"What does one do after sitting in a late morning meeting? Why, decide to climb a mountain, of course. We started out rather late in the day after a bumpy ride to the trail head, but nevertheless, we hit the trail a little after 4pm. While hubby said it would be an eight-mile excursion, when we hit the two-mile point and weren't halfway there yet, I had a feeling he might have been off in his estimates. After clicking pics of the bounty of flowers (and capturing a local Grabiod sighting - Kevin Bacon, we need you) we made good time on the 10-mile round trip. Hike stats: 4:08 hours, 10.57 mi, and 1,473' elevation gained. " — erinfetters • May 22, 2022

"Two more peaks done from the San Diego 100 Peaks Challenge (Derek's List) and Peaks 4 and5 of the Inaugural San Diego Six Pack of Peaks Challenge. Today was a long day, 23.99 miles and 6,189 feet in total elevation gain. I was joined by my friend Lisa for climb number 1, Hot Springs Mountain, from the Los Coyote Indian Reservation; and, by Sierra for climb number 2, Palomar Mountain High Point from Oak Grove." — Philip-Yoho • Jan 2, 2021

"Had a bit of trouble finding Oak Grove Ranger Station; Google Maps has the address wrong by about a mile. Once on the trail, it's a nice climb up to the fire road. From there a pretty boring but consistently uphill road walk. The views are superb though! Baldy, San Gorgonio, San Jacinto, Santa Rosa. From the summit could even make out the buildings in downtown San Diego and Point Loma through the haze. Tower was actively staffed with an observer. This would be a fun mountain to do on a gravel bike." — edg • Dec 6, 2020

"Climbed the mountain via the Oak Grove Trail, then two different forest roads leading to the summit. Not sure if the roads were open for vehicles or not, but I saw no cars and only 4 other hikers. Nice cool day, with abundant clouds around the mountain. The clouds hampered views a little, but that was about it. Outstanding views from the top!" — MikeTeeples • Mar 8, 2020

"Today was suppose to be my completion of the San Diego Six Peaks and my completion of the 2020 SoCal Six pack of Peaks Challenge. Unfortunately, I found out the one of the peaks, Cuyamaca Peak, was closed due to construction near the summit and the Fire Department conducting controlled burn training. So, I had to settle for doing just one peak today. Peak #5 of the San Diego Peaks and #5 of the SoCal Six Pack of Peaks Challenge, Palomar Mountain High Point. Great hike starting at the Oak Grove Trailhead. There wasn't nearly as much snow as there was a few weeks before, but it was still a fun day on the trail." — Philip-Yoho • Jan 3, 2020

"Another of the six San Diego Peaks added to the SoCal Six Pack of Peaks challenge. My first time hiking this trail and I chose to do it right after Thanksgiving and a huge snow shower. This trail/truck trail in the snow was amazing. By far my favorite hike of the year. At the last minute, before leaving the house, I decided to grab my snowshoes. Grateful that I did. I probably spent 8 of the 14 mile round trip wearing them and another 2 wearing microspikes. Even with snowshoes I was sinking in the fresh "untouched" snow at least 8 to 12 inches. It was a hard beautiful hike. At one point on the descent though, I got cramps so bad that I had to stop for about 20 minutes. I ate and drank everything I had and then continued on. " — Philip-Yoho • Nov 30, 2019

"Tough but scenic hike up from Oak Grove Fire Station; ca. 13 mi round trip with 3,600' elevation gain. 2 friends and I started this early on a cloudy, misty, and drizzly Saturday morning. We walked to Woodridge Road (dirt) and followed it to its end at a loop. From the west end of the loop, we took the Oak Grove Trail up to Oak Grove Truck Trail, turning right and heading more uphill. We followed it to a fork, bearing left on High Point dirt road. We followed that and bore right at Palomar Divide Road, following it and after a while turned left on the dirt road leading to the tower. I highly recommend this hike to serious So Cal hikers. It is challenging, beautiful, and scenic. It is worth the steep uphill and then downhill drags; trust me! When skies opened up a bit on the return hike, some exhilarating views appeared. The benchmark survey marker is not by the lookout tower, but nearby on a rock near some small trees. If the skies were clear, I can tell that the views would be some of the best in Southern California. The top was windy and chilly." — brianpowell • Feb 11, 2017

"Another challenging Peak to get to, It is all surrounded by Private Property which is all Fenced Off and once find out after driving there for a while. Went up to the Observatory as the Directions told me only to wait for 9:00 AM for the Gate to open (Not a Minute earlier) and found after a Short Hike that there is no Access to the Lookout Tower even though I could see it a Couple of Miles away. The Correct and only Road is 9S07 which is 13 Miles to the Peak. Wasted a whole Morning to just drive around and around till I found it. Luckily the Gate was open and I could drive right up to the Peak something I normally don't do. Amazing Views all around and the Observatory is so Close. The Lookout Tower is still in working Order and Manned which I have not seen on many and of course not accessible. " — Nuernberger • Jul 11, 2015