So much can be said about Hot Springs Mountain Trail…

This was peak number 5 in the San Diego Challenge. And the second time hiking it. So I knew what to expect. Sort of.

The last time we did it was in February 2022. There were some patches of icy snow along the way. Not this time!

We started driving from Irvine at 4:30 and got to the trailhead at 6:30 am. There was not a single soul or car around. Just me and Ann. A bit spooky!

What got us excited was the fact that we now knew this was the same trail that the Ragnar Trail So Cal was going to be held on a week later! So we were going to do our 2-person version of it!!

Very early on I got a bit concerned seeing tracks of a large mountain lion… Was he lurking somewhere around the trees? We marched up pretty fast and got to the tower with astounding views.

The top was as we remembered. Following pink ribbons someone thoughtfully put on the bushes along the trail all the way to the boulders and the ladder. Oh… THE LADDER! My friend's kryptonite! Why is there no elevator ou there!??

So it was up to me to do the climbing to the top, to the geomark to scale the summit. So I did.

This peak is lots of fun. Short, a bit challenging, with nice scenery and great views.

Going down was a breeze. Literally. Because we ran like in Ragnar trail. On the way down we met 5 people. That's it. So it was good to have the trail all to ourselves most of the time.