Happy Friday guys! I'm sure you all are looking forward to the weekend! And speaking of days off, whenever I have a long weekend, I like to do spend part of it doing something fun and new. For 4th of July weekend, this was no exception. We had a party at our friends' on the agenda, which I made my very first red, white & blue cake {angel food cake with cream cheese frosting & a fruit flag} + caprese pasta salad for. We also had some house stuff to do (homeowners, do you also feel like the work is never-ending?!), but that was pretty much it... so, we had some time to go on adventure! I decided that a new area hiking spot was to be explored, and the weather was perfect for doing so. A lot of hiking trails in San Diego County are inland, and inland areas can get HOT ... [Read More]
California hikes
Bernardo Mountain Summit Trail // Escondido, CA
Hi everyone! Hope that you had a fun, rejuvenating weekend. My weekend was pretty low-key, and one of the highlights was hiking a new local trail called Bernardo Mountain with my little family. Located in the town of Escondido within the 55-mile-long San Dieguito River Park along Lake Hodges, Bernardo Mountain is a dog-friendly trail that offers pretty views of San Diego County - and of the many mansions in the area. Bernardo Mountain is an out-and-back hike that's about 7.2 miles roundtrip. It was easy for us to get to the park from North County by driving east on Rt 78, hopping on I-15, and parking at the end of Sunset Drive. The trail starts off as a concrete walkway, where you walk underneath I-15 and find yourself next to Lake Hodges. I imagine that the reservoir ... [Read More]
Clevenger Canyon North Hike [Weekend Recap]
Clevenger Canyon North is a trail located in the SoCal countryside in the town of Ramona. I first heard about this hike when checking out a hiking book that covers trails within 60 miles of San Diego. Not surprisingly, I've already done most of the hikes that are moderate to difficult, but I jotted down a few that I hadn't done before, and Clevenger Canyon was one of them. ... [Read More]
Hiking to Potato Chip Rock [2015 Edition]
Hi friends! Hope that you had a great weekend. I've been back to the work grind on this Monday and have been busy, busy, busy! But I'm popping in to recap the highlight of my weekend with you guys: hiking to Potato Chip Rock! My cousin Michelle and I have been talking about getting together for a hike excursion for awhile, and set a date for last Saturday. She drove down from where she lives in Long Beach to stay the night at my place on Friday, and Saturday morning we set out to the Lake Poway Recreational Reserve. I hiked to Potato Chip Rock once before with my hubby 2+ years ago (recap here <-- throwback post!), so I was able to reference my blog post beforehand to jog my memory about the hike and see how long it took me the first time, as well as how I described the ... [Read More]
Cedar Creek Falls Hike Recap {San Diego Area}
"Climb mountains not so that the world can see you, but so you can see the world." Happy Friday! Any fun Super Bowl or weekend plans? Speaking of the weekend, today I'm hopping back a few weekends to talk about where I spent part of my MLK Jr. holiday: When I found out that both my hubby and I had no plans for the Monday holiday I had off, I decided that it'd be a great day to try a new hiking trail in the area. Since Southern Cali has gotten a good amount of rain recently (well, for here at least!), I thought it'd be cool to check out a waterfall hike. We decided to head out to the Cedar Creek Falls Trail - a hiking spot located in a town called Ramona about an hour from my house. ... [Read More]
My New Favorite Hiking Spot: Elfin Forest
Meet my new favorite place to go hiking: When I moved back to San Diego County a few months ago, it was funny because although I was back in a general area that I had lived in before, I'm 45 minutes north from where I had lived prior. It has been like learning the ins and outs of a whole new place, although the area is familiar. One of the first things I started searching for in my new area was new favorite hiking spots. After all, hiking is one of my favorite things to do. It's not only a way that I get exercise and exercise my dog, it's also a meditative practice for me. It's a way that I process things and clear my head. Often, I start off a hike with a dilemma or just something that I'm contemplating, and by the time I get back in my car, I've resolved it. Escondido's Elfin ... [Read More]