Discovery Lake to Double Peak is a 4.3 mile heavily trafficked out and back trail located near San Marcos, California that features a lake and is rated as moderate. The trail is primarily used for hiking.
Hard incline for 2 mi, mostly asphalt road. Highly trafficked, impossible to take dogs off leash.
Great trail. Super glad I had pro version to know where we were. Even with it we missed a turn but it was ok. Starting out straight up on clean path. You go to double peak and the down part is very steep with lots of rocks... just be aware and take your time!
This is 2 miles ALL UPHILL. if you don’t like hills or can’t do it this isn’t the hike for you. You can also drive to the top for the view (which honestly is just ok). Lots of people and dog friendly. Mostly masked people but of course not all.
Parking -- There's a small amount of parking adjacent to the trailhead, as well as street parking in the nearby residential community, which is where we parked. Restrooms -- Yes! There are two unisex surprisingly well kept restrooms at the trailhead/small park. This makes it a five-star hike in my book! Hike -- We walked around Discovery Lake, which was quite busy with walkers, runners, kids, families. We saw some ducks in the lake, which is about the only wildlife we saw. From the lake, we continued on the Double Peak trail. It includes a few inclines and at the top offers great views of San Marcos. It's very new with nicely groomed, wide well-kept trails and benches for resting. Decent signage. It runs through some very large newer housing areas. Dog poop bags and trash cans available by the lake. A lot of people wearing masks, but I would have like to have seen more.