San Marcos Mountain Tower

There are a few distinctive local hills in San Diego's North County between the Pacific Coast and I-15, and north of the San Dieguito River (Lake Hodges and on west to San Dieguito Lagoon) that are dead useful for orientation purpose whenever you get turned around on a bike ride and can no longer tell where you are and where you are headed. One of these striking looking hills that look different from different angles is San Marcos Mountain, particularly if seen from Vista proper (from WSW looking ENE at the mountain), with the steep zigzag of the very private Catalina Ave etched to its western face. 

The tantalizing Catalina Ave is, however, private and tripple-gated so tightly that even an amoeba would find it hard to squeeze through. The only viable route up to the San Marcos Mtn tower is the southern assault up Hardell Ln from Buena Creek Rd. 

Hardell Ln branches into three after the last house. Take the middle branch.

Past the gate, be sure to stay either on the road or on the trail to the right of it. 

I used to range into the Hollyberry neighborhood via a dirt trail approach from the south, over the Santa Fe Hills (from Borden Rd & Las Posas Rd) for a car-less gravel-bike-friendly ride with good deer and coyote sighting opportunities. A new subdivision is being constructed there, however, and the trail is currently fenced off.... hopefully just temporarily. (I have hope.. since this is in the City of San Marcos, and San Marcos has been pretty consistently awesome about putting in hike/bike-able trails whenever they build a new subdivision. If only I could convince the mayor of San Marcos to come and mayor next door Vista as well). 

There are almost always a few locals out walking the lanes in the Hollyberry neighborhood, and they are always a joy to stop and fraternize with. People are so much friendlier on foot and on bike than they are in a car. We are all going to get somewhere, and we are going to actually enjoy the process of getting somewhere... together!

 

Stay right at the Y-junction and head up the mountain.

 

Anyhow, going on past the car gate, there is a short firm dirt section before the tarmac returns as the lane meanders up to the saddle of the San Marcos Mountain. The area to the left of the road is strictly private. To the right a single-track trail runs along with the road for a while before veering off to take a more bushy way up to the radio tower complex (hiking boots- and full-suspension mountain bikes- friendly. Gravel bike... not so much). 

 

The big gate at the saddle with a narrow opening on the right side.

At the saddle, the fence gate to the tower complex is usually closed, but there is a narrow opening on the right for hikers to squeeze thru. If the gate is open when you head up, be sure to assume that it had closed when you head back down... and ride at a speed that would allow you to safely stop! 

This is an out-and-back ride, so be sure to scout the downhill conditions while you're going up. 

After the gate, the road climbs at around 6% toward the tower and then makes a sharp left with a gradient hike to around 8-12% and doesn't let up until after the next right curve. The view is pretty fantastic. 

Approaching the KGMG-FM Oceanside radio towers, with 360 view of San Diego's North County. It is amazing how analgesic the wide open vista is. 

There is a use trail to the proper summit block where the American flag is, but the actual benchmark is on the top of the rock cropping, and you'd have to do some bouldering to acquire the actual summit. It's worth hiking a bit onto the narrow ridge to have a look around. For all the energy you spent and all the suffering you endured to get up to the hard earned view, you might as well take the time to enjoy the reward. That... is my excuse for loitering, and I'm sticking with it.

Here are some views from the various side streets around the southern shoulder of San Marcos Mountain.

And a few video from the steepie-rich neighborhood. 

Camino de las Lomas.

El Paso Alto down to Hardell Ln. 

Hardell Ln to the radio tower complex.

This is San Diego's North County, my friends. No climb, no view! 

San Marcos' Little Mt Whitney

The skyline of San Marcos, CA is dominated by the Cerro de las Posas mountain range of which Mt Whitney (1729 ft) is its tallest prominence. Unlike many other prominent hills around town, there are several paved ways to the top of Mt Whitney, though some are less accessible than others. Choosing your way up, however, is an exercise in poison picking. Mt Whitney charges high metabolic price for the view she gives from the top.

Starting from the NE end of the range, the major route up Mt Whitney is on the back side of California State University - San Marcos (CSSM) via La Moree, Coronado Hills Dr, and Washingtonia Dr. The climbing begins a block or so south Coronado Hills Rd at the junction with Via del Campo. From bottom to top is 2 miles long at 8.3% average grade. The first 0.6 mile on Coronado Hills Dr is the most brutal, however, with an opening kick at 17% grade before dropping off to a near constant 15% for half a mile to the Washingtonia Dr turn off. Washingtonia is a bit of a roller until the private drive car gate (hikers and bicycles can go around), after which it only goes up and up all the way to the top. Don't begrudge the car gate at the last level off (Vallecitos Water District overlook) that you have to dismount and hike a bike thru. It's the only 'resting' spot before the sustained 14% grade for 1/4 mile to the tower. Also, remember this gate on your descent... and make sure you can stop the bike without crashing onto it!

Coronado Hills Dr

If you don't mind roughing it for a hard dirt stretch, another legit way up little Mt Whitney is to go up either San Elijo Rd or S Twin Oaks Valley Rd to the Ridgeline Trailhead staging area traffic light at Double Peak Elementary School. Go thru the school parking lot to pick up the dirt bit of Attebury Rd and continue on it to Washingtonia Dr. I prefer coming at it from San Elijo Rd rather than S Twin Oaks because you get more elevation gain from the south side, and you don't have to beg for green light to cross the road to get to Double Peak School. This is the first climb on this video:


(Video is of the Mt Whitney bit on my usual Friday morning assaults on Mt Whitney and her next door neighbor, Double Peak).

Aside from these two fairly open-access routes, there are a couple more private and steep ones whose accessibility can vary a bit from time to time (sometimes bikes and hikers are quite welcome on them, sometimes not so much). The Bela Vita Way route to connect to Attebury Rd to Washingtonia is listed on the City of San Marcos trails project map, though currently it is still strictly private. At 1.8 miles and 9.3% average grade, this is the hardest way to the top on paper (though in practice I don't think it is).

Bela Vita Way is guarded by two gates; the bottom one at S Village Dr was recently extended to cut off the dirt trail access, and the top one in the middle of a 15% grade ramp was fortified a bit, so this way may not stay bike/hike-able for long. With all the gates and the lack of other houses except for the manor overlooking the winery, there is literally no car traffic on this lonely paved lane... except for the winery owner and his couple of neighbors. Here is a video I took a while back (before the gates were extended and fortified), descending from Mt Whitney tower to S Village Dr via Attebury Dr and Bela Vita Way.



The goriest route up to Mt Whitney, however, is from the even less accessible Crestwind Dr on the SE side by Harmony Grove Village. It is about 2.8 miles long at a deceptively mellow 8.3% average gradient. Make no mistake, though, the single digit average grade is due to the little downhill bits in the lower part of the climb. The long uphill bits from Bresa de Lomas on up are all in the teens, with maximum grade in the 20s on the concrete and paved portion of Crestwind Dr (how deep into the 20s depends a bit on how you take the curves, and whether you go up it in a straight line or not).

Bresa de Lomas opening ramp.

The steepie switchback at the bottom of Crestwind Dr.

This route requires strong bike handling skills as well as strong legs and lungs (and at least a 30 cog in your cassette). After the two-houses saddle atop the gory switchback bottom of Crestwind Dr, the road turns into a rutty and pebbly dirt lane with a little dip followed by a sustained 15% grade ramp that gets even steeper once it turns the corner and becomes a concrete wall. Get across that wall to the tarmac, and you still have two long curves of steepness with spots that ventures north of the 20% grade mark to cope with before you get to the houses and false flat where you can breathe a bit before turning steeply up again onto Washingtonia Dr.

Mt Whitney radio tower

No matter which way you choose, though, San Marcos' little Mt Whitney is a gem with its rustic rural and car-less neighborhoods compared to the more well known Double Peak on the other side of S Twin Oaks Valley/San Elijo Rd. Do beware of cracks and potholes, aside from suicidal squirrels and rabbits on your descent... and, please, pack out what you pack in. Be nice to everyone, ride carefully around blind curves, and leave no trace of you behind! 

Starvation Mountain via Camino Del Aguilar - Revisited

I was fairly starved of proper on-bike suffering (and the glorious euphoria you get when you finally summit a hard-earned peak) during my exile to Riverside County in 2016. Now that I've returned to Didacus Sanctus (albeit quite a few clicks removed from the old Smorgabode), revisiting favorite scenic out-of-the-way climbs is the mission of 2017! On top of my 'Re-Hit List', of course, is the sheer brutality that is the hawks-infested super steep paved lane up the SW side of Starvation Mountain just east of Escondido/Rancho Bernardo, Camino del Aguila.

The relatively gnarly 'warm up' climb on Highland Valley Road.

These roadside cuties sure weren't starving for any breakfast!

I started out a bit late on a weekday morning from Rancho Bernardo and got on Highland Valley Rd a bit after the morning rush hour. Sycamore Creek Rd was looking dry and tantalizing, so I went snooping around there a bit. There might be a post on that one of these days if I ever shape up and become more disciplined about writing up exploration rides again. At any rate, I made it up HVR to the Camino del Aguila turn off without making too much stink... I think.

Pausing at the top of the 2nd bumps thru the winery gives you a good survey of the suffering to come.

By the time you get to this bit, the 3rd switchback, you're already cursing the day you were born.

Man, could I tell that I was over a year older and rustier since I last tried to 'spin' my way up this hideously relentlessly gnarly lane. The opening ramp from the bottom of the dip was amazingly demoralizing (no less because I knew now how horrible long I'd have to keep going before the gradient would drop to the humane side of 10% again. There was no longer any 'ignorance is bliss (or, rather, hope) associated with first time-ing up this road. No, the darn thing doesn't even let you breath at all until the 3rd switchback turn). I should say, though, unless you're trying to set a Strava record, you really should take it easy in the relatively mellow mid-section of this climb and take in the view (which, alas, will be behind you). Camino del Aguila is really one of the prettiest roads in San Diego County!

 The view of the top of Starvation Mountain looked quite different from the last time I snailed my way up this road a couple of years ago, though. There were now a few more houses near the top of the slope. I dread the day when they'd start putting in gates and turn this into something of the forbidden Cielo Complex between Via Ambiante and Mt Israel Rd in Olivenhain area.

The Snowman Boulder is still guarding the last icky steep (about 22% grade) ramp on Camino del Aguila.

I didn't go to the fence just below the summit this time, but opted to go sight-seeing around to the water tank atop Starvation Mountain Rd instead. A couple of new car gates had popped up in the last 2 years since I last came through here... along with quite a few new houses.

Starvation Mtn peak is well guarded. You must go up 22+% grader to get to the balcony, no matter from which direction you attack this hill from.

Mind you, every body I saw on the mountain was very friendly, though, waving and saying hello as they drove by. It sort of reminded me of my days in rural Missouri. People are much more friendly in person than they are in the news or online...

It was bone dry under Kreitzer Ped/Bike bridge over Lake Hodges. This was just before the winter storms hit last winter, of course!

Being too out of shape to attempt Mt Woodson after coming back down to HVR, I enjoyed the curvy descent (one of the best short technical descents around) down to Lake Hodges where I spent an hour or so stalking birds and a lovely little American kestrel before catching the bus home.

I know I had pretty much swore off ever pedaling up Starvation Mtn again on my way up.... but hills like this have a way of inflicting you with short-term memory loss of some sort and I want to go back up it again already. Before I do, though, there are a few other hills to check off my 'Re-Hit List' first...