[Bloated Chipmunk]

A few wks. ago I decided to bag an unnamed pk. above Steele Canyon Produce, in/near the town of Jamul. I parked off of Proctor Valley Rd., & entered into the SD Wildlife Refuge. I'm accustomed to heading the other direction, to Callahan Pk., but this is on the north side of the rd., the high point of a range of hills sandwiched between 94 & Proctor Valley Rd., w/Miller Ranch Rd. coming in from the west. There's a trail for getting to the base of it, then one must go xc thru the brush up a hot south-facing slope to the summit. I bagged this pk. on a Monday afternoon after going to a couple appts./running errands in La Mesa. It was a warm day when most other San Diegans were either @ work or too much of a heat wuss to go hiking. More for me. On the way up:

TH

That's it

Gettin' a little closer

Closer still...

Nearing the ridge

View east

On top:

Views

Summit views

Summit views

Summit views

Summit views

Summit views

Summit views

Summit views

Summit views

Summit views

On the way down, as I made my way through the path of least resistance, I suddenly heard something move in the bushes & then a loud hissing noise. My 1st thought was 'cat' but then thought no, prolly snake. I instinctively bolted on ahead to create distance from it, then looked back to see if I could figure out what it was. I didn't see anything or hear any rattling, so who knows. It remains a mystery, but I bet it was a red diamondback rattlesnake. Only cuz that's usually what I see when I'm hiking. Back @ the car:

Route

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