Wilderness Explorers: Mother Miguel Trail Head

Now that the 5 Peak Challenge is complete, we've been on the hunt for more trails to hike. Luckily for us, San Diego has plenty to offer. The temperatures have been on the rise so instead of starting our hikes at 9am, we've been starting them at 8am. Waking up early on the weekends is a little difficult so we didn't end up starting this one until 8:30ish.

There are two trails that go up to the top: an easy route and a moderate route. The easy route snakes up the mountain so the elevation is steady. The moderate route is more of a straight shot up the mountain. Going up isn't too bad so we went with the moderate route. Due to my extreme fear of falling, we went down using the easy route.

Apparently this pile of rocks is called "rock house" even though it doesn't resemble a house at all lol.

After the hike we went to Aunt Emma's Pancake Restaurant. We got the churro pancakes for the table which were bomb and I got the Nutella & Banana Crepe which was also very tasty!

Overall the hike itself is a nice short hike. I'm not a big fan of long hikes so this one was perfect. It's a perfect trail if you want to workout after work because depending on the day, you can use either the easy or moderate route giving yourself some variety. We went on a Sunday morning at the trail was pretty empty so if you want to avoid the crowds of people at Cowles, this might be a trail you want to check out. Distance wise, I would compare it the Kwaay Paay. I would probably do this hike again but maybe to watch the sunset. You'd probably be able to get some awesome pictures as well.

Hope you enjoyed this post! Let me know down below of any hikes to check out! It doesn't even have to be in San Diego. I'm always looking for places to hike whenever we travel so feel free to comment down below!

Wilderness Explorers: North Fortuna Summit

The North Fortuna Summit was our last hike for the 5 Peak Challenge. We started this hike by the Old Mission Dam parking lot. Beware! We could hear a bunch of rattlesnakes on this trail so just be careful. There is one part of the hike where there is a steep incline and so when you come back down, it's pretty scary (especially for someone like me who has a huge fear of heights and falling).

This was the uphill death portion lol. 

Victory picture since we made it!

The 2nd uphill portion. 

After the hike, we went to our favorite after hike spot, Island Style Cafe.

Overall, the North Fortuna and South Fortuna Summit hikes were probably the hardest and most strenuous hikes. My fear of heights and falling probably did not help. I probably won't be going back to do those hikes again but I would do Cowles, Pyles and Kwaay Paay. Now that we are done with the #5peakchallenge, we're looking for some new hikes. The weather is getting pretty hot so we may not be able to hike again unless we start much earlier.