I was in San Diego for a short week with the family to visit the in-laws. I had
originally planned to do a long hike with Tom Becht to Lorenzens (or Dawns) Peak
in the Santa Rosas, but a cold storm system was due through the area at the same
time I was going to be in the area. We decided that 6-12 inches of fresh snow
with 6,000ft+ of gain was not such a great idea, and scrapped the plan for the
time being. I still managed to have an enjoyable three days with a mix of rain,
sunshine and snow. The peaks were almost all short, less than two miles one-way.
Below is a synopsis of the day's peaks and their attributes, good or bad.
Tuesday was drizzly most of the day, with low-hanging clouds, poor views and
muddy trails. Great fun. I stayed close to home in case the rain started in
earnest and cut my outing short ("great fun" is quickly hindered by significant
precipitation). I didn't get started until after noon, but the
weather held off until I was done around sunset. The evening commuter traffic
on SR78 kinda sucked, making me remember one of the reasons I don't have a job
anymore.
Merriam Mountains HP
The Merriam Mountains and San Marcos Mountains are two small ranges tucked
between Interstate 15, SR78 and SR76. North Twin Oaks Valley Road runs between
the two ranges, providing convenient access to the highpoints of both ranges
without much driving. I parked at a small turnout just north of the junction
with unsigned Camino Mayor, a dirt road heading steeply up the west side of
the Merriam Mountains near the highpoint.
The road is as Private Property, but it
appears to be widely ignored, as evidenced by the abundant trash, graffiti and
occasional car bodies upturned, stripped and abandoned. The road
itself has not been maintained in years but still sees considerable traffic.
Only the most serious of 4WD vehicles will have any chance of making it up the
badly rutted road, particularly in muddy conditions as I found today. There were
two trucks driving up on my way down, one having significantly more trouble than
the other. The young occupants matched the expected male teenage / early 20s
image that I had for this apparently popular OHV party locale. I waved to the
first truck as it drove by and spoke briefly with those of the second who were
struggling to get up the hill. They'd done it many times before, so presumably
knew what they were doing. Of course that might be what the owners of those
overturned and abandoned trucks were thinking at the time, too.
It took about 30 minutes to cover the 750ft of gain
and one mile to the highpoint. There
are two summit rocks found just off the road. One is a straightforward class 3
affair, about 18ft in height. I climbed this one but was disappointed to find
the other block a few feet higher. It is a smooth-sided obelisk with no cracks
and no apparent holds. Climbing it would be for the very skilled or the very
determined. A ladder would work nicely. So might a rope thrown over the top and
a couple of ascenders or loops. It might possibly rank as the most technically
difficult summit block of any range highpoint, at least in California. I might
be tempted to come back with a rope to give it another try. Unfortunately the
drizzle had convinced me to leave my camera in the car so I got no pictures of
the summit blocks or the non-existent views to be had from the summit.
San Marcos Mountains HP
Almost directly across from the Merriam Mountains HP is the highpoint for the
San Marcos Mountains. The route I hiked was barely 400ft over 3/4 mile, but the
driving proved a bit inventive, getting me to
along the crest of the
range on portions of road that are probably private. The pavement leads north to
a private home perched 100ft higher. From the saddle, an old
leads
around the west side of the home and up to a lower point a quarter of a mile
south of the highpoint. From there, a clipped use trail leads to the highpoint
further north. An elaborate is errected here, complete with
solar-powered for nighttime viewing. at the
base explains the flag,
almost pleading to be left alone as a non-political statement. An ammo box
holds a register. Both have been there less than two months - it will be
interesting to see how long they last in this tough environment. A badly
battered
suggests the local teens are hard on their landmark summits.
were only slightly better than on the previous summit.
The highpoint had been
when I first viewed it from the lower point to the south, but these had
upon my return. I tried to get a good view of the
Merriam Mtns highpoint during the return, to .
Owens Peak
This is a small, isolated summit just north of San Marcos and SR78, featuring
nearly 500ft of prominence. There is a network of trails running around this
island of open space with suburbia
on all sides. I could find no
signs anywhere indicating whether this is private or public lands. My best
guess is that it is undeveloped open space waiting for someone to find a reason
and a way to spend money and make a civic project out of it. The route I picked
was neither the shortest, easiest, or best, but it worked. I was trying to
access a dirt road from the south along West Borden Rd, but they have both sides
of the road heavily signed for No Parking and I haven't yet recovered from my
last parking ticket less than a month ago. I ended up parking off Via Barquero,
next to a small ,
but rather than hike down W Borden Rd to
the intended dirt road, I started up a paved road immediately behind the park.
This led to ,
with an equestrian trail starting to the left. I
went right, on a use trail around the gate and eventually to a fence
surrounding a water tank. A use trail led right and uphill, soon intersecting
the wider dirt road I had planned to use.
The brushy
took all of 25 minutes to reach. The brush wasn't high enough
to obstruct , though those were still lacking on this
.
Though not as trashy as the Merriam highpoint, this summit had a partial
off in the brush to one side of the road. The OHV drivers don't seem to
be particularly skilled in these parts, or perhaps they're just pushing the
envelope more than in most places.
Cerro de las Posas
I hadn't researched this one ahead of time, finding it as a place name on my
GPS when I had time for another short peak. It is located across SR78 and south
of San Marcos, a medium-sized radio tower crowning its summit. I drove around
the streets north of the summit until I found an access road off La Plaza Drive
that leads through some avocado groves. I found lots of such trees in the
northern part of San Diego County - this appears to be a prime avocado growing
region. They even have a section of I-15 labeled the Avocado Highway. One can
buy them in bulk at many locations, 25 for $5. A quarter mile in,
blocks further access by vehicle, but there is a convenient
turnout at a bend in the road where out of the way. A short
hike up the road leads to a fenced-in lighted cross. here
indicates the San Marcos Lake Trail, part of a network of trails that include
these small hills between to the north and the
community of San Elijo Hills to the south. I followed the Double Peak Ridge
Trail up to the , breached the perimeter and stood upon
the highest rock found inside. There's of the north
county area and the Pacific Ocean from the top. Later I found that the highpoint
is really further southwest about half a mile, though the tower location matched
the point indicated in my GPS. (I'm told [see comment below] this is locally
known as San Marcos Peak) I don't mind coming back as it looks like a
pleasant hike between the tower and Double Peak another mile east of Cerro de
las Posas.
Continued...