Palomar Mountain Cabin in the Woods: Our New Favorite

So many woodpeckers flying around with their white-tipped wings and red heads. Little munchkin is sleeping in my arms as I rock back and forth looking out at the trees. The cabin is quiet. Peaceful. Nap time for everyone.

    This is what vacation is all about- getting away from everyday responsibilities. Taking the time to have your eyes soak in more than a phone, computer, or TV screen. Work is far away. Responsibilities are minimal. My focus is allowed to be on my family. And if this means my youngest has to nap in my arms because her cries of not wanting to sleep in her pack-n-play in a new place would wake up the others, then I am blessed. 

    Let her sleep in my arms while she is still small. Let the world stop for just a few moments. 

Let my heart be happy.

~*~

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Day 1

This cabin is amazing. I felt like I was in an adorably decorated tree house. Each room is so put together and has a color theme without being overdone. The owner mentioned it wasn’t really designed with kids in mind as there are 2 spiral staircases (one going up to the loft, one going down to another bedroom), but we decided it was nothing that a couple of baby gates and the watchful eye couldn’t handle. The girls absolutely loved the cabin- especially the fun stairs and the piano.

Located right next to Palomar Mountain State Park, Cabin in the Trees is a great location for a get-away weekend. There is no cell phone service, so you can fully disconnect and focus on being with your family, going on hikes, and just relaxing. Check out our full photo album on our Facebook Page.

We made use of our Otterbox cooler and packed everything we would need for meals, putting the cute red kitchen to good use. We didn’t actually need the food to stay cold for very long since this was a short trip, but we were still excited to use the Otterbox cooler again (we though Otterbox just made phone cases- boy were we wrong. This cooler keeps ice for up to 14 days!). Even though we were taller than the fridge (I’m 5’8” but considered the “short” one in my family, so I considered this highly amusing), we emptied the cooler and fit everything we needed, finding all the basic kitchen supplies all ready to use. There were even Coca-Cola bottles, bottled water, and a delicious trail mix from Julian Cider Mill company (on a side note, if you haven’t been to Julian, CA yet, put it on your to do list! It’s a cute little town with the best apple pie).

We (and by we, I mean my husband) made white rice and Chicken Coconut Curry with Mango for dinner and Avena (Colombina oatmeal) for breakfast. We packed all the fixings for turkey sandwiches for lunch along with fruit and some other snacks for the girls.

Day 2

Saturday morning started out with heading to the state park and checking out the Silvercrest Picnic Area and vista. We took Scott’s Cabin Trail Spur to meet up with Scott’s Cabin Trail, a 1.8 mile round trip hike. The scenery was beautiful with the trees and ferns. We kept hearing woodpeckers along the way. Just be careful not to touch the poison oak leaves. We showed our 4 year old what it looked like, and she did a great job of not touching anything. Little munchkin was in the carrier sleeping for most of the trek.

Back to the cabin for lunch and nap time. The youngest ones went to sleep first, so my oldest and I got to spend some quite time building a Mickey Mouse floor puzzle in the quiet cabin. Such a relaxing moment, sitting in a cute, quiet cabin in the woods working on a puzzle with your little one.

Of course the quiet didn’t last long as my youngest decided she didn’t want to sleep in her pack-n-play crib. Her big sister went down for a nap while little munchkin fell asleep in my arms while I rocked in a chair looking out the window at the woodpeckers.

Some people find just the idea of improper nap times and throwing off routine enough to deter them from traveling, but I looked at the bright side. I got some quiet quality moments with each of my girls because of it. And just remember, they won’t be small enough to nap in your arms forever. I take full advantage of this while we have the excuse that we are on vacation.

After lunch and nap time back at the cabin, we drove up to Boucher Lookout observation point. If you are not good with heights, maybe have someone else drive as the mountain roads are not all that wide and do not have guard rails. The autumn weather (rare for southern California!) brought a cloud cover that looked like an ocean. On a clear day, you would be able to see all the way to the actual ocean.

The viewpoint was amazing even with the cloud cover. There were a few other people there, but everyone was really good at reading the signs to let one group walk onto the lookout platform at a time. We waited our turn, took some pictures, and then went on a hiking trail nearby.

Dinner and s’mores were an excellent ending to our Saturday and first full day at the cabin.

Day 3

It rained during the night, and we woke up to a misty/rainy morning. I took each girl out for a walk around the cabin separately for some individual mommy time. They loved the rare rainy weather and the stairs creating a fun circle around the cabin. Neither girl wanted to go back inside.

After a late morning check-out, we took a detour to Julian for some apple pie and headed back home.

Honestly there are so many hikes, we could’ve stayed much longer, but it was a weekend trip that didn’t dig into the work week (have to save up that vacation time!). Even so, it was a perfect blend of relaxation and adventure.

With proper planning, a Friday night through Sunday afternoon Weekend Trip is an excellent way to get in some quality family time, a bit of adventure, and still be able to save up for a longer vacation down the road.

Do you enjoy weekend getaways? Do you feel they are long enough to be worth the packing and planning and traveling efforts? We love to get away for the weekend, but everyone is different. Let us know your own thoughts in the comments.

It was so hard not to overload this post with pictures. If you are wanting to see more, be sure to check out the full photos of the Cabin in the Woods and of our 3 Hikes on our Facebook Page. While you’re there, like our page to get updates when new photos are added.

Have photos of your own Cabin Family Weekend? Share them in our Travel Community, full of people who love to travel, share their adventures, and participate in fun family travel challenges. See you there!

Chao for Now,

Katie