I went hiking with a friend to Cedar Creek Falls last weekend. It’s in the Cleveland National Forest (so you need an Adventure Pass to park). The first part of the trail winds down into a valley. Spring is approaching and there were some nice wildflowers blooming and new growth.

The trail isn’t too tough if you just want to see the bottom of the falls, but we went to see the top first:

The short way down to the bottom is steep and required some squatting/crab walking. Definitely a bit more than I was expecting, but it’s a pretty view:

You can follow the creek back to meet up with the trail leading back up out of the valley. We saw some families with little kids, so they probably didn’t go to the top. On the way back we saw a number of fire-blackened trees:

It’s not a dramatic waterfall (this is arid San Diego county after all), but the advantage of the hike is that on the way back you can stop by the famous Julian Pie Company. Next time I’m out there I’ll try Mom’s.