No time to read the whole post? Here’s some quick tips.
- Fall weekends are extremely busy! If you go on a weekend go first thing in the morning; but for a better option, go on a weekday.
- Hike Five Oaks Trail – great hike, and you can burn off the pie calories. 🙂
- Eat at Jeremy’s on the Hill. Delicious food, nice people.
The Full Story…
Getting There
We drove from LA on a Saturday, which took us about 2 hours and 30 minutes (although we did run into some construction outside of Julian). Drive was nice and easy, and since it was our first trip to Julian we enjoyed the scenery. We went straight to the hiking spot.
Hotel
Not a ton (of good) options for overnight accommodations in Julian, but we found Tucker Peak Lodge. It is set-up like a bed & breakfast, without the breakfast part. It is located on a quite hillside with beautiful views. We stayed in the Tranquility King Room, which was roomy and clean. They are dog-friendly (charge of $45) with a great shared outdoor space. Although the decor and style of this hotel is typically not for me, I found it to be a nice change and would recommend.
Activities/Food
So many great hikes in this area! I chose Five Oaks Trail since it was dog friendly, not too long and offered some fall colors. Parking was easy, there were toilets at the beginning of the trail, and although we were not the only ones on the trail, it was not overly crowded. There are two trails you can choose from at this location, and after a slight uphill climb you can either go right to the Five Oaks Trail or continue straight to the Volcan Mountain Trail. It was uphill most the way, but not too difficult.
In addition to taking in the fall colors, we also visited Calico Cidery. Wonderful cidery where you can roam through the apple trees, with games set-up to play with family and friends. They are super friendly and dog friendly.
We had dinner at Jeremy’s on the Hill which I highly recommend (vegan options)! We ate on the patio, with heat lamps – food and service were wonderful! Breakfast was at Regulars Wanted. Hard to find a menu online as it changes, but we had breakfast burritos (vegetarian) which were tasty. Good coffee and pastry options.
In terms of pie – tons of choices so not sure you can go wrong. Because of the crowds we ended be getting the pie on Sunday morning at 9am – no lines, which was amazing. My favorites were the apple pie from Moms and the sugar-free strawberry rhubarb from Apple Alley Bakery.
On the way home we drove through San Diego and stopped by Lake Cuyamaca. Took us a bit longer but worth the different views.