The Hike: Azalea Glen Trail
Vague Location: Cuyamaca Rancho State Park – The trailhead begins in the Paso Picacho Campground. (There is a day use fee.)
Distance: 3.0 Miles, Loop
Elevation Gain: 550′
There were still patches of snow on the ground during the hike. Now that I live in San Diego, I found this to be very exciting. However, the snow also created a muddy trail, which was not as exciting.
There were many fallen trees near and on the trail. At times, the trail followed a babbling brook through a wooded area. After reaching Azaela Spring, I wanted to continue hiking up the fire road.
Almost immediately, we came across these tracks, which I strongly believe belong to a mountain lion. In the photo, the tracks look older. Trust me. They were located in fresh mud and I swear that I smelled a lion, or at least a scent that reminded me of the zoo. A small part of me was tempted to follow the tracks, but the majority of me felt fear. That fear had me turn around and quickly (and loudly) make our way back to the trailhead.
The hike ended with the opportunity to observe eight deer grazing in the meadow and a pretty sunset.
This hike was taken on January 15, 2011.
