From North County Times:

“RAMONA —- Four hikers suffering from heat exhaustion were rescued Saturday in Cleveland National Forest, officials said.

California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection workers responded at about 4 p.m. to reports that hikers had suffered heat exhaustion on the Cedar Creek trail, CalFire Capt. Daryll Pina said.

He said rescuers drove to the hikers and rescued them along with one of the two dogs they had taken on the hike.

The other dog died because of the heat, he said.

Ramona Community Emergency Response Team volunteers were at the trail head to provide shelter and water to hikers who braved the 115-degree heat reported in areas of the canyon, Pina said. He said rescuers have responded to more than a dozen heat-related injuries on the trail during the last three weekends.”

This brings me back to my rant on my hike to Cedar Creek Falls. If it’s hot, start early and bring plenty of water. Or try a more moderate trail.

Be careful out there and make smart decisions, people.

Before I moved to San Diego, I had visited the charming little town of Julian and heard that it was a mining town. I had also visited Lake Cuyamaca and enjoyed the area. Once I moved here and started hiking in Cuyamaca Rancho State Park, I was curious about where some of the names came from. I then purchased San Diego County Place Names, A To Z, by Leland Fetzer and really enjoyed reading the short descriptions of the places I was hiking.

Recently I saw his book The Cuyamacas: The Story of San Diego’s High Country and had to pick it up.

I wasn’t disappointed. Starting from the Kumeyaay Nation, to the Spanish Colonists and to the American Settlers from the east, this book really goes in depth at how the Cuyamaca Mountains fall into the history of the area and how their natural resources were both exploited and loved throughout the years.

Inlcuded are old photographs, old plat maps and descriptions of how and why certain areas were named, such as Airplane Ridge and Stonewall Peak. It is a great read, although, at points, it gets a little cumbersome, as Fetzer’s tremendous research bogs down the pace a little at points. The books covers the history of the area through the era of the Cedar Fire of 2003.

The only weaknesses of the book are the sheer number of people detailed (as I mentioned above, which can also be a strength, depending how you look at it), and the lack of maps that truly illustrate the various historical routes through the Cuyamacas that he describes.

When reading in bed, I would sometimes pop open the map on my cell phone or have my Cuyamaca Rancho SP Trail Map open up to follow along. Sometimes I would be at my desk with Google Earth open. But place names have changed, so it was, at times, difficult to keep track of where Fetzer was indicating.

After every chapter, however, I wanted to go back to Cuyamaca and roam around, with a new perspective. I recommend it.

This is a beautiful area and, apart from Cedar Creek Falls, much of the area rarely gets visited. I recommend checking it out.

From: http://www.sandiegoriver.org/calendar.php (for more information)

06/05 10am National Trails Day – MEMBER HIKE to Cedar Creek Falls from Saddleback

Contact Sarah at 619-297-7380 or by email for details. This is a free guided hike for River Park Foundation members (may join at the event) to one of San Diego’s natural treasures, 80 foot Cedar Creek Falls. Followed by an open house at the River Park Foundation’s 500+ acre Eagle Peak Preserve.

Email Sarah to RSVP and for details

06/05 1pm – 3pm Eagle Peak Preserve Nature Hike

The Preserve is open! This is one final opportunity to enjoy the Spring Wildflowers at the Preserve.

A guided hike will leave at 2PM from the middle parking area. Enjoy a hike to Son 2 Peak and down to the ponds. We will stop along the way and learn about some of the flora of the Preserve. After the ponds we will head back to the trailhead. This hike is open to members and non-members. FREE. Total hike length approx. 2.5 miles. Elevation gain = 250 feet. Facilities are very primitive. You are welcome to explore the Preserve on your own.

Location: Eagle Peak Road near mile marker 8

The view from the trail to Peak 4159, Oak Benchmark on the right and Viejas Mountain in the distance

Oak Benchmark
Elevation: 3,965′
Miles: ~1

Peak 4159
Elevation: 4,159′
Miles: 1.5

Ant Benchmark
Elevation: 3,920′
Miles: 1.8

Peak 1546
Elevation: 1,546′
Miles: 3.4 (4.5+ total to the falls and back)

Once again, I set out to summit multiple peaks in a day. The hiking distance to each peak would be fairly short, but, over the span of the day, the mileage would add up.

In my trip reports, I will use the name of benchmarks as the mountains themselves, though I do understand that the benchmark itself is a marker permanently fixed into a rock, I will use the benchmarks names and the mountains interchangeably, since I like to call the mountain something in my descriptions. This is specifically true when the benchmarks are at the highpoint of the mountains, since this benchmarks are not always at the summit.

This time, I had the PD with me, as we both are getting some hiking in to train for our upcoming Mount Whitney trip. The only limit to what we could do was the fact that we were to meet some friends at Cedar Creek Falls in between 12 and 1 PM. For most of the day, Cuyamaca Peak loomed over us on the horizon, beckoning us to its slopes.