Lakeside Linkage Preserve Trail | Lakeside, California

Lakeside Linkage Preserve Trail is a 2.04 mile trail with 404 feet of elevation gain and is located in Lakeside, CA. This trail has some steep elevation gain, but provides a great workout, and is easy to access!

Parking & Getting There

Parking at this location is very easy. You park on the street and will find a large trailhead sign about 15 feet off the sidewalk. If you bring yours kids or a dog, make sure to be careful while exiting the car. The street you are parking on is pretty busy with cars and trucks zipping past you.

Directions: Google Maps

The Trail

When you start this trail you are greeted with about 200 feet of elevation very quickly. This will get your heart pumping! Because of this elevation gain I would rate this trail as intermediate.

Once you get to the top of this first incline the trail will level out for a bit. This trail is surrounded by houses, but while on the trail it can be easy to forget that they are there. After making your way up the hill a little bit more, you will find yourself in a location that looks like a bike park with jumps and pump tracks.

We were following the AllTrails path below and missed the fork. This was ok in the end because we quickly got back on track. The important part here is that this trial is surrounded by tons of private property. It is important to stay on route so that you are not trespassing into someone else’s property.

After making your way a little further down the trail you will shortly climb a fire road. This is your seconds set of decent elevation gain. Once you get close to the top, you will make a left at the sign and jump back on a single track style trail.

You will be able to follow this until the end of the trail. On the way to the end you will make one more decline followed by an ascent. This one is not as difficult as the previous two. Once at the end of the trail, there is a little viewpoint of the surrounding houses. Nothing too crazy, but was a nice place to get the dogs some water and let my son stretch his legs.

Important Note

On the trail there is no shade. Since Lakeside can be a very hot location, it will be important to check the weather before heading out. The trail signage was adequate. Like I mentioned earlier, we briefly got off trail, but was not the end of the world. The rest of the key navigation points were called out with some trail signage. Pair that with a navigation app like AllTrails and you will be good to go.

Lookback

Overall Lakeside Linkage Preserve was a nice little surprise of a hike. I don’t think I would travel too far to hike it, but seeing that it is “in the area” for myself, I enjoyed it. I will definitely come back here when I am trying to get away from the crowds and not trying to travel too far.

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.