Lake Poway   -  Map

May 31, 2004 - Lisa, Tucker and I hiked Lake Poway in the morning. Hiking traffic was light and the sun was already warming the trail. e saw quite a few lizards, but no snakes. When we completed the hike, we could see a school of trout swimming by the launch ramp.


 


 


 

May 25, 2004 - We went for our third hike around Lake Poway. We began the hike at 4pm to see if we would see any snakes. Tucker takes time to greet everyone we meet along the trail. He doesn't pay any attention to the animals we run across, which included a ground squirrels, a king snake, a horned toad and lizards.
 


 


 


 


 


 

May 21, 2004 - Craig Hagen from PETCO found this beautiful 48" King Snake skin while hiking around Lake Poway. He generally hikes in the afternoon after work and runs across quite a few snakes as the the day begins to cool off.
 
May 21, 2004 - It has been a while since my last hike due to a lot of changes at home. We have a new Labrador Retriever puppy named Tucker who arrived earlier this month. This is his first trip to the Lake, because I wanted to make sure he could handle the distance. He did fine. It was mid day and cloudy when we left the house. By the time we got started the sun came out and it was warm, but not hot.
 
















 

Tucker in the
water video



April 21, 2004 - It was drizzling and overcast this morning at Lake Poway. They were a little late in opening the gate, I was about the 12th person in line and there were probably over 20 cars before they actually opened the gate. It was after 6am. They have dumped what looks like concrete mix  on a portion of the trail that has been rutted out by the runoff. It might be a good way to go for the corral entry. One jogger came up from behind me early in the hike and was the only person on the trail.
 


 


 


 


 

April 19, 2004 - It was a cool morning, uneventful other than a group of Japanese hikers coming the other way at the 2.5 mile marker.  The  lake is closed to fishermen today.
 


 


 











April 17, 2004 - As I began my hike around Lake Poway, I ran across these two baby Kangaroo Rats. They were about 10 feet apart and still wiggling. I didn't have anything t put them it or I would have 'rescued' them. I wonder if they were just born or something got into their nest or the mother was moving them and dropped them. They do seem big for new born babies.
 


Kangaroo Rat


Kangaroo Rat


Kangaroo Rat


Kangaroo Rat


Dead Baby
Kangaroo Rats








Interesting Tracks



Wild Cucumber dying





April 15 - Got a little earlier start this morning. I was in shorts, the temp was in the high 40's and it took a while to warm up. The moon was still out. Going clockwise, the West, Northwest side of the lake has exploded in growth in 2 days. There are plants that have sprouts that are 6" to 24" longer than 2 days ago. There are a lot more flowers than Tuesday. It may have something to do with longer days, I'm not sure.  Someone whacked of a 'Lords Candle' that was at the edge of the trail. What a shame.  I now understand where the term 'Angel Hair' or 'Devils Hair' probably came from. The third form the last picture shows the growth on top of a bush and it looks like a toupee. I also noticed that some of the plants mange to get some growth up above the Angel Hair and seem to be surviving. Those that don't become smothered and the whole plant dies.
 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


Plant destroyed


 


 


Wild Cucumber
 


Angel Hair


 


 

  
April 13 - Sunday I hiked up to Mount Woodson, so this is my first trip back to the Lake Poway hike. It was a cool and very foggy morning. No one on the trail. The fog lingered for the entire hike. It was considerably easier than the Mount Woodson hike.
 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 
April 8 - Started at 6:20 to beat the school traffic. It was overcast, so it was darker than normal and was humid. I was sweating at the beginning of the hike. They are adding gravel to parts of the road that have eroded down to the rocks. There were a few boats out and some folks along the banks. I didn't see anyone on the trail. I walked to day, making it around in 47 minutes.
 


 


 


 


 


 


 



 


 

April 6 - Got started in the grey light of morning. I managed to get around the lake without seeing anyone. The lake is closed to fishing on Monday and Tuesday.  There were a couple of rabbits, but no other wildlife. I jogged the downhill portions, finishing in 39 minutes.
         


 


 

April 4 - Last night we turned the clocks ahead, so I got started an hour later than normal. My hips were sore from jogging on the last hike, so I walked the distance. Keep in mind, I really haven't done any running in so long, I can't remember the last time. I encountered 2 joggers and a couple who were making the turn to hike up to Mt Woodson. No wildlife other than some quail and rabbits at the beginning, where I think I was the first person in the area. I completed the walk in 45 minutes.




April 2 -  I left earlier than normal, to beat the high school traffic. It rained last night and the trail was a little soggy, but didn't present any problems. Everything is so much greener as a result of the rain. The wild cucumbers had a growth spurt since Wednesday and I swear there are a couple of new ones. One of the 'Lords Candles' was broken off, I suspect by kids. It was off the road a little bit, but I recall Wednesday seeing to guys with long wood sticks swinging them around like swords.

I only encountered one 'jogger' on the trail. I found I am able to jog the down hills easily while maintaining my normal pace uphill. I finished the hike in 41 minutes, timed from when I leave the car to when I return to the car.

In the first picture I managed to catch a duck in mid air.
 


Duck in mid air


 


A "Lords Candle"
Chopped off







March 31, I made it around the Lake in 49 minutes. I went counter clockwise and it seems harder. I had planned to wear shorts, but it was really cool so I wore jeans. By the time I did the first mile, I wished I had shorts on.
 


 


 


 

March 27, I hike Lake Poway this morning. There was a tournament at the lake this weekend, so the parking lot was pretty full. There were a half a dozen hikers and 3 bikers, so traffic was minimal on the trail. It took 50 minutes registering 2.8 miles on the pedometer. I think I'll pick up a second pedometer, a little better model. I was sweating pretty good for the first 2/3rds, then settled down and dried out.

The 'Lords Candles' are beginning to bloom, ranging from the stalk starting to sprout to full flower. The wild cucumbers are being maintained, but are still popping up the way they do here at the house. I saw a few lizards, one rabbit and that was about it for wild life. Lots of boats on the lake.
 



         

January 25, Lisa and I went back to Lake Poway, noticing the growth of the wild cucumbers among other things. We saw one little runner last week. We ran across a pile of feathers.









January 18, Lisa and I hike Lake Poway. It was a beautiful morning.