Cowles Peak and Coronado Island

Minnie got me up just before 5am with her incessant barking when she saw people walking down the sidewalk near the van. The first runners also trotted on by. I let the dogs out for a quick pee after the initial commotion and then drove off to the first hike of the day, Cowles Peak off Big Rock Road in Santee. The directions weren't specific to mileage, but the drive was eight miles off I-8 on Mission Gorge Road (which meandered northeast through commercial neighborhoods) before I found Big Rock Road on the northern perimeter of Mission Hills Park, a county park of trails for hikers, bikers and equestrians. A cool marine layer started us out once again in low fog, perfect for the dogs. There are various trails that lead to Cowles Peak and the Big Rock trail is the longest at 2.5 miles one-way.

The trail off Big Rock Road is at the end of the street with two quaint homes on either side. A wooden fence and a prominent trail head sign with instructions and bear bells were available. Sensing this would be perfect mountain lion habitat with the low-lying rocky hills, I took three bells. One for each dog and one for me. We started the hike at 6:39am. The bells combined were loud, and one hiker chuckled at them. That's when I took the bells off the dogs' collars and placed them in my backpack where they continued to jingle but with a more distinctive muffled sound.

We quickly met our first couple coming down the trail, holding on to their off-leash pit bull who apparently had been attacked before and the owners had to hold back. I understand the owners' concern for their pet's safety, as pit bulls are so badly maligned. I made sure my dogs were on leash as we walked by.

The marine layer was already breaking up to our north. Santee's homes opened up as well as we meandered up the steep trail, switchbacking through scrub oak, chaparral and meadow grasses. The trail was again wide and of hard decomposed granite. We passed the first intersection with the Mesa Junction trail 1/2 mile uphill, where a courtesy stainless-steel water bowl was left for dogs, tied to an oak tree. I used that to fill up with water for Minnie. She was already getting tired.

We did not hit the mass of hikers until we got to the main trail, a wide maintenance trail that goes to the peak and beyond to Pyles Peak. Holy moly, write-ups for the crowds on this trail weren't exaggerating! I kept the dogs onleash for most of this time, but let them drag their leashes when no one was around. By now the trail was getting hot and exposed and Minnie slowed down even more. I stopped a few times as other dog walkers passed us by.

The maintenance road goes between the two peak rest areas; we went on the one closer to the radio antennae with less people. We got to the peak at 8:17am Two women had just gotten up to this side with their three-year-old girl who had hiked the trail by herself! (Their hike was only 1.5 miles, staying on the maintenance road) Another solo man sat facing the north for a long time, taking in the view.

Hummingbirds flitted around us. Minnie found some shade behind some rocks, but I soon moved to the higher rest area where there were more trees and more shade for both dogs and me. This spot faced the south and the San Diego skyline. People kept coming up from this end, masses and masses of people of all shapes and sizes. It was the Super Highway of hikes. Most people came, took in the view, drank some water, took some selfies and left to go back to their cars. I was on the peak for over an hour, letting the dogs rest. It's not like I had to rush somewhere and allowed the dogs to rest, knowing also that the longer we stayed on the peak, the hotter it would be for the walk back down. I opted not to continue the hike to Pyles Peak and instead return to our van.

I talked to several others on the peak, including a young man who recommended I check out Coronado Island while in the area. Why, of course! Although that wasn't in my original plan, I had heard about the touristy part of that area and the nearby Navy base. I could van camp on base with no hassles! Why hadn't I thought of that sooner?

We departed for the descent at 9:17am, passing as many people going up as we had coming up the trail ourselves. Minnie was exhausted, but it wasn't from the sun (although there was little shade with a slight breeze) but because the heat was radiating back up to us from the surface rocks. While most people were coming and going via the maintenance road, I was glad to get back on the more remote Big Rock trail and more shade. Again, I rested several times for ten minutes to allow for Minnie to calm down and give her more water. We didn't get back to the van until 10:55am and by then there was no trace of marine layer.

This time I was able to get back to I-8 and the Pacific Highway south to go through town and the Coronado bridge. One can see all the Navy ships from the bridge. There is no toll now in either direction and I made it straight to the downtown area and managed a shady spot for the dogs in a parking spot that still had 1:17 hours left. The dogs rested in the cool shade while I went across the street to photograph San Diego's skyline. Then I walked a few blocks south on Orange Avenue, the main shopping street here. I even spotted the Coronado brewpub! I'm not a shopper anymore so the stores didn't lure me in (no interest in paying California prices anyway) and I wanted to see what else was around, like the Navy base next door which takes up most of the northern tip of Coronado. I rested a bit in the van while still parked in the shade before driving to the Navy base.

Security on this base is high, as it should be. Cars go in via one exit and out another via a separate street. Every ID card is scanned. I drove in and out of the base several times the rest of the day, so I'm sure guards were wondering what I was doing. I drove around to locate the NEX, the lodge, the gym and to get an overall feel of where the important things were located. The gym was my first place, where I went in to use the shower facilities. I hadn't showered since leaving Arizona Wednesday and my hair was looking plastered to my head. I wanted to make sure I was cleaned up before hitting the brewpub for Happy Hour. The dogs were quite content napping in the shade with the windows wide open, and I made sure I parked away from main traffic flow. With a new set of clean clothes and a clean body, I was now ready to explore the area.

I parked the van in front of the brewpub and by a palm tree that provided additional shade for the dogs. The brewpub was already crowded for Happy Hour. I found an empty stool at the edge of the counter and soon I had another neighbor to my left, a blonde woman about my age named Laura. Laura lives on the island and frequents to pub often. She let me sample some of the beers so I settled for a Golden and later a salty dog, both beers with low alcohol rates. I also had a Happy Hour Swiss cheese burger for $7.

Laura and a few other locals made for fun chatmates. The crowd at the counter was older, like my age and up and all very friendly. Laura has lived on the island for 12 years. She's divorced now, but once was a flight attendant for a major airline, but quit that job when she had her son. She now makes $12/ hour. How does she live off that while living on the island?

Another man to my right proved to be Belgian born. He came to the US to fight in the Vietnam war and is now an American citizen. Wearing his long greying hair in a pony tail, he still speaks with an accent. Both he and Laura told me they come to the pub quite often as they like the beer, food and owner, but the owner won't hire either of them because of their age. Hearing that was a bit of a turn-off, but that's when I noticed all the servers were young and perky.

I wanted to stay longer and chat with the locals, but the pub was getting crowded and I wanted to explore the island more, find dog beach and the other famed beaches. I told Laura I'd be back, but circumstances dictated otherwise. I never did find the dog beach and ended up driving the length of the island (it's really a peninsula) to the Tijuana River estuary along the international border. The entire shore is plastered with high rise condos and hotels, so seeing the beach is reserved for hotel guests. Traffic was everywhere. Bored with the mundane, I returned to my starting point on the north end.

I made it back to the northshore just as the sun set its last pinkish colors on San Diego's skyline. I stayed on the Navy base now, checking out the NEX, surfing the internet while in the McDonald's parking lot as a steady rain now fell over the city.

I eventually parked the van in a Navy lodge parking lot. No cars were around us and we had a quiet, undisturbed night.