June 10 & 11, 2003 - Site 20, Laguna Camp Ground, Laguna Recreation Area, Cleveland National Forest, San Diego County, CA. N 32°63.290', W 116° 27.006'. There. I couldn't tell you more precisely where we were. The weather in San Diego was cool and cloudy for days on end - June Gloom at its worst - so we packed up the van, which doesn't take long and headed east until we found some sun. We exited I-8 on Sunrise highway and made our way to Laguna Campground which is adjacent to Big Laguna Trail which connects to the Nobel Canyon Trail which connects to the Pacific Crest Trail. We never made it off the Big Laguna Trail.

The campground, at around 5000 feet in elevation, was nicely laid out among the pines and oaks, was nearly deserted. Just a short walk led to huge open meadows and well-maintained trails. There were still many wild flowers to see, including lots of these white fluffy ones. I suppose I should start learning to identify all the flora and fauna I see. "White fluffy flowers" doesn't narrow it down much, but they were pretty.

The middle photo shows Big Laguna Lake out in the middle of the meadow.

It was quiet and peaceful, the sun was shining, not a cloud in the sky, a perfect day for an easy trail walk. Every where you turned, there was something worth photographing. Even Lorri couldn't resist taking a photo of me, just resting on a log.

Our site was level, shady and secluded.

We cooked teriyaki tri-tip and Yukon Gold potatoes on the barby while sautéing mushrooms and steaming Brussels sprouts on the stove. A little red wine helped to  wash it all down...mmm...we eat well.

The next morning we went for another hike.

Heading back home we continued on Sunrise Highway toward Lake Cuyamaca and took this photo looking down toward the desert. At Cuyamaca we headed south on Rte. 79 to I-8. We stopped at the Viejas Outlet Shopping Mall where I bought a new pair of jeans. And so ended another short camping excursion.