Coral Canyon Campground

When? April 6, 2018
Destination: Coral Canyon Campground/OHV area
Temp: 72 and sunny at 3pm
Vehicle Configuration: 2017 Tacoma TRD Off-Road & Tepui Rooftop Tent
Current Mods: >  
Purpose:Exploration, creation and relaxation
Thought of the hour: Wow, this Campground is perfect
CG description: Small (maybe 20 sites), quaint, off the beaten path. Relaxing, great weather and very few other campers. Free

I woke up today uncertain to what the day would hold. I knew I wanted to go camping, but hadn’t fully committed yet. I woke up early as usual, and went through the normal routine. As morning progressed, I finally made the call to commit. Why wouldn’t I go, right? That was that and to packing I begun.  Luckily for timing purposes, I virtually keep everything ready to go, so packing up the gear was a breeze; the Tepui Tent sure doesn’t slow me down when it comes to that. I got the truck and gear ready to rock and then I was ready to hit the road. One last stop at the RV lot for a couple last minute items and it was off to the mountains for Kaia and I. Unfortunately, Erica couldn’t make it; we will miss her. Next stop, Coral Canyon OHV.

Upon pulling into the grounds, I noticed that it was a very small, yet nice campground, with a men and women’s toilet. Excitement began to take over as I realized I was basically in the middle of no-where with only one other camper, and tons of natural beauty surrounding me. AMAZING! After circling the digs to scope out which site I wanted, I ended up landing on site #16. What a great spot with a table, fire pit, plenty of room and level enough for the roof top tent. I would say that this is probably the premier site on the grounds, just in case you are heading up to check it out. It was the biggest area, with room for 2 cars and a large camping area. Coral Canyon Campground is most used as a base camp for dirt bike riders, as there are a number of trails nearby, leading in and out of camp. With over 50+ miles of off-road vehicle and bike trails, this place is an off-road enthusiasts dream. With just a short drive from San Diego, it makes it easily accessible for a quick weekend excursion.

After getting camp set up, I let the pup run-around rolling in the dirt, exploring and playing with any and every stick she could get her mouth on. This is by far Kaia’s favorite thing to do when we go camping. As evening approached, I got word that some friends would be joining me for the night. How exciting! While patiently waiting for the company to arrive, I figured I’d head out on one of the trails for a quick hike before dinner. We walked up one of the trails directly out of camp, to some higher elevation for a quick look and some pictures. Didn’t go very far, but hey, at least we stretched our legs a bit.

Next up on the agenda was dinner. I had prepared a filet mignon, asparagus and potatoes before I had left home, just to make it easy on myself. Got that stuff sizzling on the grill and within minutes I was sinking my teeth into mouth watering yummy goodness. Shortly thereafter, the friends arrived. After helping them set up their camp and dinner ready, it was time for some games. I didn’t fair so well, hahhah. Although still great camping weather, the temp did drop fairy quickly. Everyone was tired from the day’s expedition and so we called it a night fairly early (we are old now).

It seemed as the next morning came rather quickly. I slept great in the RTT; it’s such a great and easy to use setup. Kaia and I stayed warm, dry and woke up feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. We had some breakfast and coffee of course, and then headed out on another quick hike to enjoy our surroundings. By this time, a few more groups of campers had filled into the campground; being Saturday it was expected. Even still, there were maybe 3-4 groups including us. We all decided that we would make some lunch and then start packing up to head home. Some of us had stuff to do on Sunday and figured it would be best to get back at a decent time to un-pack, clean gear, etc. After about 20-30 minutes, we were ready to head back. Our hearts filled with joy, our minds and body’s sharper from our experience and another campsite explored!