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.