapping a few photos, we headed back down. The foot was still doing ok, so I was pleased with that. We reached the trailhead and the clouds had all disappeared, so I was able to get a photo of the peaks.

We chatted some more in the parking lot, enjoying a cold drink before heading our separate ways. They are tackling San Gorgonio tomorrow and I will wait and see how my foot does for the rest of the day. All told I logged 4.2 miles, just slightly longer than the hike yesterday. But the biggest difference was the 738 feet of elevation I did.

Torrey Pines – Broken Hill Overlook

Decided to try to test my recovering foot with a bit more distance, but more importantly, some actual elevation gain. So, with that in mind, I decided to tackle Torrey Pines this morning. Found parking along the coast, grabbed my gear, and set off. The skies were still overcast, but that was fine by me. I began my climb up the road with a bit of apprehension, but as I made my way up, the foot felt pretty good. An occasional biker or runner would pass by, but for the most part, I had the route to myself. As I neared the top, I climbed the stairs to the official high point for the state park, moved off the dirt covering the benchmark, and happily took my photo.

I continued cruising south toward Broken Hill Overlook. I realized in all my years living in San Diego, I don’t think I’ve ever explored this part of Torrey Pines. Shameful, I know. I turned off the road and onto a very well-groomed dirt trail.

Several bridges crossed now dry vernal pools as I headed westward toward the overlook. After a couple of junctions, I soon came upon the overlook.

The view was stunning. The sandstone formations, the Pacific Ocean, and some wildflowers are still in bloom. Since it was a work day, I did not linger too long and retraced my steps. The next test for my foot was coming up—the descent.

The park had begun to come alive with many more people enjoying the trails. I made my way back down to the coast, and the foot was feeling pretty good. However, the real test will be later in the day, and how my foot feels then. But for now, I was really happy with what I just did. All told I hiked 4.1 miles with 460 feet of gain. While I was not purposely looking at my time, it wasn’t too bad either.

South Lake

I wanted to get in a quick late morning hike to continue my rehab from my foot surgery. When I was looking at options for new places to explore, my friend Connie suggested that I might like doing the loop around South Lake in San Marcos. This trail just recently opened, so it was certainly one I wanted to explore.

Connie and I met in the parking lot and quickly set off. One thing to note, there are no bathrooms at this trailhead, so plan accordingly. The access to the trail is from sunrise to sunset. After passing through the gate, we opted to hike the loop clockwise. The trail almost immediately splits into an upper path and a lower path. We took the high road…

We cruised around the well-groomed trail, catching up with each other, and stopping to take a quick photo or two. After about a mile, we were back at our starting point. The foot was feeling good, so we decided to do another loop, and this time we took the lower trail. This took us past the various folks trying their luck fishing in the lake. The trail rejoined the upper trail after about 1/4 mile.

After our second loop, we decided to call it as we each had stuff to attend to and said goodbye. This was a nice little local trail.

Bernardo Bay

Today’s adventure was a short loop along the shores of Lake Hodges. About 8 cars were in the parking lot at the Piedras Pintadas trailhead. I grabbed my gear and headed west along the wide trail. Along this initial portion, interpretive panels tell the story of native peoples that lived here.

The trail forks as it reaches the now-dry lakeshore (the lake’s water levels had been lowered for repairs to the dam), and I stayed to the right. The trail would now follow the shoreline for most of the rest of the way.

Various birds could be seen along the empty lake bed. Bernardo Mountain stood high above it to the north. My foot certainly was not ready to climb to its summit.

There were a few others out enjoying the trail, but for the most part, I had the trail to myself. As the trail turned eastwards, I could spot the pedestrian bridge off in the distance. Soon the trail ended at the bike path that runs along the road, and after a short climb up, I returned to my car. A nice 2.1-mile loop was perfect to keep working my foot.

Barnett Ranch Open Space Preserve

Decided to continue my foot rehab with another mild hike. This time I opted to explore the Barnett Ranch Open Space Preserve out near Ramona. I had driven past it several times en route to Mt. Gower or some other peak. After driving past the hoards of cars parked at the trailhead for Iron Mountain and Woodson, I pulled into the parking lot. A park ranger had just pulled in, I chatted with him for a bit before setting off.

The sun was shining, something that hasn’t happened too much recently. Thankfully a light breeze kept things pleasant. The trail is mostly a loop around the edge of the preserve.

Wildflowers were still in bloom throughout. The trail is initially a paved road that continues on to some properties off to the north and then continues on a proper dirt trail. I soon found myself taking a quick break next to a small pond before continuing on the trail, and arriving at a small water crossing. I began a short climb toward the southern end of the preserve which gave me some sweeping views of the area.

The trail would follow the small ups and downs along the hills. There are two connector trails that would return me back to the trailhead and I opted for the closest, mostly since it also is the trail to the overlooks to the south. I did not want to push my foot since I still needed to drive home so that portion of the preserve would have to wait for another trip.

Since I was out near Ramona, I decided to stop in and visit Kit Fox Outfitters. Colin was teaching a class, so I chatted with Stephanie a bit. Once I am ready to start backpacking again, going to have to take a closer look at their store. 🙂

Blue Sky Ecological Reserve

It has been seven weeks since the surgery on my foot and I finally felt ready to try something more than a walk around the neighborhood. Also, my custom orthotics arrived, so I could trim them and insert them into my hiking boots. While I was recovering, I mapped out a list of hikes that would be relatively flat, somewhat interesting, and between 2-6 miles in length. I opted to do a portion of the trail in the Blue Sky Ecological Preserve. I certainly wasn’t going to make the climb up to Lake Ramona, but the out-and-back to the start of the climb seemed just what I needed to attempt.

Joining me on this sojourn was my lovely wife and our dog. We pulled into a mostly empty parking lot under the grey morning sky and set off down the wide trail.

I have hiked this trail before but always turn onto the connector trail that climbs up to Lake Poway. Today’s plan was to keep going eastward until the trail makes its turn to the north.

A few other hikers passed us as we made our way past a few remaining flowers that dotted each side. We passed the fork to the Creekside trail, but that trail doesn’t allow dogs, so we stayed on the main trail. Signs are placed along the route, letting visitors know what various trees and plants are.

Soon we reached the turnaround point, just past three picnic benches. I considered bringing my breakfast along but opted not to.

We made our way back to the car, again passing a few more folks out for their morning workout. Just before we reached our starting point, I convinced my wife to let me take the Overlook trail instead. This trail has a short climb, but my foot handled it without issue. Soon we were back at the parking lot. Our hike clocked in at 2.4 miles in just under 1 hour. The best part was the foot was feeling good.

Bernardo Mountain

It has been a couple of months since my foot began hurting after hiking Volcan Mountain, so I thought would see if it could handle some time on the trail. I needed Bernardo Mountain to complete this year’s Coast to Crest Challenge, so I decided why not? Ted and his oldest son joined me for the climb to the top. Unfortunately, the forecast was for an extremely hot day, so this meant an early start. We set off from the Piedras Pintadas Trailhead and crossed over the dry lake bed. Repairs to the Lake Hodges Dam meant much of the lake had been drained, making for some interesting scenery.

We made our way toward the mountain, the warmth of the day was already being felt. We kept a measured pace, in part to the heat, but also for my foot. The trail wrapped around the mountain, making its ascent toward the summit. Soon, we found ourselves there, sharing it with one other fellow adventurer. I took my required “selfie” at the summit and we began our descent.

The empty lake bed was quite interesting to see. Thankfully no unpleasant surprises have been discovered like in the receding Lake Mead… We returned to our cars feeling the full effects of the blazing heat. It was just past 9:30 in the morning and the thermometer was reading over 90°F! We said farewell and retreated into the air-conditioning of our cars. My foot did feel some pain, so I knew I needed more rest before my next adventure.

Raptor Ridge

Decided to hike out to Raptor Ridge with my wife and dog. The parking lot had about 6 cars in it when we arrived. Rocky hopped out of the car ready to go!

We cruised along together making our way to the end of the flat section of the hike. Several groups of mountain bikers passed us. I usually have hiked this trail during the week and rarely see anyone, so it was nice to see it being used.

Anita and Rocky took a well-earned break while I began the climb up to the viewpoint. I had noticed some tenderness in my right foot after last week’s hike, and I was starting to feel it again. Once at the viewpoint, I snapped a few photos and let Anita know I was making my way back. As I descended, I could feel the pain increase. Ugh.

I made my way back along the trail, knowing that I was now looking at an extended break to let my plantar fasciitis recover. The question will be for how long? I caught up with Anita and Rocky as they were taking a break at the table near the junction with the Mule Hill Trail. Despite my foot, we all had a nice time on the trails. My final hike on this year’s Coast to Crest Challenge is going to have to wait, along with my various other hiking adventures.

Blue Sky to Lake Poway

Decided to knock out another on this year’s Coast to Crest Challenge by hiking the Blue Sky – Lake Poway Loop. There were a few spots left in the parking lot around 7:30. I grabbed my gear and headed down the Torretto Trail to connect with the Green Valley Truck Trail. Once I reached the junction with the Creekside Trail, I opted to take it this time. The last time I hiked this loop, I stayed on the GVTT. The Creekside Trail was more trail-like, as it paralleled the GVTT. If there was some flow in the creek, this little section of trail would be fantastic, but the biggest concern is the large amount of poison oak along the sides of the trail.

Once the trail reconnected with the GVTT, I continued eastward until I reached the Lake Poway Trail. Now I would start climbing up toward the lake. This time I opted to circle the lake in a clockwise manner to make sure I had a little shade as I made my way around Lake Poway.

Along the way I snapped my needed selfie for the challenge and continued on. As I neared the Lake Poway parking lot, a group of hikers asked if this was the way to the “Potato Chip”. I gave them direction and silently shook my head at their lack of preparation. A new art installation of some “big” chairs were another stop along the loop. The trail then snaked its way back down toward the GVTT. Once back on the GVVT, I cruised back to the parking lot, covering the 5.3 miles in 1:41. Three more hikes to complete the challenge!