Volcan Mountain Wilderness Preserve

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 VOLCAN MOUNTAIN WILDERNESS PRESERVE



Not just an exercise for the body, but also an exercise of the mind. The Volcan Mountain Wilderness Preserve is rated "tough" in the SD County Tour Our Trails Challenge and is indeed, tough. It may be just a neighborhood stroll for some, but for us, we just had to think of that Julian Apple Pie to motivate us to finish. 

This trail has the most impressive entrance. If you are an artist, read through the information from Volcan Mountain Foundation. 


At the entrance, look down to check-out the time capsule buried in 2000 to be opened in 2100. We are so curious, but we will not see it opened. We can only hope the future generation of hikers would appreciate its history as much as we did. 

As you climb up the trail, you will be surrounded by Canyon Live Oaks - young and mature. (We just learned that.)


You will have a choice of going through the Service Road (go straight) or the Five Oaks Trail (turn right). We chose the latter. The single-trail still goes straight up, but the beauty of the switchback trail, the shade of the trees, and the view of the valley almost makes up for the burn. 


Do not be fooled by the stone steps. They don't make the hike any less strenuous; but, they sure look pretty.




Tired? Then sit awhile. The summit will wait for you.


At the end of the Five Oaks Trail, you will see the marker to the Summit (1.2 miles).  At this junction, the Service Road and Five Oaks Trail meet. 


You will see the remains of a gate and a have an "Into the Woods"- feeling as a canopy of trees surround you. Feel free to sing.



On the other side of this "Into the Woods"-feeling, you will be (thankfully) greeted by the Summit marker.  But, don't rush. To the right, visit the remains of a chimney from the Volcan Mountain Observatory Outpost which operated between 1928-1932. This outpost was one of the areas considered for the Hale Telescope which was eventually placed in Palomar Mountain. 


As you climb, turn to your right and check-out the views of the coast and identify those mountain ranges. Which have you already conquered? The El Cajon and Mount Gower are on this Tour Our Trails Challenge, too. Cowles Mountain is part of the 5-Peak Challenge of the Mission Trails Regional Park.


A few more steps going up and stop to turn to your left. Check-out the views of the desert. Can you see the Salton Sea (235 ft. below sea level)? 


When you arrive at a fork, don't fret.  It's a loop and either way will take you to the summit. At the summit, take your photo-op proof by the Airway Beacon Light Tower.  


Now, what is an Airway Beacon Light Tower. Its description reads: "... developed in the 1920s by the Post Office Department for use by its air mail pilots... beacons were placed 15 to 25 miles apart... more than 2,000 beacons were in operation by 1946, serving 124 airways across the United States... by 1972, changes in electronic technology rendered these beacons obsolete..." (We just learned that, too.)

We took the Service Road on our way back to our car. Along the way, we stopped a lot to take pictures of wildflowers in bloom.  After all, we can appreciate it more as we're going downhill.







Address: 1209 Farmer Road at Wynola Road, Julian, CA 92036
Parking: Free; on the side of the road
Restroom: None