West Side Road/Cedar Creek Falls
Hunting season started today. When we arrived at the Ramona Oaks trailhead at dawn, our friends were already there talking with two hunters. The hunters were going to hunt wild pig and wanted to know where we would be hiking. We were going up West Side Road to Devils Jumpoff, hoping to see the falls but not really expecting to see water. Although we had about three inches of rain in the past week, the road, which eventually turned from pavement into a wide trail, was not muddy except for one place. Brandy and Ruca were enjoying the rain-freshened terrain and were exploring far and wide. We ate lunch at our turn-around point just off the road overlooking the tree and grassy area above Devils Jumpoff. We discussed that when water was flowing we’d come back and hike down to the stream and explore the area just above the falls. We heard two shots in the distance and wondered whether the (deer? pig?) hunters had bagged their game. After our leisurely lunch, we headed back enjoying the view of the San Diego River valley along the way.
For a while, were were looking down on the trails far below us from the Thornbush trailhead to Cedar Creek Falls. My friends had another commitment and I felt like hiking some more. I thought that since the Thornbush trailhead for Cedar Creek Falls was just a couple of blocks away and we’d hiked it just before the rains that I would see if the falls were flowing. When we started on the trail to the falls, Brandy was lagging behind as though she didn’t want to go. Perhaps she remembered the climb out last week. I kept walking and soon she was her normal self joyfully exploring ahead of me.
Somehow I got off-trail and had to bushwhack down to another trail I knew I’d find on the extensive network of trails. I found one in a couple of hundred yards, a segment of the realigned trail being built. I continued down, down, down the steep grade to the San Diego River valley. We expected to find the San Diego River flowing but the crossing was just damp with an occasional pool in the riverbed. Cedar Creek downstream of the falls was flowing only minimally, so Brandy forded while I rock-hopped across. As we approached the falls, we could hear the cascade and knew the hike would be worth the effort. Suddenly, as we were making our way through the rock field we saw Rita, a dog we knew from previous hikes. We had met a Meetup hiking group that had hiked here as a backup hike from a camping trip they were on. We are scheduled to hike with them tomorrow at the Lower Santa Ysabel Truck Trail, which links Pamo Road with Boden Canyon. What a small world!
We ate a snack while sitting on the rocks and enjoying the view and sound of Cedar Creek Falls. Brandy would occasionally go from rock to rock exploring, sometimes sliding a bit on the water-slicked, water-worn rocks.
The sun was shining when we started but by the time we left there was a slight overcast. We headed back thinking about the climb out. We took the new trail to the north around the first peak and eventually bushwhacked, as we had done last week, to join the regular trail. We soon came to another choice of which trail to take and decided on the one that was less steep. It was an recently made trail that still had the many flags guiding the workers. After a while, the construction had stopped and the trail turned steeply uphill. After a few pauses to catch my breath, I reached the top and the trail had again terminated. I bushwhacked just a little, picked up the regular trail again and continued to the new trailhead by the water tank. I like the route out that we had just taken and, until the switchback are constructed on the other trail, will continue to take it. Apparently, there will eventually be two mostly parallel trails, one from the trailhead next to the houses and the other from the trailhead by the water tank.
We had originally scheduled to join a ~15 mile hike on the Dripping Springs trail to Agua Tibia, but felt the these two back-to-back hikes were an acceptable substitute.