Cool Breezes, Tasty Waves and Some Invigorating Hiking

The Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve, at 12600 North Torrey Pines Road, is one of the most interesting State Parks in the area. Torrey Pines is fairly easy to get to from almost any direction and not only does it have a really nice beach, but it has a myriad of hiking trails. You can either try and find parking on the streets around the beach and walk up the road to park headquarters at the top of the cliff, pay to park in the lot at the base, or do what those of us who are truly cheap and lazy (me) and park at the Torrey Pines Golf Course off of North Torrey Pines Rd. Here you can park in a nice parking lot, with no fussy parallel parking or fees of any kind. You're also adding a mile and half walk on an sneaky back road into the reserve, which if you're looking for exercise is always nice.

There are several different trails you can choose from, all of which run along the cliffs and offer up gorgeous views of the orange, mottled Torrey Pines cliffs. Most of the trails will lead you down to the beach on a set of scary, steep, sandy stairs, at which point you can either choose to explore the beach and head back the way you came, or you can do the loop by walking up the main road to the reserve.

The best part is, after you've spent all afternoon hiking getting disgusting and sweaty, you can always spend the rest of the day relaxing on the beach and enjoying the delightfully ice cold water.

On a recent hike, I discovered a great way to get lunch after all my hard work. I had heard about the God Save the Cuisine food truck from Ed Bedford's column, Tin Fork in The Reader, and I really wanted to try it out. The morning of this particular I hike I heard via their Twitter account, @GSTCuisine, that they would be in the business park right across from the golf course on Torreyana Road that afternoon. It was fate. So instead of stopping at the car my mom, brother and I walked up a couple of blocks, turned into the business park and had a delightful lunch. There were four trucks parked in front of a grassy hill, littered with shade producing trees where everyone was enjoying their lunch breaks.

I was not disappointed. My mom and I ordered the Fish and Chips Taco, which far surpassed most of the fish and chips I had eaten while in London. Delicious.

My brother chose to go with the Italian option at MangiaMangia Mobile (@MangiaTruck for their schedule). He ordered the Lobster Ravioli, which he claimed was one of the best lobster raviolis he's ever had. And he's tried a lot, with quite a discerning palate for a thirteen year old.

4 O' Clock Friday Redeems Itself

I ragged on the new changes to the concerts after the Del Mar races. And I stand by what I said because the new rules are truly ridiculous. I also found out that the Saturday concerts are now 18 and older...which makes absolutely no sense and would have completely enraged my high school self.

With Jimmy Cliff (who brought Club Paradise, one of my all-time favorite movies, to life) playing last night, I decided to give the concerts another shot and went with my mom and my sixteen-year-old sister.

Based on the tragedy of the Cake concert, we planned to leave at 5 p.m. instead of 6:30 p.m. Luck was on our side because we were able to park in the nice, main lot for $10. Not free, but a lot more reasonable than $20. We then learned from a security guard that we didn't even need to buy the $10 race ticket to get in. All we had to do was walk down to the main gate and it would be $6. Amazing. We arrived so early that we were even able to watch the last couple of races and secure an incredible second row position in front of the stage.

Jimmy Cliff is incredible on stage. He was wearing a bedazzled headband, an all-leather black and red suit a la Eddie Murphey, and a red, green and yellow scarf. The music itself was so much fun to dance to. It was upbeat, positive and beautifully crafted. He is by far the most adorable man I have ever seen. He was flailing his arms, moving all across the stage, high kicking, doing faux tai chi moves and genuinely enjoying himself the whole time. His joy and happiness was truly infectious.

4 o'clock Friday, you better write Jimmy Cliff a really nice letter. I forgive you.

Black Mountain Part 2

I stand corrected. I saw my first rattlesnake on the trail yesterday. It wasn't so much raining as it was heavily misting, which actually made for a very enjoyable hiking atmosphere. No blistering heat from the sun, although it was a little humid and we were all covered in a heavy sheen of mist. For this hike we parked at Hilltop Park right up the street from Black Mountain Middle School on Oviedo Way. From this park you can take the Nighthawk Trail as opposed to the Miner's Loop Trail on the other side of the mountain. I think I prefer coming from the Nighthawk side better. It's just as long of a hike to the top of the mountain but the trail is a little wider and doesn't have as many surprise rocks jutting out in the middle of the trail. You are also parking in a paved lot as opposed to the dirt lot on the other side which is nicer on your car. As me, my mom and my uncle set out, a group of hikers on their way down warned us about a tiny, coiled-up rattlesnake in the middle of the trail. We thanked them, and then my uncle quickly dismissed the warning, saying that by the time we reached that part of the trail the snake would have fled. So we kept hiking, and saw no sign of any snake, which is usually the case when I receive a heads up from other hikers. As a side note, as we made our way back down the mountain we ran into a group of women on their way up. I was running down the hill, which is dangerous considering the amount of loose rocks and dirt. Not only did these three women take up the entire trail, but not one of them felt like moving over for me as I barreled into them. They also had three dogs off-leash, one of which ran straight under my legs, and seeing as how it would have been very hard for me to stop myself, I very nearly went head-over-heels down the mountain. It has nothing to do with the snake, but when you're out hiking there's a level of politeness and etiquette that should be observed so you don't cause your fellow hikers severe injury. After this debacle, another set of hikers warned us about the rogue snake in the trail. We thanked them, but continued to see no sign of any snake. Towards the end of the hike I was running ahead of my uncle and my mom, so I was the first one to finally spot it. Luckily I was running on the outside of the trail, otherwise I would have stepped on it. Even then, I barely saw it, and had to double back. It seemed like it had been there the whole time, snug up against a rock with a little pocket dug in the dirt to get warm in. We must have straight up passed it on the way out.

After warily taking the picture of the baby snake, keeping a safe distance, my uncle grabbed a shrub branch and very gently nudged the snake off the trail. The whole time he cooed to it, "Come on buddy, trust me, you'll be safer in the bushed."

Iron Mountain or Pride & Prejudice?

Iron Mountain sits on highway 67 as Poway begins to disappear into Ramona. It's a rocky dusty hike, taking roughly an hour to the top and then an hour back down (if you're really hustling). Seven miles round trip. There's a very nice parking lot equipped with bathrooms and strategically placed benches at the trail head in the shade for some relief as you reach the end (or, as my mother witnessed once, to serve as a place for women to sit while strange men you met on the trail massage your dirty, sweaty feet). There's very little shade as you hike up the mountain, scrambling over protruding rocks and gradually moving up over evenly spaced switchbacks. And out in Poway, away from any sort of coastal breeze, this can be a very hot hike if done in the afternoon. The best time to begin your trek is as early as you dare wake up. My favorite time is 5:30 am. I know that sounds scary, and completely unnecessary, but it's well worth it. As you begin to move into the tight trails snaking up the mountain you first walk through an open field. This early in the morning the field is filled with mist, resembling the dreamlike, dreary countryside of Mr. Darcy and "Pride and Prejudice."

You do have to watch out for the occasional rattlesnake, whose tube-like tracks can be seen crisscrossing the trail, but I've still never come across anything more menacing than a stink bug or a giant ant. Once you make it to the top, you're greeted with a picnic bench, lots of big rocks to sit on and an incredible view. The top of the mountain sits above the foggy cloud cover and you feel incredibly accomplished.

A Free Concert Shouldn't Cost $40

I remember in high school always looking forward to the free concerts after the Del Mar races in summer. Seeing as I had even less money in high school than I do now, it was a very exciting prospect for a Friday or Saturday night. It's how I was able to see Billy Idol (amazing with a costume change every song and then downright near nakedness), Cake, The B-52s, The English Beat, The Violent Femmes, Flaming Lips...I could go on and on. Even parking was free if you got there late enough. And usually by that time all of the guards had abandoned their posts, opened up the gates and allowed the masses to just pour in.

It was the most amazing concert series. I haven't been in a couple of years though and assumed that nothing had changed. I tried to go to see Cake (who I'm not even really that into, but hey, a free concert is a free concert) and was met with a big surprise. Not only was parking between $10 (for the dirt lot across the street) and $25 (for the cush, paved lot), but the new rule is if you arrive too late, tickets are $20 to get in. Usually it's the price of a ticket to the races, which is $10. Or, as I said, for those of us in the know, just show up late and pay nothing. I'm a little disgusted and saddened that they're trying to turn a profit on the concerts now. Half of the appeal is that you can get in for practically no money. When it came down to it, we flipped a bitch and left because I don't like Cake enough to shell out $40 plus to see them in concert. Again. In fact, $40 is asking a lot to see most bands where you're standing on a dirt infield next to all the sweaty drunks spilling out from the Beerfest next door.