TLDR: Went up counterclockwise. It was nice but a lot of poison oak. The views on the way up and at the top were beautiful. Way back down was miserable and hot and I hated it.

We took the loop counterclockwise, and the way up was pretty nice. There were a lot of great views and there was some shade every once in a while. The worst thing about the way up was the amount of poison oak. I wasn’t really able to fully enjoy myself because I was constantly keeping an eye for and avoiding the poison oak. The last mile up to the peak was on a paved black road. It was rough on the feet and VERY hot without any shade.

The views from the top were gorgeous. Well worth the hike up even with the risk of poison oak.

The way down was awful. It was ALL on the paved black road WITH NO SHADE AT ALL. It was super hot and rough on my feet.

If I ever go to Cuyamaca Peak again, I’d go back down the way I went up. Even though that’s the side with all of the poison oak. That’s how much I hated walking down that paved unshaded road.