Kate O Sessions Memorial Park Trail – San Diego, CA

Kate O Sessions Memorial Park Trail is a 0.84 mile trail with 135 feet of elevation gain and is part of Kate O Sessions Memorial Park located in San Diego, California. This hike is not to be confused with the extremely popular Kate Sessions Park where people like to hang out with the coastline / ocean views. It is however apart of the same park system and not very far way.

Parking & Getting There

Getting to this trail is very easy and for the most part stays out of the main traffic areas of the beach. The hardest part will be getting off the 5 freeway assuming that is the direction you are coming from. You can see in the google maps image below in RED is residential parking and typically has plenty of spaces open. You will then walk through the dirt area, then the main gate, and you are on your way to the hike.

Direction to the trailhead can be found here: Google Maps

The Trail

This is a brief hike that overlooks San Diego. On a clear day you can see the coast and even downtown. This hike is not very challenging and could be a great place to go if you are looking for a beginner hike. I brought my 2 year old son with us and he hung out in the backpack for the first two-thirds of the trail, then walked up the final one-third on his own.

It is important to mention that the main gate it a bit odd. It is short and narrow. For most you should be able to crouch through this no problem. Although, it will make it hard to get a stroller in. You can see in my recap video above that with my carrier backpack on it was a bit of a squeeze for myself. It’s a bit of a challenge getting through without hitting my son on the poles holding the gate.

The trail consist of some mostly very wide dirt trails. In some places it can get rocky, but not so much that it makes the trail over challenging. There is not much shade available so make sure to plan the hike accordingly and bring plenty of water on a warm day.

Dogs are allowed on this trail but there are signs everywhere mentioning that this IS NOT an off leash trail. We did see a fair amount of dogs on the trail and most of them were off leash. Something to keep in mind while visiting.

There was not much trail signage other than the main gate. The loop is pretty straight forward so it was not a concern for myself. I did notice there was a lot of other trails apart of this area and I think they all lead back to the same main areas. Although I did not explore them to confirm this. I also noticed lots of bike tire tracks and jumps on some of these trails. They did look like a lot of fun, but on the main gate it did say no bikes were allowed.

Lookback

Overall I really enjoyed Kate O Sessions Memorial Park Trail as a beginner trail and visit when I am in the area. In my opinion the best view is right when you park and look out into the ocean / coast.

Photo Gallery

Wrap Up

Is there a specific hike that you would like to see next? Leave a comment down below or reach out via the Contact Form and hopefully I will be able to get a recap and virtual hike posted soon! Thanks for stopping by, enjoy your adventure.