El Cajon Mountain is one of the steepest, most deceptive, most psychologically demanding day hikes in Southern California — and in this live journey episode, we take you onto the rollers, and up the spine of a mountain that never stops taking and never stops teaching.

This is a real‑time walk through a February gut‑check: early‑season legs, early‑season lungs, and a route that climbs, drops, climbs again, and punishes anyone who underestimates it. You’ll hear the grades, the grit, the pacing decisions, the hydration calls, and the mental resets that make El Cajon a 66/100 on the Blisterpop Difficulty Scale — a “Very Hard” Pop that feels like a training run for Cactus to Clouds.

This is not a highlight reel.
 This is not a polished recap.
 This is the climb as it happened — steep, exposed, relentless, and honest.

If you’re training for a big day, building your early‑season engine, or just want to understand why El Cajon is the San Diego mountain that humbles everyone at least once, this episode is your companion on the trail.

Off you pop.

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