First Solo Hike

This was a memorable hike for me, because it was my first time hiking by myself! I was nervous to be doing it on my own, but I’ve been hiking with friends for a while now and I wanted to push my boundaries and see if I can do it solo. When I got there, there were already a handful of cars parked on the side of the road so I felt relieved that I wouldn’t be totally alone on the trail. I wish I had done it a bit earlier in the day because it was already pretty warm when I started, but the weather was pleasant overall. Even though I came across other hikers, there were some parts of the trail where I was totally on my own so I had to be very vigilant and observant of my surroundings. I saw the signs at the beginning of the trail warning about rattlesnakes and mountain lions, so I was definitely on the lookout for those. Thank goodness I didn’t encounter any on my way up! When I got to the top, the view was totally worth it. It’s always so rewarding seeing San Diego in a different perspective, a change from my day-to-day view. On the way down, I decided to take the Five Oaks trail for funsies (and also because I’m too curious for my own good). I didn’t expect this trail to be narrow, but I didn’t mind. Not going to lie, I got a bit nervous on this trail because there were no other hikers and it felt isolated and long. At some point, I saw a snake (not a rattlesnake whew) but we both minded our own business, so I didn’t freak out as much as I expected (maybe because I was already too tired to care LOL). Overall, I recommend this hike to solo and group hikers!