Escondido Falls: A Review

(Courtesy of AllTrails)

On a whim, I decided to hike this trail. I'd heard so much about it, and all good things, and I couldn't wait for another winding trail beside a tranquil stream.

Also, I needed some exercise, so I decided to run it. I took my 30L backpack, within which I packed a hammock, a book, a ton of snacks, a camera and of course, some good vibes. After driving out a ways, I found the parking lot, which was a small dirt area bordering the road. After not finding a spot I resolved to park on the PCH, where I found a spot easily. After crossing the road, I started up the trail, which was just a well manicured dirt path bordering pavement.

Honestly, I was questioning my choice at this point, but I knew the hike could get better. It was hot, the trail was well-developed and in a well-developed area, and I knew I would have to travel awhile before I got deeper into the mountains. As if in response, after maybe a quarter mile of open road, the environment changed. I entered into a wooded field of sorts, long grasses and the occasional large bush overgrowing the trail. I thought back to a time not too long before, when on a similar looking trail I had almost stepped on a snake. In my memory (and certainly in every subsequent retelling), that snake was big. I'm talking as thick as my wrist, in a coil a foot tall and easily a foot wide. It snapped at me as I pranced away, yes pranced--it was not majestic. That, and the thought that I have known of a lot of people to have gotten snake bites this summer, was swimming fitfully in my head.

Because I was running, in a weird way it was kind of exhilarating, flying through the brush, trusting my feet to find stable surfaces, praying that I wouldn't step on a snake. Quickly though, the excitement ended, and I found myself on a wide trail like the kind you see in Sycamore Canyon. Like that one, this one meanders up and down, criss-crossing what I'll call the Escondido Stream, gently sloping uphill until you make it to the waterfall. It's a great run, with intervals separated by the challenge of stream crossings and many shaded regions. To my left and right stood many lanky trees interspersed with oaks (many of which burned) which if I was feeling a tad more whimsical I might have climbed. Often in this peaceful chaparral forest I would hear the sounds of nature, exclaiming when they did not feel threatened.

A picture of the falls, aka the grand slime trickle

When I arrived at the falls, it was honestly a bit depressing. To me it seemed more like a grand slime trickle. Which is great, and unique, and maybe my standards are too high but I was expecting a bit more crashing and a little less yuck. This also likely had to do with the fact I chose to hike this trail in mid June. However, it was shady, and I found a good tree to snack under. There were also a few enticing paths to the left and right of it that looked like they went up to the waterfall's top, but they had do not enter signs at their bases and I wasn't about to start a fight with the rangers--they obviously had good reasons for putting them up if they took the time to hike them out and stake them in. The one path that wasn't marked off led up slightly to the right of the waterfall, and that was fun to scurry up and climb a little. At the top was perhaps a more gross slime bowl, but I stayed up there for a bit because of its quiescence.

Soon, however, I left the grand slime trickle and ran my way back to my car. As always, it was much more fun to run down hill than it was to run uphill, and I quickly arrived at my car. Unfortunatley, I did have no pull out directly onto the PCH, and it was frankly one of the more harrowing merges I've done considering I had next to no visibility.

Now to my review. Undeniably, this hike-run was enjoyable. And yet the route's popularity brings lots of people. I'm happy for that, nature should be enjoyed. But if I'm trying to move at a fast pace, and they are not, then that makes things more difficult than they need to be. Also, don't be too adventurous on this hike because like most Santa Monica low-elevation creeks the area is blanketed in poison oak, I mean more swaddled in the stuff than a heavily cyanotic baby.

For all my complaining, however, this route is a fine introduction to the Santa Monica Mountains. It is quite beautiful, and there exist several places where you can encounter nature. It is short, and perfect for a family excursion, a date, or hanging out with people where the point is not to hike, but to enjoy each other's company. I imagine that at times of the year when it rains more (aka not in the middle of the summer when I hiked it) that the pools will have more water and the falls will cascade with more exuberance. That said, I have seen it closed in these periods when it gets too much water. In the end, I will not laud it for something it is not. It is not a great location to train, or to look for and study animals, or to experience nature's serene majesty to a high degree, or to otherwise make an adventure by climbing scrambling running or way-finding among the crags and roots of the outdoors. Which, like I said, makes it better for families and because it is more accessible.

Final score, at least for me? 4/10. I might hike it again with friends, but not as a run unless I did super early or as a night hike (if it's even open then). When I hike alone, which is not often, I hope for a challenge thats tests me physically and calibrates me emotionally in ways that Escondido just did not do. If I were you, I would hike Escondido, just make sure you approach it with the right lens.