Best Trails near San Diego, California

Really nice trail with great view from mountains to ocean.

Shady, easy hike at the base of the hill off the 52. I went a bit beyond the official loop. Visited the day after rains and didn't have any troubles (I stayed to the left), except for a tiny muddy step up at the very beginning. Otherwise the trail was dry and green!

This trail is an all time favorite. We cut across the loop and headed to the waterfalls and very full river. So beautiful! Challenging elevation hills quite steep but fun! Coming back we hit meadows and valleys with all wilderness, no sounds, and no hikers. Just beautiful! Trails are very well maintained. Due to all the rain it was muddy at parts but you get over it due to the beauty. And the green foliage, vibrant green grass, and new baby flower blooms are sooo worth this hike! Repeating in the next couple weeks!

Slightly muddy 45 min walk after the recent San Diego rains. Very easy but not far enough away from freeway noise to feel like I communed with nature. Easy enough to bring kids.

Beautiful ocean and cliff views.

love the options in this trail and the wonderful waterfall! note for new hikers: as of 2/18/19 it is closed due to flooding of the trails

Easy trail. Gorgeous view at waterfall. Primary trails were partially closed due to flooding but could find side road leading to the waterfall.

Awesome moderate trail... Great views

Walked along the beach portion first only to get to a closed set of stairs. Looks like trails are closed here for 24 hours after a rain storm.

Beautiful with all the water from the recent rain. Only downfall is it attracts everyone and for very crowded. Everyone has the same idea after the rain.

I'm a fan of Big Rock Trail. I was looking forward to hiking this loop. However, there is no connection to Big Rock/Pyles Peak Trail as shown on map. You have to detour, go down Big Rock half way than climb back up to service road to continue the hike. Other than that it's a good hike!

Definitely a heavily populated loop trail. If it's a nice day out, prepare for a lot of car traffic in and out of the parking area. Over all beautiful walk, everything is paved, and beware of rattlesnakes if you decide to go off trail.

Hiked from Ted Williams area to the top and down the Van Dam Peak trail. Great walk with the dog and the flowers are starting to pop all along the path. Not much to see on the van dam side except for the blooms during this time of year. Great views at the top on a clear day.

Trail closed as of 2/17/2019

Overall this was a great loop. It is paved all the way around which makes it great for bass clean walking or people who have strollers. There was a lot of parking, but you still had to search for it as most of it was taken. The loop is beautiful and I will definitely come back here again. Make sure to pay attention to the gate hours so you do not get locked in.

I hate to be crabby, but...

While it's great to see so many people on the trail, the only way we can all enjoy it is if we all practice good trail etiquette.

This means, if you're walking four abreast, you should turn off your speakers so you can hear if people want to pass you. To misquote Cardi B, "I don't like it."

Better yet, use headphones and look around once in a while.

Also if you have a dog, please make sure he is well behaved and not running up to or into others. And if you have a Flexi leash, keep it short. I know at least one person who was almost tripped by a misbehaving dog on a long Flexi.

Other than the number of discourteous people, the trail itself is nice, with great views at the top. A little muddy today after all the rain; the bottom third had running water and little waterfalls, and it almost felt like you werr hiking upstream in a little creek. Muddy, but fun.

Couldn't make it down today, way too slippery from the recent rains, but spectacular views from the top. Will be back for this one!

Great trail for mtb and hike! Well maintained and marked.

Parts of the trail are flooded and difficult to pass.

Was wet but very nice little hike, took the pup, quite rewarding once you get to the top to see the beautiful view.

we weren't able to do the whole trail exactly because the river was Way too high & fast (even without our pups with us). a lil muddy, had to wade through & around the edge of a few creek overflows to get back to actual trail (it Has been raining quite a bit the last few weeks). still, a very nice hike, particularly when neither of us had done so in quite a while. good practice trail if you want to get back into hiking (enough challenge to make it fun but not overly taxing)