Volcan Mountain in Julian to CA 79 in Santa Ysabel
Thanks to the rare San Diego rainstorm that hit just before our hike, our hiking schedule became totally out of order. Day 6 of our hike, our last long hiking day, was actually day 1 of our original plan! In other words, today we scaled Volcan Mountain, and some trail just below it.
Volcan Mountain was the highest point of our hike, climbing to an elevation of 5,300 feet. Although the class was excited to accomplish the feat, we were nervous about how much energy it would exhaust from us. However, when we arrived, the weather was cold, with large gusts of winds often sweeping over us. This gave us energy, rather than exhaust it like the hot sun would. The class trekked up the mountain in great time, reaching the summit in about an hour and a half. The view was gorgeous, and students ate their lunch in the meadows overlooking the farms, desert, and other mountains. When it was time to continue the hike, student's reluctantly left the summit and it's amazing view. Upon reaching the bottom of the mountain, we were shuttled to the next portion of the hike. This portion of the hike took us through wide meadows, cows, archaeological sites, and under the large sky. It was unique from the other days because of how much more clear the land around us was. Rather than thick forests of trees and shrubs, we were surrounded by wide open fields. The sky looked enormous above us filled with the bright sun and wispy clouds. Plus large boulders would sometimes sit in the middle of these fields. It was an awe striking contrast to the days before. It led me to realize just how many diverse biomes I have hiked through during this week.
Today's last large hike went extremely well, and caused me to natural reflect on my experience so far. The final mile and a half we need to complete tomorrow, and the celebration at dog beach, will be extremely fun and wrap up the entire week well! I'm looking forward to document tomorrow!
- Erina Chavez
A Student of the Adventure Team
Volcan Mountain was the highest point of our hike, climbing to an elevation of 5,300 feet. Although the class was excited to accomplish the feat, we were nervous about how much energy it would exhaust from us. However, when we arrived, the weather was cold, with large gusts of winds often sweeping over us. This gave us energy, rather than exhaust it like the hot sun would. The class trekked up the mountain in great time, reaching the summit in about an hour and a half. The view was gorgeous, and students ate their lunch in the meadows overlooking the farms, desert, and other mountains. When it was time to continue the hike, student's reluctantly left the summit and it's amazing view. Upon reaching the bottom of the mountain, we were shuttled to the next portion of the hike. This portion of the hike took us through wide meadows, cows, archaeological sites, and under the large sky. It was unique from the other days because of how much more clear the land around us was. Rather than thick forests of trees and shrubs, we were surrounded by wide open fields. The sky looked enormous above us filled with the bright sun and wispy clouds. Plus large boulders would sometimes sit in the middle of these fields. It was an awe striking contrast to the days before. It led me to realize just how many diverse biomes I have hiked through during this week.
Today's last large hike went extremely well, and caused me to natural reflect on my experience so far. The final mile and a half we need to complete tomorrow, and the celebration at dog beach, will be extremely fun and wrap up the entire week well! I'm looking forward to document tomorrow!
- Erina Chavez
A Student of the Adventure Team