Palomar Mountain Observatory Trail Guide

[@iguillo]

I hiked this trail, three years TO THE DAY that you've posted it! :-))

[@Hikingguy]

Ha, nice! Yea, it's a beautiful one.

[@brianpowell5082]

Palomar is one of the lushest, most premier places in So Cal (California period!)!! In fact, my last hike, on 10/25, was the Doane Valley/French Valley/Weir Trail loop in the state park portion of the mountain!

[@Hikingguy]

Nice, yea, I agree, so lush there. I love the remoteness of the area too. It gets me excited to learn more about the ecology. Always something to learn...

[@brianpowell5082]

@@Hikingguy It's why I like to make a yearly "pilgrimage" to Palomar!

[@kermit1]

Cleveland nation forest are my favorite hikes😃

[@kermit1]

Did this today. Great hike and the drive up there is awesome. One thing to note, on the way down Google Maps guided me to a different route on ‘Nate Harrison Rd’. If you see this on your GPS take a different route if possible this road is a dirt road with barely enough room for 2 vehicles. Also a little scary due to all the gravel/rocks and the sunset from the west. Best to use a vehicle with good ground clearance and AWD. Glad I have a Crosstrek it was able to handle it like a champ.

[@Hikingguy]

Uh sorry to hear you got routed down Nate Harrison, that was actually the first road up the mountain and is rough. I've done it on a mountain bike before. Hope the hike treated you well though.

[@CityWalks]

🍎👍 Great view of the snow in the trees. Looks pretty slippery. All the best. going to check out the 360 version now. -H

[@Hikingguy]

Thanks, and yea, the snow was incredible, wasn't expecting that when I showed up this week, I thought for sure it would have melted. But in the shady parts it was covering everything. A real treat.

[@jharuni]

Thanks for the guide! Is it reasonable to return via the main road to save some time? So maybe 2 hour walk up the trail with lots of stopping to enjoy the view, and half hour stroll back down the road? And I guess 90 minutes or so at the top if you tour the observatory? Is this in the right ballpark?

[@Hikingguy]

Yup, just watch out for cars

[@adventureawaits5003]

Cool Video. Do you know the other National Rec trails in San Diego

[@Hikingguy]

Thank you - the only longer one is Noble Canyon - but there are a few > www.nrtdatabase.org

[@kiwiyummyster]

Do you know how (where and what time or weather conditions) people usually get views that overlook clouds from the palomar mountain hike?

[@Hikingguy]

Look for a heavy marine layer in the forecast.

[@jharuni]

The forestry service web page for the trail head parking area in the campground says it's always open. But the picture of the entrance in Google Street view shows a closed gate and "closed" sign. Any insight? I'm flying into San Diego for just a few days and hoping to do this hike!

[@Hikingguy]

The last section to the observatory is sometimes closed, but you can drive to the trailhead described here all the time.