Tag Archives: hiking

Daley Ranch

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Daley Ranch
Escondido
February 17, 2019

We had fun exploring a new (to us) place to hike, the Daley Ranch in Escondido. We had originally planned to hike out in East County, at Mountain Palm Springs in the Anza Borrego State Park, a place we had enjoyed exploring a year or two ago, but there was a high wind advisory. We figured that although our low-profile sedan could get us there safely, it wouldn’t be fun to hike in the desert with high winds blowing sand in our face. Another time!

We took out our Coast to Cactus book, a guide compiled by the Canyoneer volunteers of the San Diego Natural History Museum, and looked through it for something new. We had only vaguely heard of the Daley Ranch before; we found out that it offers a variety of hikes, of differing lengths and levels of difficulty. There are over 20 miles of trails.  We elected to hike the Pond and Lake View Trail, a four mile loop that offers a glimpse of Dixon Lake and then meanders past Mallard Pond, Middle Pond, and a couple of unnamed smaller ponds. We saw a coyote on the verge of one of the ponds, eyeing some ducks who were too smart to swim close to him. Ultimately he gave up, and we watched him saunter off on one of the many game trails. We saw many birds in addition to the ducks and a profusion of lilac bushes, which the guidebook told us are Ramona-lilacs (Ceanothus tomentosus).

The Daley Ranch used to be a working ranch. Robert Daley settled there around 1869 and built a small cabin. The over 3,000 acre property was slated for development until the City of Escondido purchased it in 1996. It is now a wide life refuge and open space park. A short history of the ranch can be seen on the city’s website here. Someday soon we would like to go back and try the Stanley Peak hike, which is longer and steeper than the pond trail we hiked this time.

The ranch house which currently stands on the property was built in 1925 and is open for tours on some Sundays from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm. (The city’s website says the second Sunday of the month, but a recent calendar posting listed a tour on March 24, the fourth Sunday, so check ahead of time.) The ranch house was not open when we were there; something else to go back for!

Opted Outside

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Batiquitos Lagoon
Carlsbad
November 23, 2018

We took part in the REI “Opt Outside” movement, and hiked the Batiquitos Lagoon on Black Friday morning.

The outing gave us a chance to practice with our digital camera, but the photos posted here were taken on Meredith’s iPhone for convenience.

The hike out to the end of the trail, which runs along the North side of the lagoon, is almost entirely flat. The total distance out and back was three miles. We saw a snowy egret and a great heron, and many smaller birds. We stopped in the small visitors center at the West end of the lagoon when we returned, and found good displays about local wildlife and indigenous people of the area.

Cuyamaca Gold

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Cuyamaca Rancho State Park
Stonewall Peak and Mine Museum
Between Descanso and Julian
October 7, 2018

We went hiking with some of Meredith’s rowing teammates in the Cuyamaca mountains. The group met and parked at the Paso Pichaco campground, then climbed up the west side of Stonewall Peak. We walked down the east side of the mountain and around a loop, coming back on the Cold Stream Trail, which runs parallel to State Route 79. The hike took us about 3 hours. The views from the heights were spectacular, and our geologist friend Beth explained the rock formations we saw.

After the hike a few of the younger hikers headed off to Nickel Beer Company in Julian to rehydrate themselves. The more studious of us, including the geologist, drove a short distance north to the site of the former Stonewall gold mine. The entrance to the mineshaft is visible, along with some rusting machinery, all behind a chain link fence. We visited the small museum, which displays historical photos and explains the history of the mine. It was one of several gold mines in the Julian area. It first opened in the 1870’s and operated, off and on, until the early 20th century. In 1926, just before a planned inspection of the timbers, the main shaft collapsed. Fortunately for the would-be inspectors, they had stopped to eat supper before entering the mine. More information about the history of the mine can be seen here.

Our two groups reconvened at Granny’s Kitchen in Julian for a late lunch. The food was great; this is definitely a place to remember for our next trip to Julian.

Both the hiking trails and the mine museum are within the Cuyamaca Rancho State Park, and visitors must display a pass to park in the lots at the campground and at the museum. Day passes cost $10 per vehicle. Free road parking may (or may not) be available, for those willing to hike in from route 79.

Exploring Alaska

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We joined seven other family members in June for a cruise on the Oceania ship Regatta from Seattle to Alaska and back via Victoria, B.C. The scenery was spectacular!

Bob landed a king salmon in Ketchikan, as did our oldest daughter and our niece.

We kayaked on Mendenhall Lake with two of our daughters, seeing both the Mendenhall Glacier and Nugget Falls.

In Skagway we biked through the forest, including the site of what was once the town of Dyea and the beginning of the Chilkoot Trail.

At Icy Strait Point we took a tram through the forest, then hiked a short nature walk.

The ship sailed on north from Icy Strait Point to the Hubbard Glacier, stopping just a mile short of it. The glacier is six miles wide and approximately 300 feet tall. We saw several “calvings,” that is ice breaking off the face of the glacier, where it meets the sea. The whole experience was breathtaking.

On the way back south, we stopped in Sitka. We and our niece hiked with a guided group through the rain forest.

In Victoria we took it a bit easier and hired a van and driver to give us a guided drive through the city. One of our stops was at the largest one-log free-standing totem pole in the world.

Hadrian’s Wall

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Hadrian’s Wall
Northern England
June 17-24, 2017

We traveled to Scotland and England in June, primarily to see and walk along what remains of Hadrian’s Wall, a World Heritage Site. The emperor Hadrian ordered the wall to be built, to defend the northern border of the Roman Empire in Britain and to regulate trade across it. The legions built it, and Hadrian came to inspect it in 122 A.D. The wall itself was about 73 miles long, stretching from Wallsend in the east to Solway Firth in the west.

The modern Hadrian’s Wall Path National Trail is 84 miles long. We walked approximately 30 miles of it, including the central section between Chollerford and Birdoswald. That is the section where the most visible remains of the original wall and the associated fortifications can still be seen. It is also the section with the steepest hills and most dramatic scenery. The trail is well marked with acorn symbols and other signage.

We stayed in the town of Hexham and traveled by local bus (the “AD122” route) out to stops along the wall trail for each day’s hiking.

At first we walked over gently rolling hills. When we reached the Whin Sill rock formation we hiked up and down steep hills for a couple of days. The views were spectacular and well worth the exertion.

After that the terrain once again became more gently rolling hills. All along the way we walked past and through farms, mainly open meadows with flocks of sheep. We often climbed up and over stiles to get into and out of farm fields, and other times walked through “kissing gates.” We occasionally had to walk through cattle pastures. We had one particularly unnerving encounter, edging slowly around a bull and his cows, trying not to get between any cow and her calf.

We were amused by the sheep grazing over and around an ancient temple of Mithras which was located in the middle of their owner’s land. Meredith insisted on getting a photo of one sheep standing by the Mithraic altar; perhaps symbolic of the victory of the Lamb of God over ancient pagan faiths?

The best remains of the wall are in the most inaccessible areas, for the quite practical reason that it was easiest for builders in subsequent centuries to recycle (plunder) stones from the areas of the wall they could reach more easily.

When intact the wall was about 15 feet high and 8 to 10 feet wide. Each side of it was built with well cut rectangular stones and mortar; the middle of the wall was filled with rubble – roughly shaped stones — and mortar. Along the wall the Romans built several major forts. In between those large forts they built small forts called milecastles, which were staffed by detachments of 10 to 30 soldiers. Like the large forts, milecastles had gates through the wall. In between the milecastles the Romans built turrets, which were staffed by a couple of soldiers. Those were guard posts which did not contain gates through the wall. In addition to the wall, the Romans dug deep ditches on both sides of the wall, and even where the wall can no longer be seen, the remains of one or both of those ditches is often visible. We saw the ruins of a number of milecastles and turrets as we walked, and here is a photo of Bob at one of them:

We toured what remains of the forts at Wallsend, Chesters, Housesteads, and Birdoswald. There are excellent museums associated with each of those, although unfortunately for us the Birdoswald museum was closed for renovations. We also walked over and around the ruins of the fort at Great Chesters, which is mostly buried under a working farm. There we saw an ancient Roman altar, standing out in the middle of the farmer’s field, covered with modern “offerings” in the form of coins from many different countries.

We were blessed with generally good weather. For the first two days of our hiking the weather was sunny and about 78 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit. We were amused to hear the locals complain about how terribly hot it was; it seemed like normal San Diego weather to us! After that front moved on, the weather stayed partially sunny for several more days but with highs during the day in the mid 60’s; seemed cool to us, but great for hiking. It was windy most days, especially in the afternoons, and we had to be careful not to lose our hats. We had hard rain just one day, the final hiking day when we walked the area around the Birdoswald fort.

We visited museums along the way and will have to write separately about a few of those highlights.

Camino del Norte

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June 9-18, 2015
Galicia, Spain

Pardon our hiatus from this blog. We spent most of June, three weeks in all, in Spain. For the first 10 days we walked the Camino of Santiago de Compostela, staying in hostels. There are several different routes that make up the Camino, all of which end in the city of Santiago in northwestern Spain, at the cathedral which houses the tomb of the Apostle James. We chose to walk the final 200 kilometers of the Camino del Norte, starting in Ribadeo on the northern coast of Spain. After that we did some sightseeing, first in Santiago, then in Lugo, Leon, and Oviedo. Like many other English speaking pilgrims, we were inspired by The Way, the 2010 movie starring Martin Sheen and directed by Emilio Estevez. Our pilgrimage was a wonderful and life changing experience. Perhaps the best part was meeting and walking with other pilgrims, including people from Spain, Italy, Germany, the U.S., Australia, and South Africa, and we want to give a special shout out to Dave and Kathy from England.

On our last night in Santiago, the priest preaching the homily at Mass in the cathedral told the congregation that the Camino does not end in Santiago, it ends at the end of our lives, and we are all pilgrims. As we return to our regular lives we try to hold on to that message.

IMG_1056

As I pause on the Camino to Santiago
Bless to me, O God, the earth beneath my feet.
Bless to me, O God, the path on which I go.
Bless to me, O God, the people whom I meet,
Today, tonight, and tomorrow.
Amen.

(Iona Community, adapted.)
Posted in the Miraz hostel of the Confraternity of Saint James

Old Town State Historic Park

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Old Town State Historic Park
Old Town, San Diego
March 21, 2015

We took a long two day hike recently, from our home to downtown San Diego and back, passing through Old Town and stopping briefly for some sightseeing. Old Town is a California State Park with dozens of small museums and historic buildings. We are not going to try a full write up here, but we do want to give a shout out to a few spots within the park. Visitors to San Diego should definitely put Old Town on their “must see” lists. For more information see the state park website or the Old Town business district website.

We walked into Old Town from the north and decided to stop in at the Casa de Estudillo, an adobe near the north end, facing the green. The San Diego History Center webpage about Old Town offers this write up of the Casa de Estudillo:

Construction of the most famous Old Town adobe began in 1827 and was completed in 1829 by Captain Jose Maria de Estudillo, commander of the San Diego presidio. When he died in 1830, the house passed to his son, Jose Antonio Estudillo, who served as revenue collector, treasurer, alcalde, and judge of San Diego under Mexican rule and later treasurer and assessor of San Diego County under American rule. He married Maria Victoria Dominguez and their family lived there until 1887. The original adobe home was restored in 1910 with funds provided by the Spreckels family, under the direction of Architect Hazel Waterman; it was donated to the State by Mr. Legler Benbough; furnishings were provided with the assistance of the National Society of Colonial Dames of America. For many years, the building was mistakenly known as “Ramona’s Marriage Place” from Helen Hunt Jackson’s novel. The museum now features furnished rooms and a working kitchen and large courtyard. Hours: 10-5 daily; Admission: free.

OldTown Oven

We rested in the courtyard, and took photos by the fountain and beehive oven. The fountain is a popular photo op; after taking Bob’s photo, Meredith volunteered to take photos of other visiting groups with their cameras.

OldTown Fountain

We then walked south through the main part of Old Town, which features many restaurants and shops, both kitschy tourist stops and nice boutiques. There are a number of restaurants we like in Old Town. This time we ate at Miguel’s Cocina. We each had taco plates and enjoyed them very much.

We also walked by the Whaley House Museum The Whaley House, built in 1856 by Thomas Whaley, is the oldest brick structure in San Diego and features authentic period furnishings. It is one of the San Diego County Passport 2 History sites.

At the south end of the park, beyond Miguel’s, we walked by the Sheriff’s Museum. We admired the old cars in the courtyard and made a note to go back and visit it another day. Apparently it offers exhibits from the entire 150-year history of the Sheriff’s Department.

Timken Museum

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Timken Museum of Art
Balboa Park, San Diego
February 15, 2015

First, let us say this is one of our most favorite museums! Located in the heart of Balboa Park in San Diego, the Timken is a small museum with an excellent art collection which offers free admission.

We have been here many times over the years; we often stop by when doing something else in Balboa Park. On this most recent visit, we hiked 4 miles round trip, from the northwest corner of the park around the Aerospace Museum and back to where we started. We stopped at the Timken partway through the walk.

Timken_Raphael

We made this visit to see a special exhibition: Raphael’s painting The Madonna of the Pinks, on loan from the National Gallery in London. It will be here through April 26, 2015. Later this year the Timken will be exhibiting another piece on loan, Vermeer’s Woman in Blue Reading a Letter, from May 11 through September 11, 2015, on loan from Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum. In exchange the Timken is lending its prize possession, Rembrandt’s painting Saint Bartholomew, to the National Gallery and the Rijksmuseum.

The permanent collection spans nearly six centuries, from early Renaissance to late nineteenth century paintings, and includes pieces from Italy, the United States, France, and the Lowlands. The museum also houses an extensive collection of Russian icons. The guards are very pleasant, and they are also knowledgeable about the collection, more so than we have found at most museums.

Bob was particularly taken by an 1880 Eastman Johnson painting in the American gallery, The Cranberry Harvest, Nantucket Island. Meredith enjoyed seeing an old favorite, Pieter Bruegel the Elder’s 1557 painting Parable of the Sower. Many years ago our youngest daughter, then in grade school, realized as soon as she saw the painting what parable it illustrated, displaying her Scripture knowledge without prompting from us.

As noted above, admission to the Timken is free. Please do make whatever donation you can afford, though; fine art needs conserving, and like all museums the Timken needs funds to operate. Parking is free in Balboa Park. We did not have Margaret with us this time, but handicapped access seems adequate here. There is no café in the museum; there is a café nearby in the park and several other grab and go snack options.

Torrey Pines State Reserve

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Torrey Pines State Reserve
October 11, 2014
San Diego

This outing was just the two of us, close to home; Margaret did not go with us. Torrey Pines State Reserve is in the northwest corner of the City of San Diego, just south of Del Mar. There are multiple interlocking trails up on the mesa overlooking the beach. The trails are mostly of intermediate difficulty; a couple are easier, but none are wheelchair accessible.

Torrey M&R

There is a $15 day use fee for the park, which is part of the state park system.

Our main purpose in coming here was to hike, but we also spoke with the docents stationed at the trailhead, who told us a great deal about the geology of the area and showed us rock samples to illustrate their points. After our hike we explored the visitor center which, although small, offers well designed explanatory displays about the area vegetation, animals, and geology.

Torrey VC

The different colored layers of the cliffs are quite striking. As we hiked to Red Butte and Razor Point we were able to see the effects of erosion and observe the sedimentary layers in the cliffs. We then hiked south over to Yucca Point, and then back to the visitor’s center. After viewing the exhibits in the center, we walked up to the High Point overlook, from which we could look inland to the east as well as north up the coast.

The land for the reserve was purchased and donated to the public by Ellen Browning Scripps in the early 20th Century. Her foresight and generosity saved the last large wild Torrey Pine woodland from development. This remarkable tree is the rarest pine in North America. It is only found in coastal San Diego County and on Santa Rosa Island. The tree is well adapted for the arid coastal climate; its extra long needles have grooves which channel dew and fog droplets to the ground where it can be absorbed by the tree’s roots. (It is also grown as an ornamental plant by some gardeners; seeds can be purchased from Anderson Seed Company.)

Park up top if you are hiking the cliff top trails or seeing the visitor center, or down below if visiting the beach. You can get plenty of scenic climbing on the trails; there is little point in a long walk up the steep driveway between the two parking lots!