Viejas Mountain Trail - South Approach

The fist first 3/4 of a mile is very steep and rocky and a real leg burner. Then it sort of eases up a bit but is still almost all uphill. At 3/4 of a mile up, there's a nice mesa to give you a bit of a break for about 1/4 of a mile, then it's back up you go but the uphill grade is pretty steady from there. When you get to mile 1.95 it's the last steep part for .05 of a mile to the false summit plateau. Then it's .3 of a mile to the true peak of Viejas Mountain where the Benchmark and rock structure is. Max slope grade is 47° and average slope grade is 17°. In some of the steeper sections it's good to have trekking poles to steady yourself on the way down. On this trail you will notice that the mountain is playing tricks with you as it splits and disappears occasionally, but you just stop and look and you will see the trail again, a couple feet to the side. On the way back down you will see the trail in places you missed and if you record tracks you will see the paths differentiate. This is NOT a hike to do when hot as it is complete exposed with no shade.