52 Hike Challenge 2016 Adventure Series
5 miles | +1200'
Of the four loosely defined geographic regions in San Diego
County, the region between I-15 and the Peninsular Ranges probably gets the
highest visitation and use. This is due to its accessibility to the heavily
populated coast in addition to a wealth of different hiking opportunities. Many
of the county’s iconic hikes, such as Iron Mountain, Mission Hills, Daley
Ranch, El Cajon/El Capitan, and, of course, Mt. Woodson, are found here. On any
given weekend, these locations are crawling with hikers, but perhaps none quite
as much as the ever-popular and surprisingly difficult Mt. Woodson.
Mt. Woodson is the tallest of the peaks in a small complex
of mountains that also includes nearby Iron Mountain. Woodson also enjoys a
geographic position in the center of the San Diego urban center, which affords
expansive views from the nearly 3,000’ summit. In addition to the views,
Woodson is also famous for its maze of granite boulders, some of which reach
massive proportions or attain fantastic shapes. Most famous of these shapes is
the Potato Chip, which is the remains of a boulder that has partially collapsed
while leaving a flake of granite jutting out into space. Ask many San Diegans
about Mt. Woodson, and you’re likely to hear them respond by calling it the
“Potato Chip Hike,” which attests to the popularity of this geological oddity.
No comments:
Post a Comment