February 14, 2019 – Staycations California

Too cold to go to the beach? Take a Sunday drive instead. Here is one in the San Diego region.

Sunday Drive-Lake Hodges and Del Dios Highway

I was surprised when we visited Lake Hodges on a very warm spring day that there were only about 5 boats out on the water. We were told the fishing was bad so I can understand the lack of fishing vessels but it is a nice sized lake that seemed perfect for taking the boat out for a spin just for fun.

We had fished along the shore before and although we didn’t catch anything, we saw about five huge fish being caught some 100 feet down the shore from us, so we knew the fishing can at times be good. They told me that the water was murky and at a high level so that accounted for some of the lack of activity. Normally you can catch crappie, bluegill, carp, catfish, and largemouth bass.

The rainy California winter may not have helped the fishing but it certainly splashed the landscape with green hills and colorful flowers. On almost every drive we have taken in the last few months it has been like that. Amazing what a good pounding of rain will create later.

Lake Hodges is a lake and reservoir located about 30 miles north of San Diego and just south of Escondido off of Interstate 15. It has a maximum depth of 115 feet and has about 27 miles of shoreline.

Far above the lake from Del Dios Highway

The lake is open seasonally from February through October on Weds, Saturdays, and Sundays. Gates are open a half an hour before sunrise and lock at sunset. There is a concession store and a place to rent rowboats, motor boats, and kayaks as well as ramps to launch your private boats.

If you feel like just hanging around for the day, there is grassy area with picnic tables and designated barbecues that are all close to the store. There seemed to be plenty of parking places in the large lot but I don’t know how crowded it gets in summer.

A grassy picnic area