Favorite San Diego Hikes

I have been hiking in San Diego county since we moved here in 2001.  Although there are still some large areas I haven't explored yet (mainly south of interstate 8), I have put together my current list of the top hikes.

• Mt. Gower – tough up and down hike with some really steep sections but the views are worth it.
• Wilson Peak – some of the best views of Anza-Borrego.  You can start up at the bottom for a long or shorten it by driving up the ridge.
• Manchester Preserve – my backyard hike is great short track.
• Bernardo Mountain – can be crowded but great views from the peak.
• Piedras Pintadas – do the entire hike out to the interpretive loop.
• Eagle Rock – I prefer the southern approach out-and-back hike.
• Blue Angel Peak – lots of rocks on this remote desert hike.  Be sure to find Smuggler's Cave.
• Bayside Trail – Cabrillo National Monument gets thousands of visitors a year but few of them do this trail with awesome bay views.
• Oakzanita Peak/Stonewall Peak – two great peaks with Cuyamaca Rancho State Park.  Oakzanita is harder but has better views to the west.  Stonewall is easier but is well worth it.
• Viejas Mountain - tough uphill but the 360 degree views are spectacular.

Books

• Ancient Civilizations of North America by Edwin Barnhart
• Julian City and Cuyamaca Country by Charles R. LeManager
• Fake by Robert Kiyosaki
• 1917: Lenin, Wilson and the Birth of the New World Disorder by Arthur Herman
• 12 Essential Scientific Concepts by Indre Viskontas

Time Team and Modern Monetary Theory

Lately I have been binge watching Time Team.  The show is a British archaeology "reality" show where a team conducts a three day dig at some site in the UK.  When digging Roman sites, they invariably find coins from the Roman occupation (roughly 60 – 400 CE).  One a recent episode that was taking place in Greenwich, they found coins from almost the entire four century period.  They matter-of-factly discussed the monetary policy of the emperors and how they devalued the currency.  The early coins were nearly pure silver but later ones where either smaller or mixed with other metals.  They commented on how this disrupted the economy as it was something everyone should know.  So even British archeologists know the basics of sound money.

Couples Backpack

Jyoti has finally recovered enough from our Thomas Mountain expedition to try another backpack.  So I picked an easy, predictable trip out to Eagle Rock near Warner Springs.  We drove out around noon and stopped at Ramona Natural Foods for sandwiches.  We got to the PCT trailhead at Barrel Springs and there were lots of cars including a couple that was hiking the nearly the same itinerary we were.  After a quick check of the spring and finding it swarming with bees we headed out on the hike. The weather was great but the sun could be intense at times as we hiked along rolling hills.  We quickly got to our camp at San Ysidro Creek.  Unfortunately the creek was bone dry and there were a bunch of flies and gnats.  Since we made good time, we headed out to Eagle Rock before sundown.  The night was chilly and got down to the 40. We woke up early and hiked out before it got too hot.  Jyoti had a good time.

HALT Desert Backpack

Granite Springs Backpack

The October troop outing was a backpack out to Granite Springs.  The well was flowing nicely after a few dry years.

40 Miles of Hikes

Over the last couple weekends, I got in a couple of 20 mile hikes.
The first was San Gorgonio summit via the South Fork Trail.  The north side of the wilderness has been closed for a while due to fire damage so I jumped at the chance to hike it with Mark's hiking group.  We got to the trailhead and started hiking at 8am.  The first few miles were through recovering burn areas and the trail threaded through think lilac and acacia.  The terrain turned to mostly pines when it joined with the south fork river.  It was smooth going to Dollar Lake saddle.  Another hiker and I then went ahead for the summit.  Once there, it was great weather, not windy but perfectly nice.  After hanging around for a bit, we hurried down to the saddle and caught up with the rest of the group right before the trailhead.  Overall this is a great trail and much better than Vivian Creek for a day hike.

Burn area

Dollar Lake saddle

View from the trail

San Gorgonio Summit Selfie

The second hike was Noble Canyon.  I had never done this and the weather looked to be not to hot to try it.  Arriving at the parking lot, the car thermometer read 33!  I put on my rain jacket and hurried up the trail.  It only took a mile or so to warm up as the sun came over the ridges. The trail started along oak and chapparal terrain and then along riparian when along the streams.  There was lots of flies and poison oak.  Along the way, there were runners participating in the Noble Canyon 50K.  After a short break at Penny Pines, I headed back down the trail.  Overall, this is a great San Diego hike.

View from the trail

Old mine

Prescott Visit

With Bengt starting his second year at Embry-Riddle, we had a nice weekend dropping him off.

• Downtown Prescott art walk and music on the square
• Good Thai food at Tara Thai
• Awesome cocktails at Thumb Butte Distillery
• Morning hikes at Watson Lake
• Great dinner at Saint Micheal Cafe

Crowded downtown Prescott

Petroglyphs in friends neighborhood

Sophomore dorm