Cuyamaca Rancho State Park has a wonderful system of interconnected trails and fire roads, and we always enjoy cobbling together a new route and exploring sections of trail we haven’t been on before. This 10 mile loop combines the Dead Horse Trail, California Riding and Hiking Trail, South Boundary Fire Road, Blue Ribbon Trail, and Merigan Fire Road for a fun hike with a variety of scenery.
Ever since hiking the Sweetwater River Loop in the southwestern portion of the park a couple of years ago, I’d been itching to check out some of the other trails in that area. We also wanted a longer hike to prepare for some upcoming backpacking trips. A little time studying our topo map yielded this route. We picked a relatively cool, overcast morning, loaded up our big packs with extra weight, and headed out to the Merigan staging area.
After paying our $10 day use fee we set off down the gravel Merigan Fire Road.
The road passed what looked like a Ranger’s residence, then curved around along the edge of an open field. The gravel soon transitioned to hard-packed dirt.
We wound our way along the oak-lined road, which soon began to climb uphill.
Around .7 miles we came to a “Y” junction where the loop portion of our hike began. We turned left here, heading downhill on the Dead Horse Trail.
The Dead Horse Trail was a single track, which led us quickly downhill towards the Sweetwater River.
We came to a “Y” junction where there was a tiny little trail marker with an arrow pointing left, so that’s the way we went.
The trail led us to a water crossing. To the right were some partially submerged logs that made crossing without getting your feet wet possible. If this crossing is too gnarly for you, you can go back to the last junction (with the tiny arrow marker) and go right to find another crossable spot a little ways upstream.
We made it across the stream and continued along the trail as it turned left and began climbing back uphill.
The trail was beautifully rugged – narrow and a little bit overgrown, but not so bad as to make passage difficult.
There was purple ceanothus in bloom, and small wildflowers popping up along the trail.
We paralleled the Sweetwater River for a short distance before the trail made a few switchbacks uphill away from the water.
We hiked pretty steadily uphill, enjoying the expansive views.
A little under 2.5 miles the trail began to level out a bit. While there would be more uphills to come, the longest stretch of it was behind us.
Around 2.8 miles we came to a “T” junction where we met the California Riding and Hiking Trail and turned right.
The trail was fairly level, and we could relax and enjoy the scenery as we moved between dense clumps of vegetation and open grassy fields.
Around 3.65 miles the Saddleback Trail branched off on our right. If you want to cut things short, you can take this trail back to the Merigan Fire Road, but we were just getting warmed up and continued to the left along the California Riding and Hiking Trail.
The trail took us east through the chaparral. We could see Oakzanita Peak in the distance.
Around 4 miles we came to a “T” junction with the South Boundary Fire Road and turned right.
The road took us downhill while providing beautiful views.
Around 4.45 miles we turned right to stay on the South Boundary Fire Road.
The road took us through some beautiful oak forest. We found some fallen logs on the side of the trail and stopped for a quick lunch.
After refueling we continued on. Around 4.7 miles it was time to cross back over the Sweetwater River. Once again, some well-placed logs on the right helped us across with dry shoes.
On the far side of the river we found another junction. Once again, you have the option to cut the hike short by turning right onto the Sweetwater Trail which will lead you more directly to the starting point. But we were still going strong so turned left to continue on the South Boundary Fire Road.
The road led us gradually uphill through more oaks and chaparral.
Blooming ceanothus continued to line the trail.
Around 5.3 miles we turned right onto the Blue Ribbon Trail which would take us southward.
A huge expanse of green chaparral surrounded us.
As we traveled downhill along the course of a seasonal stream the vegetation thickened. We passed through thick tangles of ceanothus, chamise, and manzanita and noted the remnants of fire-damaged oak trees.
Highway 79 was on our left, and as the trail slowly moved closer to it the sounds of occasional cars passing by broke the tranquility of the otherwise quiet trail. This was pretty much the only downside we found to the entire hike though, so it wasn’t too bad. Nature provided some nice flowers along the trail to compensate for the noise.
Around 6.7 miles we reached the Merigan Fire Road and turned right (the left fork just leads a short distance to Highway 79).
From here, we had a somewhat steep climb uphill.
The fire road rolled on, up and down.
Around 7.9 mile we came to a junction where multiple trails intersected. Both the Saddleback Trail and the Sweetwater Trail came in from the right. We turned left onto the Merigan Fire Road – the final leg of our hike.
The Sweetwater River ran far below us on the right. The fire road was lined with more oaks and chaparral brush.
Finally, around 9.2 miles we passed the turn-off for the Dead Horse Trail we had taken earlier. We continued straight along the Merigan Fire Road back to our car.
Directions:
From I-8 East, take the CA-79 exit. Follow 79 North for approximately 1.3 miles, then turn left onto Riverside Drive, which at some point turns into Viejas Blvd. Follow Riverside Drive/Viejas Blvd for approximately 1.4 miles to the Merigan Day Use area on the left side of the road. map
| Total Distance: | 9.9 miles |
| Difficulty: | Moderate |
| Total Ascent: | 1585 feet |
| Dog Friendly?: | Dogs not allowed |
| Bike Friendly?: | Bikes not allowed on all trail segments |
| Facilities: | Port-a-potty at trailhead, no water |
| Fees/Permits: | $10 Day use fee (self-registration) |
For more information, visit:
California State Parks – Cuyamaca Rancho State Park
View route or download GPX from CalTopo
