SYNOPSIS OF ANNUAL PALOMAR DIVIDE TRUCK TRAIL HIKE

Date: May 23, 1998

In Attendance: WD6BEZ, Judy

W9FQN, Stan

W6GNI, Al

W6GNI's Daughter Julie

N6TRS, Don

N6TRS' XYL, Pat

WB9RKN, Roy Davis

W6VR, Bob

KE6ZLY, Glenn

Brief Description: Hike 1: Start at Palomar Observatory Parking

Lot, proceed through locked gate with

special permission from Observatory

staff (special thanks to Mike, AB6QT)

to High Point lookout tower.

Hike 2: From High Point lookout tower,

proceed east via Sourdough Spring to

the 5,590 foot survey mark on the

Palomar Divide Truck Trail

(coords: 33-21-26, 116-48-56, NAD 27).

Difficulty of Hike: 2 out of 10 for Hike 1

4 out of 10 for Hikes 1 + 2

Hiking Times (start to finish): 10 am to 1:15 pm (Hike 1)

10 am to 3:30 pm (Both Hikes)

Round trip length: Hike 1 = 5.5 miles

Hike 2 = 4.4 miles

Total = 9.9 miles

Elevation gain: Hike 1 = 620+ feet

Hike 2 = 550+ feet

Total = 1,170+ feet

Trail shaded/open: Hike is mostly open to the sky

via well maintained dirt roads.

Roads & time to get there: Allow an hour from the intersection

of I-15 and Highway 76 to the Palomar

Observatory parking lot.

Services in the area (gas, food, etc): No gasolina on Palomar

Mtn. Limited food.

Points of Interest: Palomar Observatory, High Point

lookout tower (staircase is open to

the public, lookout room is locked),

occasional glider planes, the "guzzler"

at Sourdough Spring, a secluded oak

meadow on Hike 2 and great burgers at

WB9RKN's mountain cabin where we were

joined by Tom, KJ6NA, following the

hike.

Mysteries: On Hike 2, a "mystery garage" was spotted

atop an otherwise undeveloped ridgeline. The

structure appeared to be made entirely of rock

with no visible roads for access and no garage

door. Overflow parking for the Gods?

To see the structure again, go to coordinates

33-21-43.5, 116-49-36.3 (NAD 27) and look less

than a mile toward 65 degrees true.