Campbell House was built by Amasa Campbell, in 1898.

For the Discovery Center’s Trail to Bay Challenge you complete three hikes and one clean-up. I did the clean up (posted Jan 15 ). Today is my first hike: Mother Miguel Mountain (1527 ft) in Chula Vista.

This morning I met a group at La Jolla Hermosa Park for a hike up Mount Soledad.

Mount Soledad Veteran Memorial

After snacks, we walked back down to the beach. We took the LaJolla Bike Path part of the way.

After a quick lunch I met a group at the library in Mission Valley for a Lion Dance performance to celebrate the Lunar New Year.

This morning I joined a Meetup group to hike in Mission Trails Park. We met at the dam and went up Oak Canyon.

We crossed over to Springs Canyon for our return.

The final leg of the hike was along Grasslands Crossing.

Today I met a buddy at Ellie Lane Trailhead for a hike up Iron Mountain. Traffic was horrible due to road work and we got a late start, but it was a nice hike.

We spent a few minutes at the summit enjoying the views – and the breeze.

We returned to the trailhead on Wild Horse Trail off of Iron Mountain Trail – shorter (.9 m) and easier.

Today I joined a Meetup group for a tour of La Jolla. Our first stop was the Famers Market.

Then we headed downtown.

We checked out views from the historic La Valencia Hotel.

Then we walked to the La Jolla Cave.

We didn’t visit the cave, but we joined the Coast Walk Trail and walked south almost to Pacific Beach.

We returned via the La Jolla Bike Path along the path of the trolley line that ran to downtown San Diego until 1940.

Today’s adventure was with Meetup to the Secret Stairs of Mt Nebo. Three stairways, built between 1910 and 1930 with 489 steps in total, provide the hilltop neighborhood access to the surrounding communities.

Stairway 1 (245 steps)

Stairway 2 (184)

Stairway 3 (60 steps)

Bonus Stairways

After breakfast I walked up the 71-step Rainbow stairway.

I finished my adventure with the 37-step Dallas St staircase.

Today I joined a crew from the Discovery Center to clean up the D Street nesting area (National Wildlife Refuge). We picked up over 60 pounds of trash and pulled lots of invasive ice plant.

It rained this morning and there were a lot of no-shows, but it had cleared by the time we headed out.

A friend and I met in Poway this morning and hiked up Iron Mountain and over to the Ramona overlook.

I joined one of my Meetup groups for a hike, and scramble, up Lawson Peak in Alpine. It was -5 in Spirit Lake, ID this morning so no complaints about the weather.

I stopped by Balboa Park on my way to lunch. Highlights were the Trees for Health Garden (medicinal plants from around the world), the Fire Alarm Building (from 1928-1970 the home of the city’s fire alarm telegraph communications center), and the El Cortez Hotel which used to be the tallest building in the city.

After lunch I walked around Vacation Isle in Mission Bay. I started at the memorial to hydroplane racing legend Bill Muncey. It is located next to the Ski Beach boat ramp which is still the staging area for hydroplane races.

The wind and an early-morning rain scared off most of the group, but those who showed up had a nice hike.

One of the highlights was spotting tadpoles in one of the vernal pools (seasonal ponds).

My day began at Lake Poway with a hike to Mt Woodson.

And ended with the sunset at Mission Bay.

Back to Mission Trails Park to hike Cowles Mountain and Pyles Peak.

Torrey Pines State Park Extension was created in the 1960s after an uproar by the community following the bulldozing of some Torrey pines. The 200 acre park has several miles of trails and is home to sandstone bluffs, rock formations, wildlife and indigenous plants.

Today it was back to Santee for a hike around the lakes and lunch.

This morning I went hiking at Daley Ranch (northeast of Escondido) with a new Meetup group. We passed Mallard Lake on our way to the ranch house.

Today I walked along the bay to Pacific Beach.

Last weekend we had coastal flood warnings. There was a lot of sand on the boardwalk and the end of Crystal Pier was closed, but there didn’t seem to be any major damage.

The sunset was great!

The community of Old Town is home to Old Town State Park, Heritage Park, Presidio Park, Bazaar del Mundo, plus homes, churches, and businesses.

Heritage Park contains seven restored Victorian buildings from the 1880s-1890s – six homes and the first synagogue.

Presidio Park is where the fort and mission were established in 1769. The mission moved four years later.

Then, I returned to Old Town. My visit ended with a folklórico dance show and another hand-made tortilla.

Bazaar del Mundo was the last stop before heading home.

This afternoon, since I was already in the neighborhood – and the coast was under a flood alert – I walked at Lake Poway. The trail I took was to Lake Ramona.

Lake Poway Hike

Lake Ramona Hike

Morning Adventure:

20231230 Gingerbread House