Wild Horse Trail

I wanted something with some difficulty as the last hike before my final PT appointment. Between the heat and some afternoon commitments, I did not have a lot of options for this hike. I settled on doing the Wild Horse trail out at Iron Mountain. We pulled into the parking lot at about 6:30, finding plenty of parking. The forecasted temperatures probably kept some folks home (or they were at ComicCon). We took the required photos of the trailhead sign and the tree tunnel and set off. The Wild Horse trail parallels the main trail, just one ravine to the north.

After passing a small pond, our route headed east and began its climb to the ridge line. The sun was just starting to crest over the hills as we made our way up. Some of the trails were closed due to raptor breeding. At the ridge line, we decided to make the short side trip to the top of the Ramona Overlook. This is one of the 12 peaks that make up the Iron Mountain Preserve. After grabbing our photos, we set off toward the junction with the main trail toward Iron Mountain.

Since the trail is on the east side, we could feel the sun beating down on us. Once at the side, I debated if I wanted to try for the summit or not. Heat is not my friend, so I was uncertain, but opted to try, while being mindful of how I felt.

We worked our way up toward the summit and the trail was much more populated than our initial route. As we neared the Little Iron Mountain, I knew that the full summit was not in the cards. Maybe if we started an hour earlier or took the direct route it would have been. We decided to weave our way through the brush and scramble up some rocks to the summit of Little Iron Mountain. I enjoyed some of my orange and grabbed a few photos, but the heat kept assaulting me, so it was time to make our descent. I plodded back down the trail, taking a couple of breaks in the shade just to be safe. I was amazed at the number of folks ascending in the heat and with so little water. I saw one couple with an Iced Starbucks for each of them and nothing else. Adding to that, they had a dog with them! Ted and I also looked quizzically at one hiker ascending in a jacket!

I pushed on down the mountain, bummed that I did not summit again, but knowing I made the smart call to turn back. While my foot is doing pretty well, my fitness level is not where it was pre-injury. That is going to just have to come with time and effort. Back at the car, the temperature read 91 F in the parking lot. Yikes, that was toasty for 10 am! All told it was a good hard hike, I got a couple of summits in, and it was a friendly reminder that I am still rebuilding…

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.

Woodson Mountain (via Fry-Koegel Trail)

A sliver of a moon hung in the eastern sky as I pulled to the side of the road. San Diego was under an extreme heat warning, so I needed to have a very early start to attempt to beat it. I wanted to try the Fry-Koegel trail for this attempt up the summit, having done the other two routes to the summit. If you ever drive along the 67 and see a few cars near the intersection with Archie Moore Road, that is where you should park if you want to use the Fry-Koegel trail. Otherwise, continue on a short bit to park with everyone else who will summit via the Service Road. I pulled over just past the guard rail and parked. As expected, there was no one here. In fact, I only saw two cars near the other trailhead. I gathered my gear, turned my headlamp on, and set off. Besides hoping to reach the summit, my other goal was to keep my pace and exertion level at a reasonable level. The trail initially skirts past a collection of backyards. I would occasionally look back to view the changing sky as we drew closer to sunrise. There was an occasional hoot from an owl to break up the silence.

The trail kept climbing up the north side of the mountain until I reached a fork in the trail. To my left was the old trail, and to my right the new route. Since either route would be new to me, I opted for the old trail. About 1/2 mile later the trail linked up with the trail you would use coming from Lake Poway. The sun had almost risen over the mountains as I now headed eastward and I grabbed a few photos of the first light spilling across the landscape.

The main draw for this hike is the Potato Chip, a piece of granite hanging free that folks love to climb upon. In contrast to the almost Disneyland-like lines which are frequent, I was alone. I snapped a few photos but skipped going onto it. The summit was still a bit further, so I strolled on. I went over to the true summit, just to take a look. I certainly wasn’t planning on scrambling up that summit block either. I pushed the rubber tips onto my trekking poles before I headed down the paved service road.

I was now starting to see folks making their way up. The temperatures were already climbing, so I was glad to be heading back down. The steepness of the road did bother my foot a bit, but it was manageable. The real test will be later today and how it feels then.

I tossed my gear into the car and carefully pulled on the 67 and headed home. When I started the hike, the car said it was 64°, as I sped away, it was now 82°! The entire hike was 5.4 miles in 2:35 and had 1,475 feet of gain.

Ramona Grasslands

After summiting Volcan Mountain yesterday, I knew I should keep my trail time to something more on the mild side, and Ramona Grasslands seemed to fit the bill nicely. I decided to try this hike with the dog.

The marine layer had already burned off, but a good breeze kept the temperatures nice and comfortable. Rocky was not on his best behavior, so a lot of corrections were needed as we strolled down the wide trail. We passed a few others out enjoying the area but had a lot of the preserve to ourselves.

I opted to do the longer loop, stopping at the picnic benches for a quick break in the shade and some water for Rocky. A few flowers still dotted the sides of the trail.

Once back at the trailhead, a ranger had set up a display about various wildlife. Turned out he was the same ranger from Barnett Ranch and he remembered me. We chatted some before I bid farewell. A nice Sunday stroll of about 2.75 miles in 1:02.

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.

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.