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| A Hawk’s Eye View of San Diego County from the Boucher Hill Lookout |
This is a brief photo essay documenting the four seasons that I have witnessed this year at Palomar Mountain. The locales include High Point, the State Park, and the Observatory Trail. This is easily one of my favorite hiking destinations in all of Southern California, with its mix of meadows, views, forests, wildlife, and an adherence to the traditional seasons that everybody claims are lacking from SoCal. This place is always worth a day trip, or even a weekend camping trip, no matter the time of year.
Winter
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| Palomar Mountain’s rolling flanks and valleys from the summit at High Point |
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| Young buck on the Scott’s Cabin Trail |
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| Douglas Firs on the way up |
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| High Point lookout tower |
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| Snow-swept cedars at the summit |
Spring
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| Doane Valley in Spring |
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| Bracken Fern |
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| Lower French Valley |
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| Corn Lillies |
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| Upper Doane Valley |
Summer
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| Doane Valley in Summer |
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| Lower French Valley |
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| Ponderosa Pine Shadow |
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| Boucher Hill |
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| Catalina in the distance
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Autumn Â
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| Fall Color on the Observatory Trail |
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| Black Oaks at Observatory Campground |
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| Doane Valley Nature Trail |
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| Black Oak Leaves Turning |
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| Black Oak |
Winter Again
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| Doane Nature Trail following a snowstorm |
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| A Shortcut to Mushrooms on the Baptist Trail |
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| Doane Pond |
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| Cloudline on the Silvercrest Trail |
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| Morning Fog at the Silvercrest Parking Lot |
scott turner hikes 