Dripping Springs

About the Hike: Strenuous hike, mainly due to distance covered, elevation gain is not very taxing. Summers are too hot, preferred time is spring or fall. Vegetation coverage is limited initially, but gets more and more wooded later. It would be useful to wear protective (long sleeve) clothing or have a machete to prevent getting scratches from thorns / plants that grow into the trail frequently. Also WATCH OUT for rattlesnakes ! They are well-camouflages, and sometimes may be on the trail.

Time: Start: 10.30am, End: 6.45pm, total hiking time = 7hr 45min (lunch 30min)

Distance: 6.8mi one-way on trail, 0.4mi along campground, total = 14.4mi, elevation: 1600ft to 4400ft variation

Driving and other Info:
1 hr (64mi) from La Jolla, http://backpacker.trimbleoutdoors.com/viewTrip.aspx?tripID=8492&mode=TripMap
http://www.etreking.com/eTreking/Pages/SanDiego.html

Our Hike: We started a little late in the morning, but were confident of finishing before sunset. The trailhead starts at a campground and we approached it going on 78E. There is a sign for "Dripping Springs" opposite the campground and trail. Contour maps help understand the trail's up and downs, so we armed ourselves with a digital pic of the trail map. We also had the map from the link above, which was surprisingly easy to follow.

Lunchbreak was around 2.30pm, and we had covered about 6mi, unsure of whether to continue or not. I think the lunch energized us enough to complete the hike, so we went till the trail ended at the Palomar McGee trail. The way back was rather eventful, we saw two snakes, includinga southwestern speckled rattlesnake, which was so well camouflaged, I didn't see it till I almost stepped on it on the trail. After that, our pace slowed a little, as we scrutinized shaded trail areas closely for snakes. We were back at the trailhead by 6.45pm.