I was just here Monday on a hike after work. You do feel like you are far away from civilization on some of the trails but it is an illusion. Unfortunately Mission Trails park is being loved to death. So many people are using it. The good thing is that there must be a lot of people who pick up the trash on the trails because I rarely see any. Graffiti is also minimal (except for the toilets near the dam). Probably my favorite hike is Oak Canyon. Thanks for making these informative and entertaining videos.
Oh man, there is a big boulder on Father Junipero Serra Rd, near the rock climbing trail, and several times I've been down there and have seen that someone has spraypainted it. Makes me so mad, but they are quick to get it off but you can still tell it was there. The people who do trail work etc are amazing though. I too rarely see trash.
Feels like The Old Mission Dam is really out in the middle of nowhere...yet as you mentioned Steve, it is literally 15 minutes away from multiple Walmarts. What a Treasure for San Diego! This was a fun hike and very interesting story! Really appreciate the time and effort you put into your videos Steve. It's quite obvious this is a labor of love for you AND We Fans do not take it for granted! Cheers From Ohio
I don't take any of Steve's videos for granted, that's for sure. Can't wait for Wednesday when he uploads new. I live in Oregon and find southern California to be too dry and, well, ugly, for my tastes in nature. But since viewing his videos, I've come to appreciate the climate and terrain there as part of the greater ecosystem of North America. Good videos can change people's minds.
*Cool find, hey @**2:39** on the 15 ton boulder dedicated May 17 1941, the word "PADRES" and "INDIANS" were edited into the ground down original which had said 'first permanent irrigation project by white men in california'! BIG THANKS to Larry Stirling of San Diego Council who got that changed* "OLD MISSION DAM BUILT 1813 - 1816 A PART OF THE FIRST PERMANENT IRRIGATION PROJECT BY PADRES AND INDIANS IN CALIFORNIA MARKER PLACED BY THE SAN DIEGO CHAPTER, DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION MAY 17TH, 1941"
@@SidetrackAdventures Hey Steve, any cool hidden treasures on the climb up Cowles Mountain that would be worth a video. Really appreciate your videos. They are all really cool. We go to Laughlin a few times a year and your vids about the towns and hidden treasures along the I-40 corridor are awesome. You make us realize you can find wonderful stuff just about anywhere. I live in Allied Gardens and love hiking in Mission Trails park.
I've heard the name Padre Dam for years, but never knew where it was located. Nice you were able to get some shots with water pouring through, and wildflowers blooming on the hillsides. I recall a picture on display at the 70th Street trolley station that showed the historic trade routes and trails of the native people all through Mission Valley. The last time I was there it was gone...I wish I'd taken a photo of it. All of this history is so interesting and I appreciate your honest and sensitive treatment of the subject. My relative of mine actually has grinding stones and pictographs above the creek at the edge of her property in East El Cajon. They had experts from SDSU and Museum of Man out to look at them.
Just want to say thanks for always giving us the chance to pause the video's so we can read any interesting plaques you come across. I felt like i wanted to lie beside the water & drift asleep imagining food grinding while children played.
I don't know if you already covered it but once around WW2 a Navy Aircraft had to ditch in Otay Lake. The story of its recovery is full of intrigue as well.
I just visited the site of a B-24-or some experimental version thereof-crash in a neighborhood just off Rosecrans beyond the airport. House is still there!
The missionaries had the same problem (soldiers abusing their converts) at the San Saba Mission & Presidio which is why the Comanches led several tribes in killing the Spanish trespassers and burning the buildings. While reading all the Spanish communique between Mexico city, San Antonio, San Saba and several other missions I was able to get a first hand account of the attitudes of Comanches toward the missionaries there. Thanks for your posts and most of all thanks for being honest about the heinous crimes committed against the natives by those representing Christendom. If you ever get to Texas there's a treasure trove of sites you could feature on your channel including the best representation, Presidio La Bahio of one in this hemisphere. Try to visit during the annual reenactment!
That’s just a lovely place. I would love to spend the day fishing there. I’m a catch & release 🐟 fisher except for mountain trout. I never heard of the San Diego river. I liked all of it including the Indian structures. It’s hard to believe that wonderful park appears to be in the middle of nowhere and it’s 15 minutes from big box stores and all the rest. Thanks for sharing and providing the history. 👍☮️🌞❤️
The first Mission in Baja CA was built in 1697. Missions were commonly built as "exploration" crept north, although not always consecutively with distance. The Spanish thought CA was an island for quite a while. Junipero Sera was first Padre to cross desert from Arizona into CA crossing near today's Needles. Consider: how many Indian Reservations are there in Mexico, or any other Spanish and Portuguese colony countries?
Reference books include "The History of Alta California" by Antonio Osio, translated by Rose Beebe and Rob't Senkewicz, and "Lands of Promise and Despair. Chronicled of Early California, 1535-1846" by Beebe and Senkewicz as above.
About 20 years ago the singles club I belonged to fixed up the hiking trail. It is a pretty place. Too bad San Diego just lets all of that water flow into the ocean. 200 years old and yet it still stands.
My wife and I gave birth on a picnic table and gathered fresh water to wrap him in freshly soaked towells to get to Scripps..😁😇...🏞 We met as Rock Climbers in 1980/81 when the road was a highway for Santee Gravel Semi's
Forgot about the Padre Dam until you brought back a flood of memories. A bunch of us used to ride dirt bike motorcycles around the area below Black Mountain as we called it. There was nothing but open space between Navajo and Mission Gorge back then and we had loads of fun. Several times we rode over to the Dam to explore. Never knew about the rocks where the natives ground their food. And the Dam area looks the same now as it did 55 years ago. Thank you for the memories.
I grew up in the Santee area and went to High school at Santana in the 60’s. As a kid my friends and I would ride our bicycles to the dam and fish for crawdads with bacon tied on a string. We also caught crappie and blue gill that my mom would cook for us. One year the river flooded the dam area and my buddy and I were out there at the dam and was standing on top of the part of it that you show in your video with the water running through it. On that day a reporter from the San Diego Union and Evening Tribune wax there. Back in those days there were two newspapers one in the morning ( San Diego Union) and in the evening ( The Evening Tribune) he was taking pictures of the flooding and took our pictures while we were standing on the dam ! I had a paper route delivering the San Diego Union in Carlton Hills and to my surprise when I got the papers to roll for delivery my picture was on the front page below the fold!!!! That brings back a lot of memories for me because I had explored all over that area. One of the mountains back behind the dam was nick named rattlesnake mountain because of all of the snakes on it. A guy I went to school with (Jim Davis) and his father captured the rattlers and would milk them for the venom and sell it to Scripts Ranch for serum to treat snake bites. There was always a story going around back then too that talked about there being a Spanish cannon in a cave up there somewhere, but I think it was just a myth because we hiked all over that place and never found it. It was a fun time growing up in Santee, there was always something different to do. You were never too far from the beach the Cuyamaca Mountains, the dessert Tijuana Mexico or a quick trip up to Disneyland, knotts Berry Farm or The Wax Museum. It was a great place to grow up.... oh the memories your video conjured up... thank you Steve!
I had some similar experiences on the other side of the country, at about the same time, catching crayfish, bluegill and snapping turtles in Virginia. My friend and I found ruins with concrete bunker like shapes buried under leaves and surrounded by trees. We later discovered that it was a POW camp at one time. This was near the Ft Hunt area. I think we had more freedom as kids then, than we do as adults.
I grew up in San Carlos-Patrick Henry HS Class of '72. After 1st Mod, we had 2 hours of what the school called "open mod" when students who had cars could go off campus. We used to head straight out Golfcrest Drive to Mission Gorge Road and out to either the dam, or that abandoned access road off Padre Junipero Serra Road that took you across the river (if you had a a lift kit) to the north quarry. Both locales were good for getting high. But maybe you County boys were more wholesome than us prevert city folk, eh? heh heh heh... We fished there too. Mostly in the quarry pond. Snagged a few cat fish and bass on stink bait. Did you or your friends ever ride on that old manual 4 seat cable tram that spanned the gorge? Good ol' days.
Yeah I was pretty young when the pictures in the SD Union appeared. But visited often after that it was also a very popular make out spot…. Need I say more?
Another fantastic video, San Diego Steve! As a kid, I always mistakenly thought the building on Presidio Hill was Mission San Diego. Not until I became an adult did I find out that Presidio Hill was just the original site of the mission. It is now the location of the Junipero Serra Museum, which stands prominently atop the hill overlooking historic Old Town State Park and Mission Valley. The Junipero Serra Museum contains thousands of artifacts unearthed from this historic site.
Monks, men of the cloth and Priests just came over and slaughtered saintly people for no reason whatsoever. Hardly seems believable, but that is modern history.
Thank you, Steve. Thanks for highlighting our San Diego history and great scenery. I appreciate your balanced research and acknowledging the difficulties with the Spanish colonialization.
Wow Steve, I literally started traveling around that area every other day about 2 months ago, I deliver fuel to the Sycuan fuel station over on Dehesa Rd in El Cajon. I come from the North coming down 15S to the 8E and when I leave I take 8W to the 67N to 52W back to 15N. Gonna definitely try and check out Dam one of these days just gonna have to find room to park my Rig lol. Great Video sir.
If you go on the weekday you can probably park it on Father Junipero Serra Rd with no problems. The fire department does training in the area and I see fire trucks parked there all the time.
That Grinding Stones trail you show at 7:00 was closed off for years as was much of the trail around the river. My wife and I used to picnic right there on the rocks in the late '80s and early '90s. Beautiful place.
@@SidetrackAdventures, habitat recovery I think. Actually I didn’t know they had reopened that area and I still don’t know how much of it they did open.
Just for fun, brought up Google maps. Set position at the park headquarters and did a search for "walmart". Exactly one (Murphy Canyon) came up with a 15 minute driving time. The Grossmont store showed nearly the same distance, but driving time was not indicated. After closing the search panel to see more map (without re-scaling) additional Walmart's didn't appear but up to three Costco's were in plain view. Steve's commentary was so funny I just had to do it.
I've camped at the campground and it's a great way to enjoy the park and explore the area. Have you ever thought of doing a video about the Diamond Valley Lake up near Hemet? A lot fossilized bones of extinct animals were found there.
Steve, your postings about San Diego County topics are really a trip in Mr. Peabody's wayback machine for me! We learned about metates and grinding acorns way back at John Paul Jones Elementary in the 1960s. And as I recall, ground acorns tasted like crap! Thanks for the reminder of the past!
Thanks, I've often wondered what acorns taste like. No wonder squirrels in my area (Oregon) like peanuts so much and leave acorns alone unless they're starving.
Interesting bit of history here. I am really curious as to what was originaly on that engraving on the rock near the dam, where it says, "and Indians." There's a very clear indentation there, which suggests that something else was there originally which got removed and then the words that are there now were added.... 🤔
@@SidetrackAdventures Ah. Yeah, that would make sense. During that time, they were considered--and regularly referred to as--"savages," so I could see where that stone would have been engraved there. Given the date on the stone, I'm surprised that they were still using that term (unless they were simply keeping to the term that applied for the 1800s?), but I could see where sometime after that, someone decided to soften up the language a bit. Thanks for the reply and the info!
In the 1850's paddle wheel steam ships used to come up the river all the way to San Diego State University. I chubasco (hurricane in English) blew up the coast later that century. It caused massive flooding, Encinitas became an island, and re-routed the river to empty into San Diego Harbor.
Another eccentric favorite of mine is Myron Cook, Geologist. And if you watch his channel, he might have a story about that stone sign you started with. Do you have a story about those huge pock marks on it? Seems sooo geological, huh? 😂😂😂. I wonder what makes those rounds on it???? Also interesting, Steve! ❤❤❤❤
This place used to be the gunnery field of Camp Kearny during ww2. If you're willing to hop the "habitat rehabilitation" barriers, you'll eventually come across a few signs that give the real reason they don't want folks hiking there - "unexploded ordinance". I used to find all sorts of stuff out there before the barriers went up.
Right on Mr. Steve was there anymore traces of how the water got to the old mission and did it feed into any water fountains at the mission. After using the rock to grind up acorns they must have also worn down their teeth from the small little bits like sand that would get mixed into their food. Thanks Steve.
This area has greatly changed over the years In the early to mid 60's we would catch crawdads by the gunnysacks and see an occasional snake Good ol' days
You should have mentioned that across the street from the mission there u😢to be a well that was destroyed and buried for brogress l don’t know if it was built with the mission but it could have been
It would be nice to connect the history of the Alta Californian missions with the missions in Baja California. This connection is often missed and many people don't realize that the San Diego mission was not the first in the chain. Thanks for sharing your stories. I enjoy it greatly as it gives me a sense that I am part of something that is vast, beatiful and ancient.
I was there in the spring of 2015. At that time, there was a HUGE Rattlesnake problem. If you hike there, especially in the spring, be very careful and alert for snakes and other wildlife.
A friend camped in a quarry cave over night and came out just before sunrise to see a mountain lion sniffing around the cave opening. It bolted as soon as it saw my friend. When Santee was still largely undeveloped, plentiful deer and mountain lions migrated freely between the coast and the Lagunas.
Thank you so much for your videos and info on places i never knew existed in San Diego...❤ Maybe you could mention how walkable these sites are... I'm not getting any younger!😢
There is a small parking lot next to the dam and a lot of street parking if you are there on a non-weekend. Its very easy to get to. The trail down to the grinding rocks is maybe 1/4 - 1/2 mile from the visitor center and is a little steep but only about 300 feet long.
Nice swimming hole? The fisher-people would get upset if people were in the water disturbing fish. Don't know if I'd swim there, but a little one or two person lightweight raft would be kind of fun to paddle around and investigate things in and around the water. Eating fish from that river might be healthier than eating fish from supermarkets, especially major chains whose supply is farmed fish or imported fish. I've seen videos of the dubious nature of the quality of supermarket fish, although not all is suspect. Anyway, fisher-people at the dam probably "catch and release" just for the sport. Enjoy, everyone! Great video.
What a nice video of a historic site! Weren’t they going to install some kind of barrier or some kind of safety measures on that dam to prevent people from falling off of it? I remember a young guy was accidentally killed out there when he walked out onto the dam, slipped, and fell into the water or something like that a handful of years ago. Hit his head, I think. Didn’t his family sue the Park Service or the city? I thought the family was adamant about the city installing some kind of barricade or railings on the dam to prevent the same accident from happening to somebody else. Based on your video, however, it looks like nothing ever was done.
There was a somewhat recent death, but I don't believe it was at the dam. I know there was a hiker who was in the park during bad weather and was trying to cross the river and fell and hit his head, but I thought it was at the river crossing near the visitor center. I could be wrong though. I know that crossing had about 3 feet deep water last time I walked by it, but I haven't seen any construction there either.
@@SidetrackAdventures Yes, I think you have the right news story. That story is what I think I’m remembering. For some reason, though, I thought it occurred quite a few years earlier than it did. Apparently the guy was hiking on a trail that actually crosses the river at one point. I guess he slipped and got swept away and hit his head. For some reason I thought he was crossing the river on the dam, and that’s where he got killed. Apparently his parents wanted to put some kind of bridge over the river at that spot where the trail crosses it but it looks like that never happened.
This was first period skip for my crew from Chaparral High back in 1977. We would sit on the pipe that crossed down below the damn aways and burn doobies.
We smoked our doobies. I remember that big ol' rusted pipe, though. Was that part of the old flume system? Is it still there? Haven't been out there in decades. But usually we arc'd our doobiage in that old cable car that spanned the gorge further south. Good times.
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I was just here Monday on a hike after work. You do feel like you are far away from civilization on some of the trails but it is an illusion. Unfortunately Mission Trails park is being loved to death. So many people are using it. The good thing is that there must be a lot of people who pick up the trash on the trails because I rarely see any. Graffiti is also minimal (except for the toilets near the dam). Probably my favorite hike is Oak Canyon. Thanks for making these informative and entertaining videos.
Oh man, there is a big boulder on Father Junipero Serra Rd, near the rock climbing trail, and several times I've been down there and have seen that someone has spraypainted it. Makes me so mad, but they are quick to get it off but you can still tell it was there. The people who do trail work etc are amazing though. I too rarely see trash.
All these episodes are very good day trips, well done...
Feels like The Old Mission Dam is really out in the middle of nowhere...yet as you mentioned Steve, it is literally 15 minutes away from multiple Walmarts. What a Treasure for San Diego! This was a fun hike and very interesting story! Really appreciate the time and effort you put into your videos Steve. It's quite obvious this is a labor of love for you AND We Fans do not take it for granted! Cheers From Ohio
I don't take any of Steve's videos for granted, that's for sure. Can't wait for Wednesday when he uploads new. I live in Oregon and find southern California to be too dry and, well, ugly, for my tastes in nature. But since viewing his videos, I've come to appreciate the climate and terrain there as part of the greater ecosystem of North America. Good videos can change people's minds.
Thank you, I appreciate it. Yeah, the park is really an island of wilderness in the city.
Thank you!
*Cool find, hey @**2:39** on the 15 ton boulder dedicated May 17 1941, the word "PADRES" and "INDIANS" were edited into the ground down original which had said 'first permanent irrigation project by white men in california'! BIG THANKS to Larry Stirling of San Diego Council who got that changed*
"OLD MISSION DAM
BUILT 1813 - 1816
A PART OF THE FIRST PERMANENT
IRRIGATION PROJECT BY PADRES
AND INDIANS IN CALIFORNIA
MARKER PLACED BY THE SAN DIEGO
CHAPTER, DAUGHTERS OF
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
MAY 17TH, 1941"
@@SidetrackAdventures Hey Steve, any cool hidden treasures on the climb up Cowles Mountain that would be worth a video. Really appreciate your videos. They are all really cool. We go to Laughlin a few times a year and your vids about the towns and hidden treasures along the I-40 corridor are awesome. You make us realize you can find wonderful stuff just about anywhere. I live in Allied Gardens and love hiking in Mission Trails park.
I've heard the name Padre Dam for years, but never knew where it was located. Nice you were able to get some shots with water pouring through, and wildflowers blooming on the hillsides. I recall a picture on display at the 70th Street trolley station that showed the historic trade routes and trails of the native people all through Mission Valley. The last time I was there it was gone...I wish I'd taken a photo of it. All of this history is so interesting and I appreciate your honest and sensitive treatment of the subject. My relative of mine actually has grinding stones and pictographs above the creek at the edge of her property in East El Cajon. They had experts from SDSU and Museum of Man out to look at them.
Just want to say thanks for always giving us the chance to pause the video's so we can read any interesting plaques you come across. I felt like i wanted to lie beside the water & drift asleep imagining food grinding while children played.
I don't know if you already covered it but once around WW2 a Navy Aircraft had to ditch in Otay Lake. The story of its recovery is full of intrigue as well.
I haven't done a video on it. Recently I've seen a book just of plane crashes in San Diego County that I want to check out.
I just visited the site of a B-24-or some experimental version thereof-crash in a neighborhood just off Rosecrans beyond the airport. House is still there!
When I was a kid, back in the 50s, early 60s, we used to play there.
I'm from that area and went there when I was a kid to swim and fish, 55 years ago.
The missionaries had the same problem (soldiers abusing their converts) at the San Saba Mission & Presidio which is why the Comanches led several tribes in killing the Spanish trespassers and burning the buildings. While reading all the Spanish communique between Mexico city, San Antonio, San Saba and several other missions I was able to get a first hand account of the attitudes of Comanches toward the missionaries there. Thanks for your posts and most of all thanks for being honest about the heinous crimes committed against the natives by those representing Christendom. If you ever get to Texas there's a treasure trove of sites you could feature on your channel including the best representation, Presidio La Bahio of one in this hemisphere. Try to visit during the annual reenactment!
Thanks so much for taking everyone on your travels. It is so interesting and you are a wonderful storyteller.
Nice historical information.
That’s just a lovely place. I would love to spend the day fishing there. I’m a catch & release 🐟 fisher except for mountain trout. I never heard of the San Diego river. I liked all of it including the Indian structures. It’s hard to believe that wonderful park appears to be in the middle of nowhere and it’s 15 minutes from big box stores and all the rest. Thanks for sharing and providing the history. 👍☮️🌞❤️
I see people fishing all the time, but I'm not sure what kind of fish are there.
@@SidetrackAdventures same as any other river
Once again. Top notch sound editing. Thanks.
Well done....... thanks
Thanks for the mini adventure!
It gets pretty big in Mission Valley! But some of that may be ocean water for all I know.
Great video Steve
Great job
I really like how you narrate vids brother. You seem like a cool dude who would make a great neighbor. I enjoy all these topics.
Que Pasa we love ur vids Aqui en Tejas
You’re right that is a really polluted river. Fish catch and release. 👍
The first Mission in Baja CA was built in 1697. Missions were commonly built as "exploration" crept north, although not always consecutively with distance.
The Spanish thought CA was an island for quite a while. Junipero Sera was first Padre to cross desert from Arizona into CA crossing near today's Needles.
Consider: how many Indian Reservations are there in Mexico, or any other Spanish and Portuguese colony countries?
In the case of Argentina, the Spanish killed them all off! The Spanish did not bring civilization to the lands they conquered.
Reference books include "The History of Alta California" by Antonio Osio, translated by Rose Beebe and Rob't Senkewicz, and "Lands of Promise and Despair. Chronicled of Early California, 1535-1846" by Beebe and Senkewicz as above.
Wow…over 200 years…London has pimples that old
I believe El Camino Real is the oldest road in the United States. Of course, it was New Spain when the road was built.
FISH ON!!😮🤢😂😂
Great video as always
About 20 years ago the singles club I belonged to fixed up the hiking trail. It is a pretty place. Too bad San Diego just lets all of that water flow into the ocean. 200 years old and yet it still stands.
Sorry, I just have to say it. That was a dam good video 😂
Mount Fortuna (the lady)
My wife and I gave birth on a picnic table and gathered fresh water to wrap him in freshly soaked towells to get to Scripps..😁😇...🏞 We met as Rock Climbers in 1980/81 when the road was a highway for Santee Gravel Semi's
How is that dam kid now? 43? Did he give you any dam grandchildren?
Forgot about the Padre Dam until you brought back a flood of memories. A bunch of us used to ride dirt bike motorcycles around the area below Black Mountain as we called it. There was nothing but open space between Navajo and Mission Gorge back then and we had loads of fun. Several times we rode over to the Dam to explore. Never knew about the rocks where the natives ground their food. And the Dam area looks the same now as it did 55 years ago. Thank you for the memories.
I found a picture of it from the 30s and it looked the same too.
I grew up in the Santee area and went to High school at Santana in the 60’s.
As a kid my friends and I would ride our bicycles to the dam and fish for crawdads with bacon tied on a string. We also caught crappie and blue gill that my mom would cook for us.
One year the river flooded the dam area and my buddy and I were out there at the dam and was standing on top of the part of it that you show in your video with the water running through it. On that day a reporter from the San Diego Union and Evening Tribune wax there. Back in those days there were two newspapers one in the morning ( San Diego Union) and in the evening ( The Evening Tribune) he was taking pictures of the flooding and took our pictures while we were standing on the dam ! I had a paper route delivering the San Diego Union in Carlton Hills and to my surprise when I got the papers to roll for delivery my picture was on the front page below the fold!!!!
That brings back a lot of memories for me because I had explored all over that area. One of the mountains back behind the dam was nick named rattlesnake mountain because of all of the snakes on it. A guy I went to school with (Jim Davis) and his father captured the rattlers and would milk them for the venom and sell it to Scripts Ranch for serum to treat snake bites.
There was always a story going around back then too that talked about there being a Spanish cannon in a cave up there somewhere, but I think it was just a myth because we hiked all over that place and never found it.
It was a fun time growing up in Santee, there was always something different to do. You were never too far from the beach the Cuyamaca Mountains, the dessert Tijuana Mexico or a quick trip up to Disneyland, knotts Berry Farm or The Wax Museum. It was a great place to grow up.... oh the memories your video conjured up... thank you Steve!
I had some similar experiences on the other side of the country, at about the same time, catching crayfish, bluegill and snapping turtles in Virginia. My friend and I found ruins with concrete bunker like shapes buried under leaves and surrounded by trees. We later discovered that it was a POW camp at one time. This was near the Ft Hunt area. I think we had more freedom as kids then, than we do as adults.
Bet it sure different now
I grew up in San Carlos-Patrick Henry HS Class of '72. After 1st Mod, we had 2 hours of what the school called "open mod" when students who had cars could go off campus. We used to head straight out Golfcrest Drive to Mission Gorge Road and out to either the dam, or that abandoned access road off Padre Junipero Serra Road that took you across the river (if you had a a lift kit) to the north quarry. Both locales were good for getting high. But maybe you County boys were more wholesome than us prevert city folk, eh? heh heh heh... We fished there too. Mostly in the quarry pond. Snagged a few cat fish and bass on stink bait. Did you or your friends ever ride on that old manual 4 seat cable tram that spanned the gorge? Good ol' days.
Yeah I was pretty young when the pictures in the SD Union appeared. But visited often after that it was also a very popular make out spot…. Need I say more?
Ah, the San Diego river... Or as anyone in the rest of the country would call it, a creek. 😏
More like a wash
Some traces of the flume are visible behind the 5th green at the Admiral Baker North Course, as well as a bit further upstream in the quarry area.
Growing up in Santee we used to call it Padre Dam I believe. 34 years ago I got busted bass fishing just up stream from there 🤣
Another fantastic video, San Diego Steve! As a kid, I always mistakenly thought the building on Presidio Hill was Mission San Diego. Not until I became an adult did I find out that Presidio Hill was just the original site of the mission. It is now the location of the Junipero Serra Museum, which stands prominently atop the hill overlooking historic Old Town State Park and Mission Valley. The Junipero Serra Museum contains thousands of artifacts unearthed from this historic site.
You forgot to mention that those hills are millions years old.
Monks, men of the cloth and Priests just came over and slaughtered saintly people for no reason whatsoever. Hardly seems believable, but that is modern history.
Fantastic area! The running water is super relaxing and that old dam! Truly fascinating old history to the location. 👍
Yeah, its usually nice and peaceful on weekdays. Weekends are another story lol
Thank you, Steve. Thanks for highlighting our San Diego history and great scenery. I appreciate your balanced research and acknowledging the difficulties with the Spanish colonialization.
Thank you, I really appreciate it.
Great content, as usual. You are an excellent story teller! I cannot wait for your videos to be released on Wednesdays. Keep up the great work.
Thank you.
Wow Steve, I literally started traveling around that area every other day about 2 months ago, I deliver fuel to the Sycuan fuel station over on Dehesa Rd in El Cajon. I come from the North coming down 15S to the 8E and when I leave I take 8W to the 67N to 52W back to 15N. Gonna definitely try and check out Dam one of these days just gonna have to find room to park my Rig lol. Great Video sir.
If you go on the weekday you can probably park it on Father Junipero Serra Rd with no problems. The fire department does training in the area and I see fire trucks parked there all the time.
That Grinding Stones trail you show at 7:00 was closed off for years as was much of the trail around the river. My wife and I used to picnic right there on the rocks in the late '80s and early '90s. Beautiful place.
Nice memories!
Wow, I wonder if they were doing any archaeology work there at the time.
@@SidetrackAdventures, habitat recovery I think. Actually I didn’t know they had reopened that area and I still don’t know how much of it they did open.
I wonder what that stone said, where it has been ground down and the word indians engraved in its place.
Someone told me it said "savages" but I don't know for 100% certainty. I've been trying to find an old picture of it to see.
Wouldn’t it be great to turn the clocks back and see how the area looked when only the Natives were there!
Such beautiful scenery, Steve.
Yeah, I imagine there had to be a village nearby, at least seasonally.
You don’t have to hike too far in Mission Trails to forget you’re in the middle of San Diego and imagine what it was like 200 years ago. I do so often
Just for fun, brought up Google maps. Set position at the park headquarters and did a search for "walmart". Exactly one (Murphy Canyon) came up with a 15 minute driving time. The Grossmont store showed nearly the same distance, but driving time was not indicated. After closing the search panel to see more map (without re-scaling) additional Walmart's didn't appear but up to three Costco's were in plain view. Steve's commentary was so funny I just had to do it.
No one goes the speed limit on those roads though!
I've camped at the campground and it's a great way to enjoy the park and explore the area. Have you ever thought of doing a video about the Diamond Valley Lake up near Hemet? A lot fossilized bones of extinct animals were found there.
I'll have to take a look at it. I have never been there but it sounds very interesting.
The name of the with the fossils is Western Science Center, and it's located on Searle Parkway. I hope I've got it right.
I have lived in Elsinore over 10 years now.
When my roommate's sons were younger, I took them there frequently
I grew up there , I wish now I had spent more time exploring. Thank you.
Steve, your postings about San Diego County topics are really a trip in Mr. Peabody's wayback machine for me! We learned about metates and grinding acorns way back at John Paul Jones Elementary in the 1960s. And as I recall, ground acorns tasted like crap! Thanks for the reminder of the past!
Thanks, I've often wondered what acorns taste like. No wonder squirrels in my area (Oregon) like peanuts so much and leave acorns alone unless they're starving.
Yeah, I think we did that at my school in the 80s too, and I don't remember them tasting too good either.
Interesting bit of history here. I am really curious as to what was originaly on that engraving on the rock near the dam, where it says, "and Indians." There's a very clear indentation there, which suggests that something else was there originally which got removed and then the words that are there now were added.... 🤔
I believe it said "savages".
@@SidetrackAdventures Ah. Yeah, that would make sense. During that time, they were considered--and regularly referred to as--"savages," so I could see where that stone would have been engraved there. Given the date on the stone, I'm surprised that they were still using that term (unless they were simply keeping to the term that applied for the 1800s?), but I could see where sometime after that, someone decided to soften up the language a bit. Thanks for the reply and the info!
In the 1850's paddle wheel steam ships used to come up the river all the way to San Diego State University. I chubasco (hurricane in English) blew up the coast later that century. It caused massive flooding, Encinitas became an island, and re-routed the river to empty into San Diego Harbor.
You're so funny! 🤣😂🤣😂 At the end there about being so close to home. 😂😂😂keepin' it real, huh? 😘😘😘. I want to visit San Diego now.
It wasn't founded by the Spanish it was founded by Father Junipero Serra (Portola Serra expedition)
Lots of water down there this year. Love that place
Someone told me it said "savages" but I don't know for sure. Been trying to find an old picture of it.
Thanks for bring back fond memories, Steve !!! Another great video !!! :)
I went there many times as a kid growing up in San Diego,,,,, WOW! What memories... It was called Padres Dam back then,,,
Another eccentric favorite of mine is Myron Cook, Geologist. And if you watch his channel, he might have a story about that stone sign you started with. Do you have a story about those huge pock marks on it? Seems sooo geological, huh? 😂😂😂. I wonder what makes those rounds on it???? Also interesting, Steve! ❤❤❤❤
This place used to be the gunnery field of Camp Kearny during ww2. If you're willing to hop the "habitat rehabilitation" barriers, you'll eventually come across a few signs that give the real reason they don't want folks hiking there - "unexploded ordinance". I used to find all sorts of stuff out there before the barriers went up.
Great video & especially from the 8:15 mark on truly beautiful, moving & funny, thank you!
Multiple Walmarts.. what a downer 😅
beautiful. Those poor native people under the strong arm of the Spanish. Ugh.
Great video! I live in Florida we have no history because rich assholes built condos on top of Indians historic sites. 😞. You’re lucky.
VT = 6 months of winter followed by six months of bugs, but damn (sorry) i'm sure glad i live here and not there.
Right on Mr. Steve was there anymore traces of how the water got to the old mission and did it feed into any water fountains at the mission. After using the rock to grind up acorns they must have also worn down their teeth from the small little bits like sand that would get mixed into their food. Thanks Steve.
Great presentation! It's a part of history often overlooked by Americans.
Live just a few miles from this spot. Enjoy your explorations.
I’m new subscriber I love you show ; been learning so much about the USA south west, Thanks
I'm on SSI. I wish I could afford to live anywhere west of the Front Range.
Wow yeah, definitely some brave souls willing to eat fish from the san diego river haha!
This area has greatly changed over the years In the early to mid 60's we would catch crawdads by the gunnysacks and see an occasional snake Good ol' days
The rock that placque is on looks like a primitive note written for a blind giant with all those bumps.
This was super interesting and cool !!!! Thanks
Back in the 70s I would ride my bike to the dam with friends and we would jump into the water to cool off.
So cool to see the area so well preserved !
Gee, the San Diego River sounds like a southern California river
One more reason I like this state so much-politics be damned.
There's serious rock climbing on the south side of the road.
Oak creek falls is nice when it rains.
Steve, dont forget....It takes a bigger man than me to drink a Corona Beer from the "lower end" of the Colorado!
woow. what a great place to visit .
how calm the place is .
wish to stay for a while and watch the imagination of old era on silver screen on mind .
Another great video and history lesson Steve. Thanks again.
... How did I miss this one, thanks Steve...
You should have mentioned that across the street from the mission there u😢to be a well that was destroyed and buried for brogress l don’t know if it was built with the mission but it could have been
It would be nice to connect the history of the Alta Californian missions with the missions in Baja California. This connection is often missed and many people don't realize that the San Diego mission was not the first in the chain. Thanks for sharing your stories. I enjoy it greatly as it gives me a sense that I am part of something that is vast, beatiful and ancient.
Who needs Walmart when there's acorns to be had and a nice, cool, fresh place to grind them?
What? You didn’t go to the bottom of father juniparo and go into the grove from the visitor center where there are grass huts etc?
You find the best little historic spots.
I was there in the spring of 2015. At that time, there was a HUGE Rattlesnake problem. If you hike there, especially in the spring, be very careful and alert for snakes and other wildlife.
A friend camped in a quarry cave over night and came out just before sunrise to see a mountain lion sniffing around the cave opening. It bolted as soon as it saw my friend. When Santee was still largely undeveloped, plentiful deer and mountain lions migrated freely between the coast and the Lagunas.
There use to be a metal cable car that you could go back n forth over the canyon. We use to do as kids,
Very cool! Love the indigenous history! 👍🏼
2:30 I wonder what words were canceled to give way for "and indians"
San Diego River is as reliable as the Los Angelas River!
the water isnt deeper it is in fact higher but it is sitting on top of a large deposit of silt mud and rocks so not deeper its just a waterfall now
What's the quality of that water? I know its not potable but is it street run off or what?
Often when you see people fishing they are doing it for the pleasure of it not for keeping and eating the fish 🐟
Thank you so much for your videos and info on places i never knew existed in San Diego...❤ Maybe you could mention how walkable these sites are... I'm not getting any younger!😢
There is a small parking lot next to the dam and a lot of street parking if you are there on a non-weekend. Its very easy to get to. The trail down to the grinding rocks is maybe 1/4 - 1/2 mile from the visitor center and is a little steep but only about 300 feet long.
Looks like someone edited and or redacted that rock, look at and Indians.
Nice swimming hole? The fisher-people would get upset if people were in the water disturbing fish. Don't know if I'd swim there, but a little one or two person lightweight raft would be kind of fun to paddle around and investigate things in and around the water. Eating fish from that river might be healthier than eating fish from supermarkets, especially major chains whose supply is farmed fish or imported fish. I've seen videos of the dubious nature of the quality of supermarket fish, although not all is suspect. Anyway, fisher-people at the dam probably "catch and release" just for the sport. Enjoy, everyone! Great video.
Nobodies eating shit from SD River, bass & carp taste like shit anyways. Catch and release always.
EXCELLENT STEVE..VERY COOL..SAFE TRAVELS..
What a nice video of a historic site! Weren’t they going to install some kind of barrier or some kind of safety measures on that dam to prevent people from falling off of it? I remember a young guy was accidentally killed out there when he walked out onto the dam, slipped, and fell into the water or something like that a handful of years ago. Hit his head, I think. Didn’t his family sue the Park Service or the city? I thought the family was adamant about the city installing some kind of barricade or railings on the dam to prevent the same accident from happening to somebody else. Based on your video, however, it looks like nothing ever was done.
There was a somewhat recent death, but I don't believe it was at the dam. I know there was a hiker who was in the park during bad weather and was trying to cross the river and fell and hit his head, but I thought it was at the river crossing near the visitor center. I could be wrong though. I know that crossing had about 3 feet deep water last time I walked by it, but I haven't seen any construction there either.
@@SidetrackAdventures Yes, I think you have the right news story. That story is what I think I’m remembering. For some reason, though, I thought it occurred quite a few years earlier than it did. Apparently the guy was hiking on a trail that actually crosses the river at one point. I guess he slipped and got swept away and hit his head. For some reason I thought he was crossing the river on the dam, and that’s where he got killed. Apparently his parents wanted to put some kind of bridge over the river at that spot where the trail crosses it but it looks like that never happened.
Thanks for all your videos. This probably won't buy a tank of gas, but maybe lunch!
Thank you. I really appreciate this.
This was first period skip for my crew from Chaparral High back in 1977. We would sit on the pipe that crossed down below the damn aways and burn doobies.
We smoked our doobies. I remember that big ol' rusted pipe, though. Was that part of the old flume system? Is it still there? Haven't been out there in decades. But usually we arc'd our doobiage in that old cable car that spanned the gorge further south. Good times.
Very cool! Really Dig your channel man!