-Oakzanita Peak-

HPS: #12
SDC: #19

Elevation: 5,054 ft.

Date Hiked: 2-27-10

Trip Report:
This weekend’s original plans were canceled due to the rain that southern California got on Saturday. I decided to hike Oakzanita Peak. This was an easy 5.5 mile hike on a well established trail, a perfect hike for a rainy day. It was also relatively close unlike the past few hikes I had been on. The snow level was above 6000 feet so unfortunately there would not be any snow.

Oakzanita Peak from near the Trailhead

I left Escondido at 6:30 and made my way through Ramona, Julian and then south past Cuyamaca Peak and Middle Peak. The trailhead is 5.6 miles south of the Paso Picacho campground, which is the starting point for both Cuyamaca Peak and Stonewall Peak. The trailhead is easy to spot with enough parking for a few cars. There is a sign which gives details about the surronding area. I started hiking around 8 AM. The beginning of the trail goes south a few yards to a large gate.

The Locked Gate

The trail beyond the gate is actually a fire road. The directions from the HPS site state to take the trail for ,5 miles to the junction with the “Lower Descanso” trail. It did not take long to hike to this junction. From here I continued to follow the fire road until the met the junction of the “Upper Descanso” trail. The directions state to take this trail, which I did and followed it a short ways until it crossed a stream.

The Trail Past the Stream

The directions state that after the stream there is an unmarked junction and to take the left path. I did not see a junction, just a path going left. I took this path and it began to climb up the side of the mountain. There trail was well worn and there were many prints in the dirt. It seems this trail is popular with horses.

After 1.5 miles I made it to a saddle, just as the directions stated. From here it was only .6 miles to the summit. The rain and wind picked up at this point and I was beginning to get cold and wet. I quickly made it to the summit took a few photos and began to head down. The view from the summit was poor but I could make out stonewall peak.

The Summit Rocks

Summit Marker

View East from the Summit

Cuyamaca and Stonewall Peaks in the Clouds

As I began to descend the wind died and the rain stopped. I made good time going down and stopped only a few times to take pictures. The rain started again after I made it back to the fire road. I looked back to the summit now in the clouds.

Oakzanita Peak in the Clouds

Overall this was a fun hike which the HPS directions were flawless. It took just under 2 hours to complete the entire hike.