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Mt.
Woodson (West Approach from Lake
Poway)
Trail
Stats
Distance
- 7.5
Miles
Elevation Gain/Loss
- 2300 ft.
Max Elevation Reached
- 2855 ft.
Difficulty Level
- Moderately Strenuous
Trailhead -
Link
Track
Download Google
Earth KML - Link
Download GPX - Link
Description
I think of this hike to Mt. Woodson as San
Diego's "little
big
hike". It is no cakewalk. But it ain't a killer either. It's just
right.
It takes you half a day. You need to start early. And you will be
pleased when it ends.
This trail starts at the east end of the
Lake Poway parking
lot. You walk along the southern shore of the lake on the Lake Poway
Trail. Once you get to the east of the lake, you continue eastward away
from the lake into Warren Canyon. About a mile further you leave the
Warren Canyon Trail and head uphill, northeast towards the summit on
the Mt. Woodson Trail.
The trail
is well maintained throughout. It is very wide
till the Warren Canyon Trail and Mt. Woodson
Trail junction. Beyond this point you scale some steep switchbacks and
gain altitude quickly.
There are some interesting rock formations
along this stretch
of the hike. The most interesting one is called the potato chip
(I think) for obvious reasons.
At the summit you get to see a near 360
degree view including
the Pacific Ocean, the mountains to the north and the east and Mexico
to the south. On clear days you get to see some snow capped peaks (San
Jacinto, I think) to the north. In addition to the spectacular vistas,
you get to see the most amazing display of antennas
you will ever see (unless you are an
engineer with the SETI project). There are multiple towers
with several dozen antennas each. There are
several satellite dishes. You name it, and they have it up there. That
should all sum up to a decent dose of radiation. So, I don't
wholeheartedly recommend spending too much time up there. There are
some boulder-tops that make good rest spots. Find one, have a quick
snack and retrace you steps back to the parking lot.
You can make a full day out of this hike if you plan on a
cook-out/picinc in the park. There seem to be grills, picnic tables
and inviting green lawns almost everywhere.
Remember to get an early start on this trail, especially in
the summer months.
Note that Poway City is collectiong a $5 fee to park at the
trailhead.
Elevation
Profile
Trail Log
Aug 22st,
2009
Started from Trailhead - 7:30 am
Reached Mt. Woodson - 9:30 am
Started back - 10:30 am
Reached Trailhead - around 12:00
noon
Notes -
Nandini. N, Sesh. K, Sachin. D, Vaishnav. V
and I did this
hike early in the morning. The weather was just fine in the begining,
but
it got very hot during our hike out. Saw a group of 63 (!!!) school
kids on the trail. Pretty well behaved group! Poway authorities are
collecting $5 now to park at Lake Poway.
March
21st, 2009
Started from Trailhead - 7:30 am
Reached Mt. Woodson - 10:00 am
Started back - 10:30 am
Reached Trailhead - 12:00 noon
Tech Analysis - Link
Photos - Link,
courtesy
Sachin. D
Notes -
This was my third time on this trail to Mt.
Woodson.
Nice weather. Was foggy and chill till we
got to the top. The
fog cleared significantly while we were taking a break at the summit.
It
continued to be cool during our descent. On the whole it was an
excellent day for hiking. Spotted lots of people hiking and running on
the trail. Spotted a couple of mountain bikers as well.
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